[Speed Gibson,
Thursday January 13, 2005 at 3:45pm]
New Dietary Guidelines
The Federal Government has issued new diet and exercise guidelines. The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture have been issuing these since 1980.
With America's increasing weight problem, the guidelines now focus on weight maintenance and loss. Diet and exercise are the means to that end. There is continued emphasis on reducing fats, particularly saturated and "trans" fats, increasing fiber, and some discussion of heart-healthy exercise, but mainly, it's about weight.
There is a general recommendation to reduce salt to 2300 mg (1 teaspoon) per day, about half what I current consume, and I seldom salt anything at the table, even corn on the cob. Most people, thankfully including me, do not have to worry about sodium. There is even some newer evidence that reducing sodium intake, while generally successful for treating high blood pressure, may not the true culprit. High sodium intake reflects a poor diet, as in fast food and TV dinners. Shifting to more healthy foods increases other nutrients such as calcium, which may cause the improvements seen.
The new fiber requirement seems quite high to me, about double what I currently consume. My quick scan of internet articles suggests that I would get virtually all of the benefits with just a modest increase. These higher fiber and lower salt guidelines would all but force you to eat all those vegetables and whole grains they want, and maybe that's the point.
The 30 minutes of daily exercise minimum has been raised to 60 just to maintain your weight, 90 if you're trying to lose weight. That, too, seems beyond most people's schedules. Next, we'll have to make bricks without straw!
I was glad to see this reaffirmed: "Controlling calories -- not limiting carbohydrates, as some popular diets recommend -- is key to controlling weight." As Dan Rather would say, you can take that to the bank.
The guidelines ... recommend eating many more fruits and vegetables, more low-fat milk, more whole grains, and increasing exercise to as much as 90 minutes a day for those trying to keep off the pounds.
With America's increasing weight problem, the guidelines now focus on weight maintenance and loss. Diet and exercise are the means to that end. There is continued emphasis on reducing fats, particularly saturated and "trans" fats, increasing fiber, and some discussion of heart-healthy exercise, but mainly, it's about weight.
There is a general recommendation to reduce salt to 2300 mg (1 teaspoon) per day, about half what I current consume, and I seldom salt anything at the table, even corn on the cob. Most people, thankfully including me, do not have to worry about sodium. There is even some newer evidence that reducing sodium intake, while generally successful for treating high blood pressure, may not the true culprit. High sodium intake reflects a poor diet, as in fast food and TV dinners. Shifting to more healthy foods increases other nutrients such as calcium, which may cause the improvements seen.
The new fiber requirement seems quite high to me, about double what I currently consume. My quick scan of internet articles suggests that I would get virtually all of the benefits with just a modest increase. These higher fiber and lower salt guidelines would all but force you to eat all those vegetables and whole grains they want, and maybe that's the point.
The 30 minutes of daily exercise minimum has been raised to 60 just to maintain your weight, 90 if you're trying to lose weight. That, too, seems beyond most people's schedules. Next, we'll have to make bricks without straw!
I was glad to see this reaffirmed: "Controlling calories -- not limiting carbohydrates, as some popular diets recommend -- is key to controlling weight." As Dan Rather would say, you can take that to the bank.