MyPyramid.gov vs Harvard Healthy Eating Pyramid

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Enrico C - 27 May 2005 17:47 GMT

First, let me say I am not an anti-milk! Not at all. I just love milk, I
drink it every day and I think it's good food (unless there is something
that spoils it, of course).

But... I can't understand why MyPyramid.gov shows "Milk" as one of the
essential food groups:
             Grains
             Vegetables
             Fruits
             Milk
             Meat & Beans
             Oils
             Discretionary Calories
             Physical Activity

Well, I love milk, as I said, but I admit one can live without milk & dairy
if they want or need to.

Well, yes... the same could be said for other single foods, but... some
groups look more "essential" than others, don't they?
"Meat & Beans" (including fish), for instance, is the wide group of protein
sources, and some protein we need somehow, don't we?

I don't understand this new MyPyramid stuff. It's not clear about what is
good or bad for you. It doesn't show, in a picture, what you should eat
more ore less. Those colored stripes look like abstract art, as someone
said, and the names of the food groups are ill picked, imho. If "Milk" is
essential, why not "Fish"? Why are good olive oil and not-so-good
margarine together in the "Oils" group? Why do they say "Grains" rather
than "Whole Grains".
And where is the "No, thanks!" to pops, candies and added sugar? If it's
somewhere in MyPyramid, it's well hidden!

And, I wonder, why didn't USDA use the Harvard Healthy Eating Pyramid
instead?
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/pyramids.html

Apart from some difference in content, Harvard Pyramyd makes *clear* the
do's and dont's about food: YES to whole grains and olive oil, for
instance, Vegetable *in abundance*, YES to legumes and nuts, NO to lots of
sweets, use *sparingly* butter and fatty red meat.... and so on...
Most of those ideas can be found in the new American Guide Lines 2005,
can't they?, but they are not clearly expressed in MyPyramyd symbols.
Why?

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Susan - 27 May 2005 18:20 GMT

> First, let me say I am not an anti-milk! Not at all. I just love milk, I
> drink it every day and I think it's good food (unless there is something
[quoted text clipped - 40 lines]
> can't they?, but they are not clearly expressed in MyPyramyd symbols.
> Why?

The sugar and cereal growers' lobbies had decision making influence over
the pyramid once more, hence no recommendation to avoid added sugars or
refined foods.

Susan

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Enrico C - 27 May 2005 18:43 GMT

> x-no-archive: yes
>
[quoted text clipped - 46 lines]
> the pyramid once more, hence no recommendation to avoid added sugars or
> refined foods.

I fear *all* lobbies had their say on it! Cereal, meat, margarine, pops...
and so on. The problem is... MyPyramid doesn't clearly say "NO" to
anything... ;)

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Susan - 27 May 2005 18:45 GMT

> I fear *all* lobbies had their say on it! Cereal, meat, margarine, pops...
> and so on. The problem is... MyPyramid doesn't clearly say "NO" to
> anything... ;)

Clearly, the meat farmers had little say, as last time. The fact that
sugar is completely devoid of any nutritional content and is considered
okey dokey for 10% of calories is very telling about who the decision
makers were.

Susan

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Enrico C - 27 May 2005 20:13 GMT

> x-no-archive: yes
>
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
>
> Clearly, the meat farmers had little say, as last time.

How come one of the essential food groups is "Meat & Beans"
and not "Fish & Beans", for instance? ;)

The Harvard Public School of Health recommends Fish, Poultry, Nuts and
Beans as good sources of protein, while they say to "use sparingly" red
meat containing lots of saturated fat.

Even MyPyramid.gov says, in small print, to eat "more fish" and to "chose
low-fat or lean meats and poultry".

Yet, in MyPyramid, the protein food group name [most likely, the only key
word 99% of readers will remember] is just "Meat" (and beans)... How come?

By the way, I eat some meat, along with all the rest. I am not a veggie.

> The fact that
> sugar is completely devoid of any nutritional content and is considered
> okey dokey for 10% of calories is very telling about who the decision
> makers were.

I think they managed to make *everybody* happy... everybody in food
industry... ;)

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Enrico C
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Robert - 27 May 2005 20:42 GMT

> > x-no-archive: yes
> >
[quoted text clipped - 16 lines]
> Yet, in MyPyramid, the protein food group name [most likely, the only key
> word 99% of readers will remember] is just "Meat" (and beans)... How come?

The mexican food industry with illegal aliens have an input because they can
vote now.

> By the way, I eat some meat, along with all the rest. I am not a veggie.
>
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> I think they managed to make *everybody* happy... everybody in food
> industry... ;)

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Susan - 27 May 2005 23:25 GMT

> How come one of the essential food groups is "Meat & Beans"
> and not "Fish & Beans", for instance? ;)

I guess I lump animal proteins together, but you're right if you want to
claim that the beef ranchers are better funded and organized than the
commercial fisherpeople.

> The Harvard Public School of Health recommends Fish, Poultry, Nuts and
> Beans as good sources of protein, while they say to "use sparingly" red
> meat containing lots of saturated fat.

Most red meat doesn't contain "lots of saturated fat." Especially if
it's grass fed non-feedlot beef, and well trimmed. Only the most
marbled cuts may have more sat fat than monunsaturated. Sirloin gets
more than half its fat from mono and poly, even if feedlot raised.

> Even MyPyramid.gov says, in small print, to eat "more fish" and to "chose
> low-fat or lean meats and poultry".
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
>
> By the way, I eat some meat, along with all the rest. I am not a veggie.

I eat mostly animal protein and veggies, with about 44-50% of my diet
from fat. But I only eat about 1000 cal per day.

> I think they managed to make *everybody* happy... everybody in food
> industry... ;)

Then you didn't follow the reports coming out of the process; sugar
folks in the driver's seat all the way. Just like at the ADA.

Susan

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Enrico C - 28 May 2005 02:25 GMT

> x-no-archive: yes
>
>> How come one of the essential food groups is "Meat & Beans"
>> and not "Fish & Beans", for instance? ;)
>
> I guess I lump animal proteins together,

And that's just what USDA still does: *lump* together all kinds of protein
sources, as if they were just the same.

Here is Harvard's analysis:

| In terms of protein, the guidelines continue to lump together red meat,
| poultry, fish, and beans (including soy products). They ask us to judge
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
| replacing red meat with a combination of fish, poultry, beans, and nuts
| offers numerous health benefits.

> but you're right if you want to
> claim that the beef ranchers are better funded and organized than the
> commercial fisherpeople.

Likely so.

>> The Harvard Public School of Health recommends Fish, Poultry, Nuts and
>> Beans as good sources of protein, while they say to "use sparingly" red
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> marbled cuts may have more sat fat than monunsaturated. Sirloin gets
> more than half its fat from mono and poly, even if feedlot raised.

I agree with you, not all red meats are equal.
Yet, fats in meat are still different from fats in fish.

I suppose Harvard especially refers to *strong* meat eaters, saying that
they should alternate red meat with other protein sources such as fish,
chicken and turkey, eggs ...

| # Red Meat [...] (Use Sparingly): [...] If
| you eat red meat every day, switching to fish or chicken several times a
| week can improve cholesterol levels.

[...]

| Fish, Poultry, and Eggs (0 to 2 times). These are important sources of
| protein. A wealth of research suggests that eating fish can reduce the
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
| breakfast than a doughnut cooked in an oil rich in trans fats or a bagel
| made from refined flour.

>> Even MyPyramid.gov says, in small print, to eat "more fish" and to "chose
>> low-fat or lean meats and poultry".
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> I eat mostly animal protein and veggies, with about 44-50% of my diet
> from fat. But I only eat about 1000 cal per day.

So, it's less dietary fat than in a 30% fat - 2000 cal diet, actually :)

>> I think they managed to make *everybody* happy... everybody in food
>> industry... ;)
>
> Then you didn't follow the reports coming out of the process; sugar
> folks in the driver's seat all the way. Just like at the ADA.

The candy-man may well sit in the driver's seat, but I suspect the whole
food industry merry brigade is traveling on the van! Butter-man and
Potato-man are not unhappy either, in MyPyramid... while Harvard would say
"use sparingly"!

Or maybe I am wrong, there are no lobbies in MyPyramid... and it's just a
very ineffective symbol, with ill picked food group names and - ouch! how
absent-minded of us... - we forgot telling people about a most important
issue, not to binge on added sugar! ;)

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Cubit - 28 May 2005 18:09 GMT

Maybe they want people to get the vitamin D that is added to milk.

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Enrico C - 28 May 2005 18:20 GMT

>> First, let me say I am not an anti-milk! Not at all. I just love milk, I
>> drink it every day and I think it's good food (unless there is something
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
>> Discretionary Calories
>> Physical Activity

<snip>

> Maybe they want people to get the vitamin D that is added to milk.

So, why didn't they include a "Sun exposure" group, after "Physical
Activity"? ;)

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