Alternate Food Pyramids

Last time we talked about the USDA Food Pyramid. For most people, that is THE Food Pyramid - the only one they know about.

What you may not realize is that many doctors and nutritionists disagree with the USDA Food Pyramid, and have published alternatives.

For example, the famous Mayo Clinic has a Vegetarian Diet Pyramid. Being a healthy vegetarian isn't as simple as just eliminating meat from your diet. You have to make sure that you get enough of the proper nutrients. Some of the nutrients that they may lack include: protein, calcium, vitamin B-12, iron and zinc. The Mayo Clinic pyramid can help vegetarians plan a healthy diet.

Another alternative is the Harvard School of Public Health Healthy Eating Pyramid. They claim the USDA food pyramid is flawed, based on out-dated science, and overly influenced by people in the food industry who have a vested interest in seeing their products included.

The foundation of the Harvard School pyramid is daily exercise, and weight and portion control, since these things strongly influence your chances of staying healthy. The Healthy Eating Pyramid builds on those, recommending that you should eat more foods from the bottom part of the pyramid (vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats) and less from the top (red meat, refined grains, sugar and salt). Calcium is important, but milk is certainly not the only source. And since we don't always eat as well as we should, take a multivitamin daily as nutritional "insurance."

Other alternatives include the Asian and Mediterranean Food Pyramids, and a pyramid specifically for elderly people that includes vitamin & mineral supplements and extra liquid to prevent dehydration.

It's important to understand is that everyone is different, and what works for one person may not work for another. But there are a few key things that everyone needs to stay healthy: exercise, weight control, getting enough of the important nutrients, eating more healthy foods (fruits and vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats) and limiting the amount of less healthy and unhealthy foods (sweets, salty snacks, saturated fats, refined grains, etc.) There are now many different food pyramids available - do some research and pick the pyramid that's right for YOU.