If you want a simple and easy way to eat healthy, you might be tempted to follow the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) “MyPlate” guidelines. In essence, it’s an eye-catching diagram of a circular plate with divisions of various food categories: fruits, vegetables, protein, grains, and dairy. So what could go wrong? It includes all the necessary nutrients to live a healthy fulfilling life, right?
Is MyPlate really the best guide for eating healthy? Or is it a flawed model that does not provide you with the necessary nutrients your body needs? I will expose some of the major issues with the USDA’s MyPlate and instead suggest an alternative model from which to base your dietary needs on.
First, let’s take a look at the MyPlate:
As you can see, the MyPlate features a plate in the center containing 4 categories of “essential” food groups, and a small glass on the side labeled: “Dairy”.
MyPlate does not distinguish between healthy and unhealthy choices within each food group.
One of the biggest issues with MyPlate is that it does not distinguish between healthy and unhealthy choices within each food group. For example, you could eat a hot dog and that could technically count as protein, but it is still not the same as another form of protein such as fresh fish. In fact, it is very unhealthy to eat hotdogs as a primary protein source. Another example of this is the dairy section: You could eat a pint of ice cream and count that as your daily dairy quota but this is also dangerous as eating ice cream daily can increase one’s risk of developing cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes.
MyPlate should specify between the healthy and unhealthy food from each food group.
The dairy category is unnecessary
MyPlate suggests that we drink one glass of dairy every meal. This is a problem because dairy is in fact not essential to human health, and may even have some detrimental effects on our bodies.
Dairy is high in saturated fat and cholesterol which can raise one’s risk of heart disease and stroke. Dairy may also interfere with the absorption of some minerals such as zinc and iron. This can lead to deficiencies and affect growth, development, and immune function.
The dairy industry in the US is especially harmful as products may contain hormones, antibiotics, and other contaminants that can affect human health. For example, many cows are treated with hormones such as recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) to increase milk output, which is associated with an increased risk of colon, breast, and prostate cancer for consumers.
The solution
As an alternative to the many flaws of the USDA’s MyPlate, experts at Harvard School of Public Health address these concerns with their “Healthy Eating Plate”.
The Healthy Eating Plate is a guide for eating healthy, balanced meals that can help reduce risk for some health conditions
The Healthy Eating Plate:
Harvard reworked the MyPlate and specifies the foods we should consume in each category. They suggest whole grains such as brown rice, and whole wheat bread instead of pasta and pizza; they removed dairy and replaced it with water; they also specified the type of protein we should be eating
While MyPlate is a simple way to visualize eating a healthy meal, it has several flaws when it comes to truly eating a healthy meal. It does not distinguish between healthy and unhealthy food choices, nor does it address the role of healthy fats in our GIT. People should be aware of these flaws and supplement their knowledge with other sources of information such as the Harvard Healthy Eating Plate.
Credits:
By bringing small changes in MYPLATE menu, the one ,who is really keen and conscious about heath definitely get health benefits.
Thank you so much IKSHVAK, and expecting more of such useful blogs.
“WISH YOU GOOD LUCK”