Yes class, we realize this is not a
fancy YouTube video, and you don’t really want to read it, but please at least
read this blog post. It’ll sum the article up. Thanks.
This is an article written in the
Vreeland’s Clinic Blog. It talks about the government’s approved food pyramid
and how it has changed and what is wrong with it. This is a surprising article
because in modern society, most people view the food pyramid as the perfect
daily meal plan. This article, however, debunks the government food pyramid.
The
government recently changed their food pyramid in order to keep up with
society. They made the pyramid look more modern, going from left to right with
slivers representing each category instead of steps of the pyramid representing
each food category. While the government may have changed the look of the food
pyramid, making it more modern, they didn’t do much to the foods on the
pyramid.
The grain
section is now located on the right of the pyramid instead of on the bottom
step of the pyramid. While the connotation associated with this is supposed to
be that grains are not as important anymore, that is not what the government is
actually showing. Most people read from left to right, this being true, the
grains section is the first section some one sees on this new pyramid. Being on
the left, the government is suggesting that grains should still be the first
step and most important in one’s daily diet. The doctor who posted this article
says, however, that grains are not actually that great for you. Refined grains,
which the government pyramid says half of grains eaten can be, actually release
huge amounts of insulin into the body, which can lead to weight gain.
The fruit
and vegetable section, as this doctor says, is ok. Fruits and vegetables are
good for you and there is no reason to not eat more for you. The author says
that the only thing that is not so good in these sections is the canned and
dried fruits section. This is because they are loaded with sugar.
This
article then goes into how the section of oils. If you look at this new
pyramid, you cant even see the oils section. This of course suggests that oils
should generally be passed over and not eaten. The author debunks this however,
saying how a lot of oils can be very healthy and promote heart health and do
other healthy things to the body.
The author talks about the category
named milk. He says that America should definitely not drink more milk,
however, if they do it should be non-pasteurized milk because this is much
healthier for you. The pasteurization apparently destroys all the health
benefits form milk other than the calcium.
Finally the
doctor writes about meats. He says that while lean meats are good, as the
pyramid says. Some cuts of meat wit more fat are not bad for you. He says, “The benefits of the fats in the cut far outweigh any
negative”. The only reason steak becomes bad for you is that it is generally
paired with steak fries or other unhealthy carbs.
11) Would the new look of the food pyramid actually deceive you into
thinking that is different and healthier than the old one?
22) Did
you learn that the food pyramid was the healthiest diet in school health class
or else where? Why do you think they teach this still, knowing that is not
truly the healthiest?
33) If
you ever attempted to follow the food pyramid, would you still follow it after
reading this article?
44) Why
do think that the government made the food pyramid more modern looking, however
did not change the content to make more healthy?
I wouldn't really call the food pyramid deceiving. It looks different, yeah, but the portions are still about the same as previous food pyramids. They just have been sorted differently. What I would say that is deceiving however, is the recommendations by the government, of how we should interpret the food pyramid. For example, their suggestion on how we should eat more fruits in any possible form which includes canned and dried one. Canned fruits as they say are filled with sugar as a preservative. Too much sugar is not good for you. They say that by following this food pyramid along with their suggestions, people will become healthier or stay healthy. Now, that would be deceiving.
ReplyDeleteI do not think that the look of the new pyramid is deceiving. The government probably just wanted to give it a fresh new look that would hopefully catch the public's eye. I can't recall any time that I was taught that the food pyramid was the healthiest diet. In a nutrition class I took, the teacher explained to us why it was not the ideal diet. The reasons were very similar to those given in the article. While I would not strictly follow the pyramid, I think it could be used as a helpful first step in trying to figure out a healthy diet.
ReplyDeleteI do not find the new pyramid deceiving. It looks as if the government just wanted to spice it up a little and make it more modern. I would hope that the people in charge of regulating it would know what they are talking about and should be trusted by us. In high school we were taught about the food pyramid and were told that it wasn't exactly the "healthiest" guideline but a not a horrible one to follow. Reading this article did not change my mind because I do not follow it specifically, but I do feel that it is a good guideline to follow if someone is looking for help in finding a healthy diet.
ReplyDeleteBefore reading this article, I thought the newer and improved food pyramid was just stating the same as the older version, only by color rather than example. Beside the look of the pyramid, I don’t really believe that it is deceiving in any way. But it is true that when I was in health class, this diagram was taught as if it were the healthiest form of eating. The only reason why I think this specific tactics is still taught is because it portrays the overall basic elements that should be included in an average diet. I think the government made the food pyramid more modern looking rather than change its content because even though it is unhealthy, people still need these specific types of food in their diet to be considered healthy.
ReplyDeleteThe new food pyramid would probrably not decieve me from believing that it is healthier and different that the old food pyramid because I have my own idea on what to eat. Although the goverment made the food pyramid for the people to eat healthier,I would not trust it fully, I would rather just go off of what I have learned through my parents and nutritionist rather than a chart. That is primarily why I would not be decieved.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, I never really paid any attention to the food pyramid, old or new. Changing the look does not affect me at all. Personally, I've never heard of anyone basing their diet solely off of the food pyramid anyway. Especially after some of the information I have picked up in this class, I don't think the government should be telling me what to eat, as my parents always seemed to know better. The government subsidizes many of these foods, so of course, they want to show exactly what they want us to eat.
ReplyDeleteThe new food pyramid doesn't necessarily "decieve" me into thinking I should eat the way it is stated. However, I believe most people would think this new pyramid is different and healthier than the old one since it is supposed to be revised, but in reality it is only made to look modern to appeal to today's society. In school I remember learning about the food pyramid but I don't really recall learning that it was the healthiest diet. It was more focussed on teaching us that we need various foods in our daily diets, with suggested amounts that should be cunsumed each day. This however, has been taking off of the new food pyramid. I think they still probably touch on the food pyramid in schools just to focus on how you should consume each category throughout the day. However, I doubt that teachers tell students this is the healthiest diet.
ReplyDeleteThis article is actually outdated. The government has since released a food "plate" instead of a pyramid. http://www.choosemyplate.gov/images/MyPlateImages/JPG/myplate_green.jpg In this image, it actually looks like vegetables are more important than grains. Along with this new image, the website http://www.choosemyplate.gov/ gives a wealth of information for a variety of people to eat healthy. I think that a lot of the flaws that the author points out have since been modified in the new MyPlate initiative.
ReplyDeleteI think the government changed the food pyramid because it was time for a change. Just like technology, nutrition facts and theories are constantly being added too, and re-developed. I like how they added in the exercise because that is a huge part in becoming a healthy person, but overall it’s not that big of a change. They definitely emphasize to watch the fatty oil they you consume because those are the worst kinds of foods to eat. I was taught the food pyramid back in 6th grade, and nobody said it was the healthiest, but it is very easy to follow, and I think that is why it is so popular.
ReplyDeleteI knew about the MyPlate thing too. I think it looks more modern as well, but that didn't convince me to use it. I don't use food pyramids or anything like that to base my diet on, I just eat what I want. I remember learning about the food pyramid in school but I don't think it was particularly stressed or emphasized. It never seemed that important.
ReplyDeleteI know the food pyramid and I trust it. But I never use it to design my food. Actually I don't care that much about what the differences are between the old one and the new one. For me, they look almost nothing different. Both of them are much healthier than the diet I eat now. Government changes the food pyramid, but how will that change affect our eating habit? I guess nothing at all. Because most people don't know this change and actually don't care about it. What I want to say is that it is more important for government to find methods to make sure that this food pyramid really help people improve their eating habit. For the government, there are far more thing to do than just revising the pyramid.
ReplyDeleteI first learned about the government's food pyramid and its variants early in high school. I never really followed it then, and I don't base my diet on it now. It seems that each of the categories is too generalized. As stated in the article, the grains category is supposed to make up the largest part of peoples diets. However there are a vast majority of grains that are bad for you. And it seems to be a similar scenario for each food category. Every so often the government comes out with a new model about that displays how someone should have a healthy diet. Instead, maybe the government should dedicate more time to educating young adults about the benefits of a variety of specific foods.
ReplyDeleteI do not think the food pyramid is deceiving. I believe it is also a good thing to have. People should not follow the food pyramid exactly. It is simply a guideline to follow that says people should eat a variety of foods. Everybody's diet will be a little different but it stresses importance of fruit and vegetables which is good and says to eat the other types of food, not too much and not too little. I do not follow the pyramid exactly, but like I said, it is a good guideline to follow. It is good to think about what you eat every day and get a variety of different types of food, but making sure to eat fruits and veggies.
ReplyDeletei personally didn't see any different in the portions of the foods. It just the structure of the pyramid that differ. Having told that this food pyramid is not truly healthiest, reminds me to MyPlate that is a relevant substitute to food pyramid as it provides a better guidance on what to eat. Nevertheless, neither MyPlate nor food pyramid is my preference. I just eat what I want. Even though government made the food pyramid in more modern looking and in a more attracting way without changing the content, perhaps to attract people has yet convinces me to follow it.
ReplyDeleteLike Mark said, I have never based my diet off of the food pyramid. I personally know what is good and bad for me. I feel it is obvious that fruits and vegetables are good for you and that breads and grains can often be fattening. I think that diets are common sense for the most part. It is obvious that a banana is going to be the healthier choice over a cheeseburger or a cupcake even if the bun and cupcake are made of whole grain.
ReplyDeleteI have never depended on the food pyramid and I don’t think I would look at this new pyramid and be mislead. Personally, the function of the pyramid is not to tell me what types of meat/grain/fruit/milk I should be consuming, so I don’t see the new pyramid is a big problem. It seems that determining whether to eat light or dark meat, whole or refined grains, dried or fresh fruit isn’t the purpose of the food pyramid. It simply tells you how many servings of each food group one should consume relative to ones diet as a whole. Although the pyramid says canned and dried fruits are OK, I would never get every fruit serving this way. The food pyramid is important, but people should know to have other knowledge on nutrition before building their diet.
ReplyDeleteThe food pyramid is something that i have never paid attention to in my life. I've never really seen it as important and have always not used it. I feel that with exercise and eating healty in your own way you dont need to use the food pyramid. This is because you live your life the way you want and if you feel good your probably doing a good job.
ReplyDelete