Nutrition Guidelines for Americans

Below is a snapshot look into the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Throughout this blog, I'll delve further into what everything means to you specifically but for now, as I alluded to in my lead, this will serve as a crash course.

Get Adequate Nutrients within Calorie Needs

Different body types require different energy needs, i.e. required caloric intake levels will vary person to person. Be sure to meet your required caloric needs by consuming a variety of nutrient-dense foods and beverages from every food group with the exception of sweets/fats. It's imperative that your diet does not exceed maximum levels of saturated and trans fat, cholesterol, added sugars, salt and alcohol.

Weight Management

Going on crash diets and/or starving yourself is a horrible way to manage your weight or try to lose some. The key to weight management - not dieting - is to balance your caloric intake levels with calories expended. Basically, make sure you're not eating more than your body needs. Simple stuff right?

Physical Activity

I'd have to write a book to properly explain the benefits of exercising so suffice it to say that you just simply need to make time to exercise. In short, exercise promotes health, psychological well-being and aids in maintaining a healthy body weight.

At a minimum, you should work out for 30 minutes a day, five days a week. To manage body weight, up the work-out session to 60 minutes. To lose weight, work out for 60 to 90 minutes (but don't over-do it).

Most importantly, exercising doesn't necessarily mean running on a treadmill because that can get monotonous and you could burn yourself out. Instead, engage in a variety of exercise activities including cardiovascular conditioning, stretching exercises for flexibility or resistance exercises.

Food Groups to Encourage

Consuming fruits and vegetables is incredibly important because they are the only foods humans can eat to acquire antioxidants, which fight cancer-causing cells. So if you're not eating fruits and vegetables, you're not equipping your body with the necessary tools to fight off cancer.

Aim for two cups of fruit and two-and-a-half cups of vegetables daily with three servings of whole grains and make sure you're eating a variety of fruits, vegetables and grains. Specifically, try to select foods from all five vegetable groups: dark greens, orange, legumes and starchy vegetables.

 Fats

To cut the fat from your diet, the easiest way to start is by choosing lean, low-fat or fat-free versions of your favorite food items. The fat you do consume should be from sources of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids which can be found in such things as fish, nuts and vegetable oils.

Furthermore, aim to stay within the following guidelines:

-          Consume less than 10 percent of calories from saturated fatty acids

-          Consume less than 300 mg per day of cholesterol

-          Your daily fat-intake must not exceed 30 percent of total calories consumed

Carbohydrates

Be sure to include fiber-rich fruits, vegetables and whole grains in your diet often and avoid eating foods and beverages with tons of added sugars.

Sodium and Potassium

Consume less than 2,300 mg of sodium per day while consuming potassium-rich foods.

Questions you may have

Now, as you read through this blog, you may have asked yourself some questions like:

How am I supposed to know my caloric intake needs?

What the maximum levels are of saturated and trans fat, cholesterol, added sugars, salt and alcohol I'm not allowed to exceed and how do I calculate my intake percentages?

What are the basic food groups?                      

How can I be sure that I'm managing my weight in a healthy way?

Which exercise routines are better for losing weight, building muscle and getting back into shape?

What the heck is an antioxidant and why do I have to worry about it now?

What's polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats and why are they better than whatever else is out there?

How do I calculate the percentage of saturated fats and trans fatty acids I've consumed and why do I need to consume cholesterol because I though that was bad for you?

I don't even know what a milligram is so how do I measure sodium content?

These topics and more will be discussed in detail in blogs to come to stay tuned!