You may have seen a few articles recently about the release of the new food pyramid by the USA health department. So, what does it actually mean for you in real life?
The Old Pyramid and The Plate – Most people are familiar with the classic food pyramid which tells you to have the base of your diet as bread, rice, pasta and cereals. Then consume fruit and veg somewhere above that, meat and dairy in moderation with fats and sugar right at the top as the things to minimise.
Almost no one knows that this pyramid was officially withdrawn years ago and replaced with the MyPlate model. The plate model was meant to be simpler, half your plate would be fruit and vegetables, a quarter protein and a quarter carbs with some dairy on the side.
Both models sort of helped, sort of left people confused about food quality, ultra processed foods, snacking, drinks and how any of this actually fits into a modern lifestyle, especially these days where people eat on the go and rarely cook from scratch.
The New Pyramid – The new guidance is an inverted pyramid but it is based more on patterns. The main themes are less ultra processed food, more whole foods, more vegetables, more fibre, and a shift towards higher protein sources. It also places a bigger emphasis on reducing sugar and refined carbs rather than just fat.
It is less about strict percentages and more about overall food quality. It details fresh food over packaged, meals over snacks, with fibre and protein over empty calories. They now recommend 1.2-1.6g / kg body weight. This is by far the highest protein target I have seen for the general population (not including sports etc). In theory, this is a move in a better direction than the old carb heavy pyramid that dominated for decades.
This update applies to the USA. In the UK we still largely use the Eatwell Guide, which is basically a rebranded version of the plate idea. Over time you would probably expect us to come out with a similar rebrand as in the USA.
Pyramid Confusion – I think one of the biggest issues now is that people genuinely do not know what healthy eating looks like anymore. We have had decades of conflicting advice, low fat, low carb, high protein, plant based, keto, fasting, carnivore. On top of that, most people do not cook regularly anymore. So advice that assumes home cooked meals, time and food skills is becoming less and less relevant to how people actually live.
General Themes Still Matter – Despite all the noise, the big themes have not really changed to how most people view food. It is more that the change is fairly different to the first ever pyramid. Diets higher in vegetables, fibre and protein tend to work better. Diets built mostly around ultra processed foods tend to cause problems. People who eat mostly meals rather than constantly snacking tend to regulate hunger better. You do not need a pyramid to see this, if you just look at how your own body reacts to different eating patterns.
We Shall Just forget About Calories Then – The new pyramid talks about calories a bit then doesn’t. They assume that IF you follow the guidelines and eat healthy food then you will naturally lose weight. This is a massive assumption, while you can eat less than you need following the guidelines of course, you can also eat exactly what you need and not change your body shape.
While it is a food pyramid designed for health, not fat loss. Surely the advisors know the population obesity data. It is baffled me why experts won’t just point out the exact same plan can’t achieve everything. You cannot optimise health & optimise fat loss speed at the same time. Something must be slightly different, e.g. If you are losing body fat on your plan, to optimise your health further, you should eat those missing extra few hundreds calories a day that is causing your fat loss. Pointing out that maybe the only difference between a optimal health plan and fat loss one is a few hundred calories you would actually help the millions of people who think just picking the right foods is all you need to do.
One Size Never Fits All – No pyramid, plate or guideline can account for individual differences. Some people feel great on higher carb diets, others do not! Some people do well with more animal protein, others prefer plant based options. Your hunger, energy, digestion and body composition feedback matters far more than any rigid plan or approach.
Behaviour Beats Knowledge – Most people do not fail because they do not know what healthy food is. They fail because of habits, stress, time pressure, emotions and environment. A perfect pyramid does nothing if your kitchen is full of sugar snacks, you eat on the sofa every night and you are exhausted. The real work is changing behaviour patterns, not memorising food groups.
What Does This Means For You
I think it is good to have guidelines on eating but I don’t think I’d stress about pyramids, plates or food headlines. Use them as general guidance. These latest recommendations are just saying to focus on eating real food more often. They tell you to increase protein and vegetables while reducing ultra processed snacks. If you find a way of eating that does this then it should give you energy, control your hunger and allow the body to feel great. If you can get this approach to fit your lifestyle and provide enough taste / satisfaction to feel happy, then it becomes an approach you can sustain long term.
Photo – The new food pyramid and me with all the foods you need to eat in a day to hit your vitamins & mineral needs
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