USDA food pyramid trims down, takes new shape

Emma Epstein Assistant Features Editor

Spring has finally sprung. Girls are breaking out their miniskirts; everyone is starting to live in their flip-flops. Even the food pyramid of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a fresh new look.

The pyramid’s makeover includes many additions to the familiar triangular shape that has greeted us from the sides of cereal boxes for years. Instead of trapezoids stacked on top of each other, tapering stripes in six colors and widths now represent food groups.

The grains group, in a golden orange hue, is still the largest of the five, followed by the blue milk group, the green vegetable group, the red fruit group, the purple meat and bean group, and the yellow oil group.

The USDA has also added new nutritional goals to the pyramid. Revisions are based on the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture published in January. Important new concepts include activity, moderation, personalization, proportionality, variety, and gradual improvement.

The USDA revised the pyramid as a response to the increased incidence of juvenile obesity. An important aim of the new pyramid is to personalize nutrition choices. One of the mottos of the new pyramid is, “One size does not fit all.” At mypyramid.gov, anyone can enter their age, sex, and level of activity to calculate various specific goals for their eating habits. A personalized page includes information like how much volume of each type of food to eat and how many total calories to consume in a given day. There are twelve different personalized pyramids available.

This type of personalized eating choices is already prevalent at Vassar, said Director of Campus Dining Maureen King. “We’re not a one-size-fits-all kind of community,” she said.

King said that due to student preferences, Vassar is already following many of the new pyramid’s guidelines. “You can definitely follow the new pyramid here based on the things we have to offer, like whole grain bread and the vegan station,” she said.

Comment cards demonstrate that students are conscious of making healthy choices. “Vassar students always think about how they’re eating,” said King. “We’re ahead of the curve because students demand for it.”

Despite these changes, King maintains that there is always room for improvement. She mentioned that when designing menus for the fall, more whole grains would be added. There will also be more nutritional information on-line about campus food, including recipe-like ingredient lists for all prepared foods. Dining Services is also contemplating placing a computer in ACDC so that students can look up information about the food they are eating.

However, it’s not all about what you eat; another new aspect of the pyramid is an emphasis on physical activity. The left of the pyramid features a stick figure climbing up a set of stairs.

“It’s a good step in the right direction, definitely, with adding exercise,” said King. While complete access to all aspects of the food pyramid now requires an Internet connection, the new food pyramid provides much more comprehensive guidelines for eating habits. King agrees. “It’s so much more meaningful.”