Welcome

This is the theme for National Nutrition Month this year, and it focuses on the new MyPlate tool that came out last year replacing the Food Pyramid.  The theme offers practical tips and suggestions on how to implement MyPlate into our everyday meals and snacks.
Before we eat, we need to consciously think about what we will put on our plate.  We need at least 50% of our plate to be fruits and vegetables, another 25% to be whole grains.  This fits with our plan of 75% of our diet from plant-based foods.  This leaves a maximum 25% of our plate from animal sources.  These are generally our protein choices and our solid fats.
As we have learned over the years, the phytonutrients found in plants have a huge impact on the nutritional composition of our diet and reap major health benefits.  Thousands of clinical studies show that people that have the highest level of plant-based foods in their diet have the lowest incidence of illness and lowest risk of disease.  We all want that!
So to “Get Your Plate in Shape” we need to do these things:

1. Make half our plate fruits and vegetables. Eat a wide variety of vegetables, especially the darkly colored ones, plus beans and legumes.  Fresh is best, but frozen and canned count, too (just watch that we choose “no-salt-added” if we have to choose canned vegetables).  Add fruit to meals and snacks, using these as dessert, too!  Fruit juice should be 100% juice with no sugar added, and should generally be limited to about 4 ounces per day.
2. Choose whole grains.  The narrative for MyPlate states to make at least half our grains whole grains, but we need to challenge ourselves that all our grains will be whole grains.  This includes whole grain breads and pastas, as well as just eating whole grains like barley, bulgur, quinoa, and brown rice.
3. Switch to fat-free or low-fat dairy. Remember, dairy is an animal-based food, so this must fit into that maximum 25% of our diet.  But when choosing dairy, choose low fat and also watch out for extra sugar added to yogurt and milk-based drinks: we don’t need all that sugar.  We can also choose calcium-fortified soy, rice or almond drinks.
4. Vary our protein choices. We need a variety in this food group, too.  Choose seafood, nuts, beans poultry, lean meat and eggs.  Watch the portion size in this area.  The average American eats about twice the amount of what we truly need in protein.  We need on average about 3 ounces 2-3 times per day to meet our needs.  Make an effort to include meatless meals in your weekly meal plan.
5. Cut back on sodium and empty calories from solid fats and added sugars.  Drink water and eat natural foods!  Water should be our main fluid each and every day.  By dividing our weight in half, this gives us the minimum number of ounces that we need to consume in water each day.  Also, remember that the more processed our foods, the more added salt and sugar.  Preparing our own meals allows us to season with spices and herbs and not add salt.  Avoid trans fats and choose high-fat foods rarely (like sausages, hot dogs, pizza, cheese).
6. Enjoy your food but eat less.  We can visit www.ChooseMyPlate.gov to calculate our daily calorie limit and keep this in mind when making food choices.  Calories can creep in very quickly so we must be aware of what we put on our plate.  The fewer calories we consume, the better we can meet our weight and health goals, whether that be weight loss, maintenance or general improvement from illness to wellness.
7. Be physically active.  Choose activities that we enjoy and that will keep us moving.  Adults and children should be active at least 60 minutes per day, which can be in 10-minute increments, if necessary, to fit it in, but we must have at least moderate effort in those activities.

By following these suggestions, we can all get our plate in shape, which will help keep our body and our health in the best shape possible.  Happy March!