Back to Basics: All About MyPlate Food Groups

Why do your food groups not correspond to the Nutrition Facts Labels on food packages which are Fats, Carbohydrates, and Proteins? There are 3 fat groups: saturated fat (from red meat, hard cheese, butter, sour cream, heavy cream, and lebne) , mono-unsaturated fat (from various nuts, peanuts, avocado, olive oil, canola oil), and polyunsaturated fat (from soybeans, walnuts) . There are 4 carbohydrate groups: grains and legumes (seeds), vegetables, fruits, and milk and yogurt. There are many foods that are mostly protein: red meat, poultry, eggs, pork, fish, shellfish, cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, and tofu. It is important for people to know that saturated fat is a secondary energy source and glucose rich foods (starch) are the primary energy sources. Excessive consumption of these foods lead to obesity.

@Lois Redican - The Nutrition Facts panel and the MyPlate food groups are both tools people can use to build a healthy eating pattern. The Nutrition Facts label can be used when purchasing foods and when comparing two different food products. It provides information about macronutrients (fat, carbohydrates and protein) as well as select micronutrients, including calcium, vitamins A and C, and iron. The MyPlate food groups are designed to help people build healthy eating patterns over time. To build a healthy eating pattern, choices within each food group should be nutrient dense, meaning that they are low in added sugars, saturated fat and sodium. MyPlate is an icon that can help you to easily visualize the components of a healthy eating pattern. In practice, you can use the MyPlate food groups to help build and plan meals, and when you go to the store to shop for ingredients, look at the Nutrition Facts panel to make sure that you are choosing foods that are lower in saturated fat and sodium.

it is interesting to me how eating more fruits and vegetables can make the different.

Fruit cannot be more important than vegetables… Please check it.

Dairy is not a food group! So many people are lactose intolerant and there are plenty of plant based calcium rich foods, like greens. Instead that food group should be just taken out completely. You could change it with fat if you want, but that should be a small percentage of our "plate".

Thank you for sharing.

Now that many proper scientific studies have been done showing that saturated fats are actually healthier for us than poly or unsaturated fats, why is the government still perpetuating this myth to our detriment?

This is very informative.

Good information to customize a personal meal plan

Although these are the recommended 5 groups it not realistic to eat this 3 meals a day. with busy work schedules, school, kids and a busy life its easier to buy out side or to just grab a frozen meal and microwave it.

I didn't realize that the "meat" group is now referred to as the "protein group." You do realize that beans - a plant/vegetable - has a ton of protein, yes? This whole plate is a misnomer as to what we should be eating. We don't need meat for protein and to call that a whole group on its own is misleading.

Your my plate should have 2 cups of fruit, 21\2 of vegies, 6 ounces of grain, 51\2 ounces of protein, and 3 cup's of dairy.

I think food groups can be very important because if you don't follow the food groups sometimes your body can get weaker but if you do follow the food groups your body can get very healthy and strong.

I think this article will help me and my family have a better and well-balanced meal when having breakfast, lunch, and dinner. :)

I have learned that fruits and vegetables are a very important part of a very balanced diet and can help you get through the day. dairy is good for you but in limited amou nts

I think that it should tall more about the food fats and the carbohydrates on the food labels

To encourage us to improve our diet, provide pdfs or copy-and-paste versions of MyPlate and the image before that in a font size that will be readable when printed out in landscape. Size 5 just doesn't cut it.

Dairy is not a food group. We do not need milk to get calcium. Calcium can be found if green food. Too much calcium intake makes our bones brittle

every single food in that plate is necesary to our body because we need proteins vegetables fruits and dairy

these are healthy ways for a kid to eat.

Clearly no one is actually reading the myplate guidelines....this is meant as a guideline (what does a guideline mean? It means something to start from) if you cannot consume dairy or meat, then you will need to do more research on sources of calcium, protein, vitamin D, fats. It does say nuts and beans in the protein section as well as soy options in the dairy section. Those with allergies will need to do more research outside of this source. That is just a reality; you aren’t being picked on. This is a guideline source people. There are actually trans fats too so that would make 4 fats not three. Dairy is a food group bc of the specific vitamins contained in those products. There is nothing wrong with being lactose intolerant or gluten sensitive/celiac disease, etc. But you will have to research more to find recipes and substitutes which there are numerous sources outside this source. This is again a GUIDELINE to get people away from grabbing fast food, frozen meals and eating prepared snacks which make you obese and destroy your health. FYI SATURATED FAT is not a good fat...don’t say stuff unless you know for certain. It is ok in moderation but it contributes to raising LDL and heart disease which is bad. Unsaturated fat is the good fat. You can find saturated fats in meats which is why they recommend lean meats and fish. Trans fat is really not good and mostly found in artificial forms in prepared packed foods. Use this guideline people and use the internet to dig deeper. This is also a 2,000 calorie/day limit and that is also not for every body type. You have to adjust accordingly. 🤦🏼‍♀️ EVERYTHING WILL NEVER INCLUDE EVERYONE. Guidelines are based on country averages...the average American needs x y z...

USDA, you are getting there but still not enough adjustment for quality health on the food plate.
Money still talks and capitalizes the industry even after substantial evidence proves otherwise. Still a disappointed health teacher having to show this to my students.

i think having a balanced diet is important because if you don't get the right balance of food your body would not have the food to work properly.

I think mushrooms and edible fungi need to be recommended more.