The nutrition pyramid helps people to understand the ways of taking healthy foods for a healthy life. The pyramid may have vertical or horizontal stripes with different colors to represent the nutritious foods classified under different groups. The nutrition pyramid is gaining much importance these days. The main reason is that it is depicting and illustrating clearly the essential foods that we have to include in our daily diets. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) designed a powerful icon, naming it ‘The Food Guide Pyramid’. This pyramid has been divided into five horizontal portions with different colors for representing five essential groups of foods that we have to include in our balanced diet. Subsequently this pyramid was followed by ‘My Pyramid’ with the same concept depicted in a different way. My Pyramid has five colored vertical strips with pitching on its side. My Pyramid is said to be more interactive. The Food Guide Pyramid was taught in schools and food labels also contained it.
In the pyramids, orange color is used for grains; green for vegetables; red for fruits; yellow for fats and oils; blue for milk and dairy products and purple for fish, meat, beans, and nuts. This means, you should have foods from every color, every day. It also implies that a balanced diet should include all these food groups. The proportions of these food groups are represented by the width of the color bands in the first pyramid. Thinner the band is, lesser would be the quantum of intake. For example, the bands representing oils and fats, and meat and protein are thinner than the others. It communicates to you that you need only less amounts of these items. If you look at the bars for grains, vegetables, fruits, and dairy foods, they will be wider, stressing that these items should be taken more every day.
You can also notice in the ‘My Pyramid’ that the vertical bands become thinner as they approach the top of the pyramid. This means, all foods in the same group do not have equal importance and foods pitched in broader areas possess higher importance and vice versa. For example, in the balanced diet apple pie does not have much importance as it contains much of added sugar and fat, and hence, it is placed in the thin part of the stripe. Whereas, you can find a fresh whole apple in the wider portion below, to notify that it should be taken more every day.
Everyone is desirous to know how these foods can be included in the diet. Include whole grains foods such as whole-white bread, oatmeal and brown rice that give you fiber and proteins. Take dark green vegetables for fibers. Include sweet and juicy fruits for vitamins and minerals. For getting calcium, include milk or substitute it with yogurt or cheese. Include fish, beans, meats, and nuts to get iron and other nutrients.
As the pyramid goes step by step, you should also start including the above foods gradually in your diets on a regular basis. You should also consider your present health conditions and medical conditions. Your healthcare provider will be able to guide you properly or refer you to a specialist in the field of nutrition to get the most benefits out of the pyramid.