The New Food Pyramid: What It Gets Right (and What It Misses)

The new Food Pyramid (which is now shaped like a funnel) came out this week, and it’s causing quite a stir in the medical and nutrition communities. Red meat and cheese at the top? Whole grains at the bottom?? What were they thinking???

But there are also some positive things to say about this funnel — and especially the details of the dietary recommendations that are not necessarily reflected in the graphic. Most importantly, the new guideline calls on all of us to EAT REAL FOOD, while eschewing highly processed items that might look like food but whose ingredients tell a different story.

Eat Real Food

As you know, EAT REAL FOOD is advice I regularly dispense to my patients and come back to again and again in my blogs. In my mind, the seven words that most succinctly encapsulate what we all should be eating are:

Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

“Eat food” means eat REAL food. Food that your great-grandmother would recognize as food. She would likely not recognize 80% of what’s on grocery store shelves today.

“Not too much” means don’t stuff yourself.

And “mostly plants” means exactly what it says.

Where the Graphic Misses the Mark

In the latest food pyramid graphic, the “mostly plants” part is de-emphasized. The pyramid graphic also encourages intake of saturated fats (fats that are solid at room temperature and are found primarily in animal-based sources: the marbling in beef, the fat in chicken, cheese, cream, beef tallow…), even though there are mounds of data that show that saturated fats can raise LDL, increase risk of heart disease, and are pro-inflammatory.

The guideline itself advised that less than 10% of our calories should come from saturated fat — even though saturated-fat-containing foods dominate in the graphic.

Kudos to the recommendations. Thumbs down to the graphics people.

A Note on Seed Oils

I was heartened to see that “seed oils” are not specifically maligned, but the written recommendations encourage frying foods in butter and beef tallow. The idea that frying food in beef tallow is somehow superior to frying them in vegetable oil is fantasy.  Recycling seed oils and repeatedly reheating them to high temperatures does result in the creation of counterproductive compounds — so beef tallow may be better for fast food restaurants — but vegetable, olive or avocado oil would be much better for home cooking.

Sugar and Sweeteners

The guideline clearly differentiates between added sugars and naturally occurring sugars.  Naturally occurring sugars are fine.  Added sugars are not.  This means we should all move away from looking at total sugar content of foods on Nutrition Facts Panels and concentrate on “added sugars” instead.  The guideline also maligns non-nutritive sweeteners, which is very welcome. As I’ve written previously, just because they don’t add any calories or show up in the added sugars metric doesn’t mean they’re good for us — or even benign!

Protein Gets the Spotlight

The guideline prioritizes protein intake and advises consuming 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight each day. That translates to 0.5 to 0.7 grams per pound. The lower end is reasonable. The upper end may be more appropriate for growing children and bodybuilders.

Having said that, at least we can dispense with the ridiculous advice to eat 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight each day! If you’ve been trying to do that and are gagging on all that chicken breast — you can finally and confidently stop!

Fiber: The Nutrient We’re Actually Missing

Unlike protein, fiber is relatively short-shrifted. Fiber is mentioned as beneficial, but no specific goal is stated — even though the true dietary deficiency in the U.S. diet is fiber, not protein.

Ninety-five percent of us don’t get enough fiber. The vast majority of us get enough protein.

Ironically, whole grains fall at the bottom of the funnel in the graphic, although the guideline itself encourages intake of whole-grain foods. Again, thumbs down to the graphics people!

There Is No Perfect Diet

Overall, however, I’m choosing to look at the many positives instead of the negatives in these recommendations (and even the graphic), as over time I have developed some humility when it comes to food.

What I have come to understand after decades of cardiology practice and nutrition self-education is that, despite people making claims to the contrary, there is no such thing as a perfect diet. And even if a perfect diet existed, it would not be perfect for every person.

Which is why the seven-word summary of dietary advice is so helpful. Because it allows for a spectrum of dietary approaches - while supporting our best health.  

Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

What This Looks Like in Real Life

Some people will look at those 7 words and decide they’re all in. They jump straight into the deep end and declare, “I’m going vegan!” And they will tell you that their skin has never been clearer, their joints never so limber, and that they have energy for three people!

Others will look at that advice and say, “If you don’t give me a piece of beef, I will bite your head off!”

My conclusion is that both approaches are fine — so long as the majority of what falls on your plate is mostly plants and that everything, regardless of source, is minimally processed and REAL.

So if you want to eat beef — go ahead! Just make sure it’s of high quality, a reasonable amount, and surrounded by plenty of vegetables. Maybe don’t eat beef every day, and certainly not for every meal.

And if you want to go vegan, don’t fall for food items that are labeled vegan but have little nutritional density. After all, potato chips are vegan. Diet Coke is vegan…

If It Were Up to Me

If it were up to me, I might rotate that pyramid about 120 degrees to the left. Or ditch the pyramid altogether and just summarize it in seven words:

Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

No dietary advice — or guideline — has ever surpassed the wisdom contained therein.