Dietary Guidelines 2020 – 2025

Dietary Guidelines 2020 – 2025

Happy New Year and Happy New Dietary Guidelines! The 2020 – 2025 Dietary Guidelines were released on December 29, just in time for your healthy eating plans for the new year!

History of the Dietary Guidelines

For more than 100 years the US government has provided guidance for healthy eating. Early editions of the guidelines focused on food safety, avoidance of diseases and staying well fed during times of war. In the 1970’s, the topic of healthy eating, as a way to prevent disease, became a focal point of the guidelines culminating in the 1977 release of the Dietary Goals for the United States. In 1980, a systematic approach to issuing the Dietary Guidelines was developed by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Health and Human Services (HHS). Since the release of the 1980 guidelines the USDA and HHS have updated and released guidelines every five years.

Goals of the Dietary Guidelines

The DGA’s are based on the body of scientific evidence related to health promotion and disease prevention. The process for development of new guidelines starts with the appointment of a group of preeminent researchers and scientists in the fields of food, nutrition, epidemiology, and other related disciplines. This group reviews the existing DGA’s, new scientific evidence since the release of the existing DGA’s, and the overall health of Americans. With this information they develop recommendations for eating patterns that can help improve the health of Americans. The outcome of the committee’s work goes to USDA and HHS who then release the DGA’s.

Make Every Bite Count with the Dietary Guidelines!

The 2020 – 2025 DGA’s reflect the overwhelming body of evidence related to how to establish a healthy eating pattern. While the whole document is long, there are four key guidelines.

• Follow a healthy dietary pattern at every life stage
• Customize and enjoy nutrient-dense food and beverage choices to reflect personal preferences, cultural traditions and budgetary considerations
• Focus on meeting food group needs with nutrient-dense food and beverages, and stay within calorie limits
• Limit foods and beverages higher in added sugars, saturated fat and sodium and limit alcoholic beverages

Making Your Eating Pattern Healthier

We all enjoy different meal patterns, family food customs and this is what is nice about the 2020 – 2025 DGA. For information to help you develop meals that meet your family’s needs, along with recipes, tips for grocery shopping, examples of meal patterns, resources to help you stay on track and so much more visit MyPlate.gov, I think you will enjoy what you find!

About Connie – Connie is a Registered Dietitian with extensive experience communicating in the food and nutrition space. Taking the science of food and nutrition and translating it to simple messages, new products, or exciting menus is her expertise. Making nutrition messages clear, accurate, and engaging aids all consumers.