How To Eat A Balanced And Healthy Diet

Marilyn Stephenson, a registered dietitian and director of the Office of Nutrition and Food Sciences in the FDA Centre for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition explains just exactly what a balanced diet is: [A How-To Guide to a Balanced Diet, FDA Consumer, Pg 23, October 1986]

Eating a balanced diet means eating a wide variety of foods. A traditional way of getting a balanced diet has been to eat a certain number of portions from certain food groups, as defined by the US Department of Agriculture.

The five basic groups are vegetables; fruit; bread and cereal; dairy; and meat, poultry, fish, and legumes (dry beans, lentils and peas).

It's recommended that you have four servings from the fruit and vegetable group, and should include one good source of vitamin C each day, such as citrus fruit, and a good source of vitamin A, usually deep-yellow or dark-green vegetables. From the bread and cereals group, it is recommended that you get six basic servings including some whole-grain bread or cereals. The recommended servings from the milk and cheese group vary with age, the highest recommendations for teens and nursing mothers (four servings). Two basic servings from the meat, poultry, fish and bean group are recommended.

Then there's the sixth group: fats, sweets, and alcohol. It's a group you want to avoid getting too many servings from. Foods in this group have plenty of calories and not a fair balance of other nutrients.

Eggs, as a protein source, are included in the same group as meat, poultry, fish and beans. One egg is considered a serving in that group. So if you eat two eggs for breakfast you have obtained your recommendations from the protein group and should have no more egg, meat, poultry or fish that day.

Table 2.5 Daily Food Choices

FOOD GROUP

SUGGESTED DAILY SERVINGS

ONE SERVING

Breads, Cereals, and Grain Products

6 - 11

1 slice of bread
? hamburger bun or english muffin
a small roll, biscuit, or muffin
2 large crackers
? cup cooked cereal, rice, or pasta
1 ounce of ready-to-eat breakfast cereal

Fruits

2 - 4

a whole fruit such as an apple, banana, or orange
a grapefruit half
a melon wedge
a small cup of juice
? cup of berries
? cup cooked or canned fruit
? cup dried fruit

Vegetables

3 - 5

? cup of cooked vegetables
? cup of chopped raw vegetables
1 cup of leafy raw vegetables (lettuce or spinach)

Meat, Poultry, Fish, and Alternatives

2 - 3

amounts should total no more than 7 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry, or fish a day
1 egg
? cup cooked beans

Milk, Cheese, and Yogurt

2

1 cup of milk
8 ounces of yogurt
1? ounces of natural cheese
2 ounces of process cheese

 

Discuss It!