Musselman 1

Audrey Musselman

ENG 1201-511

Casey Flores

24 October 2021

MyPlate Food Recommendations

MyPlate.gov is an official government website that houses the information needed for Americans

to make healthier food choices. It is also the home to many resources that can help someone personalize

their own nutritional food recommendations. Many questions can be asked about the effectiveness of the

website and dietary guidelines. This paper will focus on one. How do MyPlate recommendations and

resources help American families make healthier food choices?

In 2011, MyPlate.gov was introduced by the USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) to update

Americans on the changes made to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, also published by the USDA.

The current visual representation is a dinner plate divided into food group portions to remind people of

approximately how much of which foods to eat without memorizing specific amounts. There were many

other representations over the last 100 years to help the public identify the foods that they should be

eating (“A Brief History of USDA Food Guides”).

“Americans are eating and drinking too many added sugars, which can contribute to health

problems such as weight gain and obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease” (CDC, “Get the Facts:

Added Sugars”). “At the time of the American Revolution, we consumed about an estimated four pounds

of sugar per person per year. Now, we may each average more than fifty pounds annually. That’s the

equivalent of about seventeen teaspoons of added sugars every day” (Greger 172). The Dietary

Guidelines for Americans recommends avoiding added sugar before age two and consuming less than

10% of daily calories as added sugar after age 2 (Executive Summary). For a standard 2000 calorie diet,

that would be less than 200 calories from added sugar. “[D]rinking even one 20-ounce soda (~240

calories from sugar) exceeds the 10% limit for added sugars for most people” (Willett et al.).
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Added sugars do not include the sugars that are naturally found in foods such as fruits. In an

attempt to make food “healthier” by removing the fat content (which contains flavor), sugars must be

added to make the new concoction palatable. There are disagreements as to how much added sugar is too

much. In the article I found through Sinclair’s search engine, Building Better Guidelines for Healthy and

Sustainable Diets, Willet et al. argue that the “limits on … added sugar should be included in guidelines

for all ages” (402), not just children under the age of 2. Nevertheless, it is undeniably evident that

Americans consume an absurd amount of added sugar daily.

There is a consensus that one’s diet should consist of variety. “[G]ood nutrition is really about

having a well-rounded diet” (CDC, “Healthy Eating Tips”). As described above, MyPlate.gov uses a plate

to help visualize the balance of foods that we should be eating. One half of the plate is fruits and

vegetables. The other half has grains and protein. There is a circle labeled dairy that looks as if it should

be a glass of milk (“What Is MyPlate?”). The Dietary Guidelines for Americans and CDC also include

adding healthy fats, such as avocado, olive oil, and nuts (CDC, “Healthy Eating Tips”; Executive

Summary).

The difference of opinion lies in how much meat should be included in the healthy diet. Dr.

Michael Greger, founder of NutritionFacts.org, advocates the least amount of meat possible, but does not

try to force his views. “If you continue to eat meat, your best choice would likely be wild game” (207).

He does the research and lays out the facts. He does not have any products to sell except his books, but all

of that information can be found on the website, whether in videos or articles. Willet et al. also advocate a

diet low in meat consumption and asserts the “data strongly support shifting toward lower consumption of

animal protein sources, and higher intakes of healthy plant sources” (402). While the Dietary Guidelines

list animal products as main sources of protein and dairy (Executive Summary).

There is a phrase that is thrown about by people who count calories as a way to lose weight. “A

calorie is a calorie.” Meaning that they can choose to eat a healthy meal rich in nutrients or a bag of

candies with the same calorie count and no nutrients. They feel that as long as they stay under their
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recommended calories for the day then they will remain healthy. This is not true. Our bodies need

different amounts of vitamins and minerals, some of which we can only get from foods since our bodies

cannot make them. If you use your calorie allowance on sugar and candy, you have none left for fruits

and vegetables.

This information does not help answer my question. It seems that I may be going in a slightly

different direction and should revamp my question. If I do stay with this question, I would need to look

more carefully at the MyPlate website, although I feel my question seems to be more of a MyPlate.gov

website review. MyPlate.gov has many tools to assist individuals in finding out how to personalize their

diet so that they can choose more nutritious foods. The biggest problem I see, is that not everyone has

access to the internet to use these tools.

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Works Cited

“A Brief History of USDA Food Guides.” MyPlate, June 2011, https://myplate-

prod.azureedge.net/sites/default/files/2020-12/ABriefHistoryOfUSDAFoodGuides.pdf.

CDC. “Get the Facts: Added Sugars.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 6 May 2021,

https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/data-statistics/added-sugars.html.

---. “Healthy Eating Tips.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 Mar. 2021,

https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpao/features/healthy-eating-tips/index.html.

Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. U.S. Department of Agriculture,

https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/resources/2020-2025-dietary-guidelines-online-materials.

Accessed 24 Oct. 2021.

Greger, Michael. How Not to Diet: The Groundbreaking Science of Healthy, Permanent Weight Loss.

First edition, Flatiron Books, 2019.

“What Is MyPlate?” MyPlate, https://www.myplate.gov/eat-healthy/what-is-myplate. Accessed 24 Oct.

2021.

Willett, Walter C., et al. “Building Better Guidelines for Healthy and Sustainable Diets.” American

Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 114, no. 2, Oxford University Press / USA, Aug. 2021, pp.

401–04. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqab079.