The Dark Side of the Food Guide
Pyramid for Pregnant Women
How much do you really know about the Food Guide Pyramid?Ever wonder why the people in our country have continued to balloon in
weight since the implementation of the Food Guide Pyramid in the 1980’s?Why would the USDA and The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
continue to recommend eating guidelines that clearly aren’t working for us?What kind of impact will these foods have on you especially while you are
pregnant?While proper nutrient intake is always vital to your health and well being,
the foods you eat while you are pregnant matter more than ever before. If you
aren’t eating it, your baby can’t get it. And your growing baby needs the best
of everything in order to be as healthy as possible!
Before I talk about what
is on the Food Guide Pyramid itself, let me give you
a few key pieces of information think about to help
you understand why I might be skeptical about it in
the first place.
Beware
of Copious Inbreeding
Did you know that 6 of the 11 members of the dietary guidelines committee
had extensive financial ties to the meat, dairy, sugar, processed food, egg,
and supplement industries?
Hmmm… Seems to me like individuals receiving financial gain from the sale
and promotion of a product might not be the best people to ask about its
safety or healthfulness.The agricultural industry is one of the top ten industries that spend the
most money on lobbying efforts. Sounds like they are trying too hard. If
something is really all that good for us, they shouldn’t have to spend so much
money trying to convince us to continue to eat it!Another funny thing about the Food Guide Pyramid – they never tell you to exclude certain foods. They use language like “avoid too much” rather
than “eat less”. This subtle difference helps them protect the processed food
industry and other organizations that might stand to lose big money otherwise.Given the fact that the new pyramid continues to recommend foods that have
gotten us in deep trouble over the last 20 years, it’s clear they care more
about the big business that they do about your health.
Now that we’ve gotten the politics out of the way, I want to talk about
where I think their nutrient recommendations will fail you, your body, and
your baby.
The Fear of Fat
When it comes to pregnant women in particular, one of the biggest downfalls
of the Food Guide Pyramid is the way it downplays the importance of fat. By
now, most of us know there are good fats and bad fats but it lumps them all
together and minimizes their intake as a whole. Fat, especially saturated fat
and cholesterol, play an extremely important role in fetal brain development.
Reducing or cutting out fat before or during pregnancy can be detrimental to
you and your baby.
This key nutrient is explained in more detail in Chapter Three of the
nutrition section of The Fit and Healthy Pregnancy Guide.
Quality Over Quantity
Another oversight is on the quality of your food. Now of course, they don’t
talk about this because the majority of the conventionally farmed food in our
country is pretty low quality. And remember – the people who farm most of
those foods have their hands in the pot with the government.
All foods are not created equal. How the animal was raised and the quality
of the soil the plant was grown in dramatically affect nutrient levels. Food
is fuel for your body – and you will want the best fuel possible for you and
your baby.
How Nutritious is the Meat You Eat?
Grass fed, organically raised cows eat the way they were meant to eat, roam
free in the pastures and do not receive any antibiotics or growth hormones.
They are happy, healthy cows! And their meat is dramatically different because
of it.
So for your sake, and for your baby – be choosey about the kinds of things
you put in your body.
Feeling Great AND Turning Heads!
While being healthy is all fine and dandy – let’s face it – most of us want
to look great at the same time! If you don’t think the Food Guide Pyramid will
make you fat, you should read on…Many European countries think we Americans are crazy for eating corn as
part of our regular diet. (corn by the way, is a grain, NOT a vegetable) They
feed their cattle corn to fatten them up before sending them to slaughter. We
do the same thing here, but we don’t think about the possibility that corn and
other processed grains could fatten us up too!I “customized” the food the food guide pyramid for my age, height and
weight, and discovered that they recommend 8 ounces of grains a day. I
went further to research what constitutes an ounce and I realized that they
encourage me to eat the equivalent of 8 slices of bread a day OR eight cups of
cereal a day OR 4 cups of rice a day – or any combination of items similar to
that.Now, I wouldn’t eat 8 slices of bread a day but if I did, I can tell you
what would happen – I WOULD GET FAT!So, why would the government want me to eat all those grains? I think you
already know the answer, but let me recap just to be ultra-clear:1.people with financial ties to the grain industry are involved in the making
of the food pyramid2.The grain industry is BIG BUSINESS in this country – if they don’t make
money, our economy and our government will take a big hit.And, so what if we get fat? If we are overweight and unhealthy, we can go
to our doctor for a prescription to solve our problem. But let me save “The
Dark Side of the Pharmaceutical Industry” for another day…I developed The Fit and Healthy Pregnancy Guide with the mis-informaiton of
the Food Guide Pyramid in mind.I AM NOT subsidized by the government. : )I WILL tell you what NOT to eat.I WILL encourage the consumption of certain healthy fats and other
(possibly surprising) nutrients vital to the development of your baby.I WILL define the parameters of High Quality Eating (HQE) for optimal heath
and wellness.
My HQE plan, combined with Michelle’s fitness
blueprint, will make you one lean, mean mama when all is said and done
(which will be a lot sooner than you think) |
