New Dietary Guidelines Are Coming!

By law, the Secretaries of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture are required to publish the Dietary Guidelines for Americans at least every five years. A Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee is appointed by the Departments of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and Agriculture (USDA) to assist the departments in providing sound and current dietary guidance to consumers. During its first meeting on September 23-24, 2003, the Committee decided that the science has changed since the 2000 edition of Nutrition and Your Health: Dietary Guidelines for Americans and further evaluation of the science was necessary. The Committee has finalized its recommendations and submitted its Report to the Secretaries of HHS and Agriculture. This Report will serve as the basis for the sixth edition of Nutrition and Your Health: Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which DHHS and USDA expect to publish in January 2005.

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee's findings support the development of Dietary Guidelines that convey the following nine major messages:

1. Consume a variety of foods within and among the basic food groups while staying within energy needs.
2. Control calorie intake to manage body weight.
3. Be physically active every day.
4. Increase daily intake of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and nonfat or low-fat milk and milk products.
5. Choose fats wisely for good health.
6. Choose carbohydrates wisely for good health.
7. Choose and prepare foods with little salt.
8. If you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation.
9. Keep food safe to eat.

The report increases the emphasis on exercise and total calorie consumption for controlling weight and refrains from setting specific limits for sugars. Also new are a statement on salt reduction and one on food safety.

Public comments are now being accepted on the Report. Individuals and organizations are encouraged to provide written comments by Monday, Sept. 27, or provide oral comments at a public meeting on Sept. 21. Written comments can be submitted at http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines or mailed to Kathryn McMurry, HHS Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office of Public Health and Science, Suite LL100, 1101 Wootton Parkway, Rockville, Md. 20852. To provide oral comments at the public meeting, you must pre-register by calling 240-453-8280 before 5 p.m. on Sept. 14. The meeting will be held at HHS (200 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, D.C.) on Sept. 21, beginning at 9 a.m.

This H4H newsflash was compiled by H4H Health Educator, Ms. Judith S. Harris, CHES, BSN, MA.
Source: http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/report/.