Healthy Patterns

"Major Themes of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines\n\nConsume a healthy eating pattern that accounts for all foods and beverages within an appropriate calorie level. A healthy eating pattern includes 2:\n\n• A variety of vegetables from all of the subgroups—dark green, red and orange, legumes (beans and peas), starchy, and other\n\n• Fruits, especially whole fruits\n\n• Grains, at least half of which are whole grains\n\n• Fat-free or low-fat dairy, including milk, yogurt, cheese, and/or fortified soy beverages\n\n• A variety of protein foods, including seafood, lean meats and poultry, eggs, legumes (beans and peas), and nuts, seeds, and soy products\n\nOils\n\nA healthy eating pattern limits:\n\n• Saturated fats and trans fats, added sugars, and sodium\n\n• Cholesterol, in order to limit saturated fats. Previously, the recommendation for cholesterol was less than 300 mg/day of cholesterol for the general public, and less than 200 mg/day for those with cardiovascular disease risk. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines recommends consuming as little dietary cholesterol as possible rather than quantifying it because someone consuming a diet according to the recommendations would consume around 100-300 mg daily and because dietary cholesterol does not impact blood cholesterol levels as much as previously believed 3. The reason for consuming as little cholesterol as possible is because many (but not all) foods that have cholesterol also have saturated fat.\n\nKey Recommendations that are quantitative are provided for several components of the diet that should be limited. These components are of particular public health concern in the United States, and the specified limits can help individuals achieve healthy eating patterns within calorie limits:\n\n• Consume less than 10 percent of calories per day from added sugars\n\n• Consume less than 10 percent of calories per day from saturated fats\n\n• Consume less than 2,300 milligrams (mg) per day of sodium\n\nIf alcohol is consumed, it should be consumed in moderation—up to one drink per day for women and up to two drinks per day for men—and only by adults of legal drinking age 4."