USDA GUIDELINES
E-mail this page 
Printer-friendly page
Focus on fruits. Eat a variety of fruits--whether fresh, frozen, canned or dried--rather than fruit juice for most of your fruit choices. For a 2,000 calorie diet, you will need 2 cups of fruit each day (For example, 1 small banana, 1 large orange, and 1/4 cup of dried apricots or peaches.)
Vary your veggies. Eat more dark green veggies, such as broccoli, kale, and other dark leafy greens; orange veggies, such as carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and winter squash; and beans and peas, such as pinto beans, kidney beans, black beans, garbanzo beans, split peas and lentils.
Get your calcium-rich foods. Get 3 cups of low-fat or fat-free milk - or an equivalent amount of low-fat yogurt and/or low-fat cheese (1 1/2 ounces of cheese equals one cup of milk) - every day. For kids ages 2 to 8, it's 2 cups of milk. If you don't or can't consume milk, choose lactose-free milk products and/or calcium-fortified foods and beverages.
Ensure half of your grains are whole. Eat at least 3 ounces of whole-grain cereals, breads, crackers, rice, or pasta every day. One ounce is about 1 slice of bread, 1 cup of breakfast cereal, or 1/2 cup of cooked rice or pasta. Look to see that grains such as wheat, rice, oats, or corn are referred to as "whole" in the list of ingredients.
Go lean with protein. Choose lean meats and poultry. Bake it, broil it, or grill it. And vary your protein choices--with more fish, beans, peas, nuts and seeds.
E-mail this page Printer-friendly page
Copyright 2008 Soul Vibrations, Inc. All rights reserved.
i
Healthy Eating
