Freshman 15-Guide to Healthy Dining Hall Eating Part #2

Hey everyone, welcome back to my blog! As you may remember from last time, I gave you a brief introduction to the dining hall system at the University of Michigan and some useful tips to eat smart at the dining halls (MyNutrition). This week, we continue our discussion on healthy eating by learning how to make the right choice and build individual food pyramid.

Depending on the age, gender, and daily activity level, an individual needs 2,000-3,000 calories from various food resources. A rule of thumb for the nutrient composition of your daily food pyramid is as follows: total fat 25-35% of total calories (saturated fat <7% of total calories), carbohydrate 50-60% of total calories, protein about 15% of total calories, cholesterol <200 mg, fiber 20-30 g, sodium <1,500 mg , potassium 4,700 mg, calcium 1,000 mg, and Vitamin D 15-20 mcg. It is hard for most of us to physically measure the above nutrients in every food we eat and put those numbers in perspectives, so there are three solutions that would help us understand what and how much nutrients we actually get from different foods.

First solution is to use a powerful nutrition tracking tool called SuperTracker. Its function is similar to MyNutrition, but it has a broader range of food choices. It is very easy to use and you can generate a daily report of nutrient intakes, based on which you can modify your food plans. Second solution is to use the number of servings as a guide to help you choose the right amount of food. According to the USDA Dietary Guidelines 2010, an average adult should eat the following foods on a daily basis: 2-2.5 cups of fruits (preferably from whole fruits, not juice), 2.5-4 cups of vegetables (at least 20% from dark vegetables and beans), 6 oz of meat (at least 20% from seafood and 10% from nuts), 6-10 oz of grains (at least 50% from whole grains), and 3 cups of dairy (preferably from fat-reduced or skim milk). Third solution is to know how to read a nutrition facts label. The below shows you a step-by-step process to read a nutrition facts label on a food package found in a regular U.S. grocery store.

When reading a label, there are three things we want to pay attention to. First, remember that the information shown in these panels is based on 2,000 calories a day. You may need less or more calories per day based on your age, gender, and activity level. Second, when the nutrition facts label says a food contains “0 g” of trans fat, but includes “partially hydrogenated oil” in the ingredient list, it means the food contains trans fat, but less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving. Third, foods labeled with the words "multi-grain," "stone-ground," "100% wheat," "cracked wheat," "seven-grain," or "bran" are usually not whole-grain products. Whole grains should include the entire grain seed. Some examples of whole-grain ingredients include buckwheat, millet, oatmeal, quinoa, rolled oats, whole wheat, brown or wild rice, whole rye, and whole-grain barley.

Hope you will find this blog post helpful and handy when it comes to make your daily food plan. Stay healthy and active!

Written by Yihan Sun, pharmacy professional student (Pharm.D)

References:

U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010. Accessed from www.dietaryguidelines.gov on August 11^th, 2013.

National Institutes of Health. Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Executive Summary. Accessed from http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/cholesterol/ on August 11^th, 2013.

American Heart Association. Reading Food Nutrition Labels. Accessed from http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/HeartSmartShopping/Reading-Food-Nutrition-Labels_UCM_300132_Article.jsp on August 11th, 2013.

United States Department of Agriculture.ChooseMyPlate.gov. Accessed from http://www.choosemyplate.gov/ on August 11^th, 2013.