Every five years the government comes out with an updated list of official dietary guidelines for Americans in order to update the food pyramid and let us all know what we should be eating. The completely finalized list won’t be ready until the end of the year but here are the 8 new food rules that the USDA is recommending we all adopt.

• Watch your calories/eat fewer of them The average person needs 2,000 cals/day to maintain their current weight but the majority of people consume much more (some restaurant and fast food meals offer that many in a single meal).
• Eat more greens/vegetables/plants The meat shouldn’t be the main or biggest part of the meal — we should all be eating more vegetables, cooked dry beans and peas, fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds.
• Eat more fish They say two servings of fish per week is the magic number for getting the omega-3 and other benefits.
• Stick to low-fat dairy The calcium and other nutrients found in dairy products are good for you but the saturated fat is not — stick to low-fat options only.
• Eat less meat, eggs, and poultry (even if it’s lean) Previously it was thought that going lean was good enough but now the experts are recommending cutting back on all meat, poultry, and eggs — lean or otherwise.
• Limit added sugars and solid fats (like butter) They’re just empty calories that add up to extra pounds and bad habits.
• Limit sodium and refined grains They offer little to no nutritional benefit but plenty of nutritional and physical harm instead.
• Exercise more Everyone should get at least 2 1/2 hours of moderate intensity or 1 1/4 hours of vigorous intensity exercise each and every week. How much are you getting?

So what do you think of this new list, any surprises? When it comes to curbing the current obesity trend do you think these rules go far enough to help make a difference?

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