Today the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) said goodbye to the ambiguous food pyramid. For almost twenty years the pyramids encouraged us to eat healthy. Unfortunately many found the information to be very confusing. Today the USDA replaced the food pyramid with a symbol that everyone can understand -- the dinner plate. This new symbol comes with a $2 million price tag. Yes, I did say $2 million! Was it the special design work on the plate? The design appears pretty simple. Was it the cost of a top PR firm's marketing scheme and rollout strategy? Hmmmm. In this day of 24-hour news, social media, YouTube, the Internet and the like, the right idea with the right results could almost sell itself.
USDA Secretary Vilsack and First Lady Michelle Obama unveiled the new symbol as an extension to her Let's Move Campaign. Whether this new symbol and its campaign will make a difference in America's obesity problem will remain to be seen. For the first time ever, this generation of kids might not outlive their parents. Yes, we can blame parents for the childhood obesity problem. Blame is a waste of time. Instead of blaming, we need to spend that time searching for realistic ways to connect nutrition and exercise to lifelong health in a way that relates to people.
Farewell and rest in peace, food pyramid. The USDA chose the dinner plate as their new idea. What's yours?
Nancy Johnson
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7 comments:
You blogged - Instead of blaming, we need to spend that time searching for realistic ways to connect nutrition and exercise to lifelong health in a way that relates to people.
Searching? Huh?
There is no need for some grand search, it's right in front of your face. Feed your kids healthy food, appropriate portions, make daily physical activity mandatory for your children, enroll them on sport's teams, keep no junk food at home, limit or get rid of soda. It's not really rocket science.
I often wondered where kids who picked on other kids came from. I now know that they live with assinine people such as yourself who know it all.
Anonymous 10:22
Here we go again with another person with no name, who is perfect, never makes a mistake, has no unhealthy habits whatsoever, has an angelic glow around him/herself, and never struggles with anything. Since you are perfect and know everything, why don't you write a book so we can all learn how to be perfect like you?
OK, I'll write a book and will title it "Whiny Obese People and Their Endless Excuses."
Can't wait to read it. Will you finally use your name or will use a pen name? I am sure many of us want to hear from someone as knowledgable as yourself.
Get to writing!
I read a comment on the CO's article that makes and has always made complete sense.
"It's not about skinny or fat, it's about healthy."
You can't be healthy if you are fat, end of story.
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