ADA Advocating for Poorer Food in Schools

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) is putting words in my mouth and they are very sour. In an email I received today, June 10, 2014, from Tekisha D. Everette, PhD, Managing Director, Federal Government Affairs, American Diabetes Association, I was told, “As a Diabetes Advocate, you led the fight to ensure America’s children have access to healthy school food. Because of you, Congress passed legislation in 2010 making school breakfasts and lunches healthier. Next year, snacks and drinks served in school will be as well.”

Apparently, they don't know me at all. I would never advocate for the food the USDA says must be served in school lunch menus. High carbohydrate - low fat is not my idea and for many students they are protesting as well. Limiting the total calorie count to 850 calories is not good for growing adolescents. In addition, the USDA is pushing low sodium (not salt) which a growing body needs. And the USDA is promoting whole grains to be served with every lunch.

Then the email continues - “But now, the House of Representatives is poised to roll back these important new nutrition standards. We cannot allow this to happen!”

Well, ADA, I have written my representative advising him that I will vote against him if the bill does not get passed and USDA taken out of the equation. The school lunch program has been ruined for many children and they are complaining about being hungry.

Is it any wonder that the fast food establishments are the first stop for many children when they leave school? The more meat they can get the better they feel. Most are left completely unsatisfied by the manufactured meats they receive in sandwiches they are served as part of the school lunch program.

The USDA high carb/low fat will not reduce the obesity epidemic threatening our children and this will add to the diabetes numbers ADA says we must prevent by supporting the USDA nutrition guidelines for our schools.

For those that agree with me or need more reading, three blogs by Tom Naughton should help. Blog 1, blog2, and blog 3 are just a few of his against the current USDA policy of the poor food supplied out children.

My Pyramid Still Promoted by USDA

Starting on April 11, 2013, I have been hearing several radio messages daily promoting my pyramid dot gov. To see if I was hearing right, I tuned into several of the radio stations serving our area. Most of the stations were playing the advertisement. As of May 9, 2013, I finally decided that the USDA was promoting this for a reason and I had to wonder if the my plate dot gov was being abandoned. Yes, and No. The USDA has not abandoned choose my plate, but is increasing their advertising for mypyramid. However, there are some catches as the site does not load and in doing some research, I found that most of what is being used is material in the form of PDF files and came or still exist from the original mypyramid dot com days.

Not only have they increased the advertising, but they have changed the pyramid and the meaning of it to increase the confusion. There are several different uses of the pyramid now all done to increase food promotion. I finally called one of the stations and asked about the advertisement I had just heard. They confirmed that they were being paid to run the advertisement. I asked if they had the website for this promotion and they looked to see what they might have on file. The answer came back that they had no website and no references to anything with the advertisement. This left me puzzled and I told the station that the website they were advertising did not load and several of the other related sites would not work. No one had any answers.

My Pyramid does still exist on you tubedot com and still plays. In my research, I came across this sitethat helps explain why the “Mypyramid” is used to explain what foods go on “ChooseMyPlate dot gov. Type “mypyramid.gov” into your favorite search engine and there are many sources to explore. The following is one of the more interesting examples and the easiest to follow in what they are recommending to help fill your plate. This represents the food groups and the proportion of each. For many of us with diabetes, we cannot follow this plan.

USDA Ditches Food Pyramid for a Healthy Plate?

The United States Department of Agriculture laid an egg on June 2. Color it, slice it, and try to understand it, but it missed the target. Fat is still out which is a mistake and giving whole grains over 25 percent of the plate will do nothing to slow the obesity epidemic in the US.

There are already many articles promoting this "new" distribution. Fortunately there are those who see the weaknesses of this approach. Nothing has improved in the overall scheme of food nutrition. There is no standardization or bringing down the serving sized on food labels or improving the label relationships among the different foods. Many mixed messages still need clarification. The largest problem is that one plate size seems to fit all which anyone with diabetes knows does not work. Individualization is the key for best results.

I know that to lose any weight, I do not need 2000 calories, but this seems to be the message - everyone needs 2000 calories per day. The question of portion sizes, fat intake, and energy expenditures are not figured into the equation. Also too many areas are open to interpretation and misinformation.

The need to stop obesity in adults and children is a worth goal, but the plate icon falls short of setting any real objectives. As for the aah ha moment many have written about, I am afraid this is an ooh no presentation. It is doubtful that the "MyPlate" icon will change Americans' eating lifestyle because it is still dependent on personal responsibility. It can only be hoped that the larger picture will eventually catch the public's attention and interest to learn how to make healthier food choices.

The plate design shows a plate divided into four sections:
     Red is for fruit
     Green is for vegetables
     Orange is for grains
     Purple is for protein, and then add
     Blue as a side dish (or cup) for dairy.

The USDA has improved the portion size from the food pyramid, but a lot is left to be accomplished.

Read the USDA press release here, and a WebMD assessment here. Then take time to read another report here and a report from a nutritional standpoint here. An very interesting blog by Dr. William Davis is here.

There will be many articles and assessments appearing in the months ahead, so be prepared to read both good and bad reports.