From Food Pyramid to Food Plate: What Should We Look For?

Moms and dads everywhere are concerned about giving their children the best start in life. They care about making sure the kids have enough sleep, that they are stimulated with new experiences and that they're taught good eating habits through balanced nutrition.

But with the U.S. Health and Human Services Agency and the U.S. Department of Agriculture changing the previously recommended food pyramid to a rounded dinner plate, some of us are left wondering what foods to focus on to ensure the greatest health benefits for ourselves and our children.

Patch caught up with Karen Ross, Palo Alto Medical Foundation registered dietitian and lecturer of "Feeding Healthy Kids" through Parents Place, to help us break it down.

“Making change in your eating is a challenge,” Ross said. She suggests making small changes each day. And from that, she says, you should “allow that change to become a habit for you, and then consider making several more changes.”

Ross says there are six food rules everyone should follow to ensure they’re eating right. And even though the dietary guidelines for America have been altered, following these simple steps could help you to implement some healthy habits.

1. Stop eating too much: Ross says to figure out how many calories you need each day, take your current weight in pounds and multiply it by 12. If you subtract 500 calories from this number each day, you should lose one pound each week. She says you can also increase activity to use 250 calories and reduce intake by 250 calories per day. Other ways to eat less, she warns, are to use a smaller salad plate for dinner, cook at home or, if eating out, order an appetizer instead of an entrée.

2. Up your fruit and veggie intake: Vegetables and fruits are large in volume and fiber and low in calories, packing a huge nutritional punch! Ross says to go for interior color, eat the fruit peel for more fiber and gravitate to fresh rather than frozen or canned. The goal, she says, is to hit nine servings a day of a combination of fruits and vegetables. (One serving equals about a half cup; for raw greens, 1 cup)

3. Reduce SoFAS (solid fats and added sugars): Believe it or not, Ross says SoFAS make up about 35 percent of our calories. Solid fats, saturated and trans fats, are solid at room temperature (shortening, margarine, coconut oil, partially hydrogenated oils) and increase cholesterol. Ross advises replacing these damming SoFAS with plant-based fats found in nuts, nut butters, seeds, avocados and liquid oils, such as olive and canola oil. Also reduce your salt intake to lower blood pressure. One easy tip: Replace processed foods with fresh foods.

4. Favor leaner meats and poultry and vegetable protein: One surefire way to keep healthy is to reduce saturated fats by using low-fat dairy products and lower your intake of fatty cuts of meat. Ross says substituting vegetable proteins such as beans, peas and nuts will make a huge difference.

5. Boost your whole grain intake: New guidelines tell us to limit refined grains, so make half of your grains whole grains. Examples, Ross says, are brown rice, oatmeal, 100percent whole-grain cereal, bread and pasta, wild rice, quinoa buckwheat, spelt and hulled barley. Whole grains have more finer and make you feel fuller faster—a win-win!

6. Go fish: Increasing the amount and variety of seafood to an intake of 8 ounces or more per week will undoubtedly give you a healthy boost, Ross says. Fish is a low-calorie source of protein and a substantial source of omega 3 fats, EPA and DHA. And the more fatty the fish, the better, as it will improve heart health. But fish at your own risk: Some fish, such as swordfish, tilefish, kind mackerel, shark and larger fish, can accumulate more methyl mercury, which can be bad. Limit albacore tuna to no more than 6 ounces per week, she suggests.