Simple Nutrition Insights

What The New Nutrition Framework Gets Right And Wrong. Inverted Food Pyramid, WHAT?!!!

• Leonila • Season 3 • Episode 2

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We break down the new federal nutrition framework, separating solid guidance from risky messaging on red meat, saturated fat, and grains. Our goal is to give you clear, practical steps that respect your health, budget, and culture.

• why whole foods and fewer ultra-processed products still stands
• how to personalize protein without overreaching targets
• risks of prioritizing red meat and softening saturated fat limits
• why whole grains and fiber protect heart and gut health
• how policy shifts ripple into schools and food programs
• cost, access, and culture as the real barriers to “ideal” diets
• practical swaps to meet the 10 percent saturated fat target
• balancing plant and animal proteins for muscle and longevity
• steady guidance that avoids extremes and respects labs and history

If you found this helpful, share it with someone who's confused by the headlines because nutrition shouldn't feel this overwhelming.


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SPEAKER_00:

Hey hey, welcome back to another Simple Nutrition Insights podcast. I am your host, Leonila Campos, registered dietitian. This is my second year podcasting, and it has been very interesting and I've enjoyed, but interestingly enough, as I was thinking, okay, what should I talk about? Right, you're not imagining it, right? A new federal nutrition framework was recently released and it looks very different from my plate. And my plate came out in 2011 and it was very practical, right? That was essentially the idea to make these dietary guidelines, the US dietary guidelines more practical, right? Because the wording, right, they were too complex for just the general population. As dieticians, as healthcare professionals, we read them, right? We go through them. Usually dietitians are involved in these dietary guidelines, but now we haven't. It's interesting because they were so much talked about, oh, the old pyramid, blah, blah, blah. But we haven't used that for years. You know, almost since what, 2011, we haven't used it. So there's really not, there's not, there shouldn't be a reference to it, right? Because we haven't used it in so long. Essentially, they might play replace it. But either way, you know, there was a talk about that. And then now we have the inverted my pyramid or food pyramid. So um I was in terms of like uh personal emotions, right? Definitely lots of emotions that were that I had. And as I was starting to process these and trying to think, okay, how can I utilize this information to benefit the public, right? To benefit my patients, my clients. Because ultimately, that's essentially my job, right, as a dietitian, is to disseminate information, complex nutrition information, complex science, and just make it more user-friendly. So I think, you know, all emotions aside, I said, okay, we definitely need to talk about them. And we want to make sure that we're following sound and science-based information, right? No something that was just, you know, brought up by someone that doesn't have background in nutrition through science, right? Today I want to I wanna I want to walk you through what's changed, what I actually agree with as a dietitian, and what gives me pause, especially when we think about long-term health. This episode is not about politics, it's about health, science, and how guidance like this affects real people, families, kids, and individuals managing chronic disease. The new pyramid encourages people to eat more whole foods and fewer ultra-processed foods, something most dietitians agree with. We agree, we've known these forever, really. You know, we know that by focusing on consuming ultra-processed foods, right? There's a lot of research that shows that that can lead to healthcare problems, right, to chronic diseases. So this is no new. So it is, it is more brought to our attention now even more with this new change. Where it differs is how much it elevates protein, red meat, full fat dairy and fats, and how much it downplays grains. It's almost like we're saying, don't worry about grains, right? Or omit grains altogether, which is essentially a whole food group. When we eliminate a whole food group, we run the risk of getting deficiencies, nutrient deficiencies. It's not something that you see right away, right? You're not gonna stop eating grains and like be deficient in a matter of weeks, right? It takes, it can take up to years of not or not of not seeing those deficiencies. Whether new pyramid gets right. We have decades of data showing that diet high in ultra-processed foods are linked to higher risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and even depression. We've we've studied for years. I agree that it encourages real whole foods, shifting the conversation a week right from calorie counting to our food quality is a step into the right direction. So I do agree in the emphasis of more whole foods, right? More foods that don't their their processing doesn't change as much, right? Protein is essential, especially for aging adults, muscle preservation, blood sugar control, and satiety. So I do agree that focusing on protein is important and it's something that I do work with my clients a lot. Let's make sure that we're adding we're eating enough protein, right? Specific recommendations are so individual individualized. And right now they're putting it more 1.2 to 1.5 grams per kilogram body weight. But that is risky to give it as a general recommendation because if someone has issues with chronic kidney disease, right, those levels could be really high for that person, right? Or if they have other issues like gout or um issues with heart disease, right? So the guidelines, although they're for the general population, right, as dietitians, as healthcare providers, we have to assess the individual and provide individualized nutrition recommendations, right? Based on what's happening with you, with the patient, with the client. So it shouldn't be just taken as you know, as a general recommendation per se. Protein is important, right? For satiety, as we mentioned, it also prevents muscle loss in elderly, which is called sarcopenia. It can also help with patients that are on weight loss medications, like GLP1 users. The focus on protein is to preserve muscle mass, right? And I do agree with that. Muscle mass can be lost when we're not eating enough, right? Especially if we don't get to eat enough protein. There is that muscle wasting. But again, it's so individualized. Where my professional concerns begin. Here is a huge one. Um and more so because, man, we have a lot of research that backs this up, right? There's the American Heart Association focuses on these. Um Healthcare providers also focus on these, right? And it's limiting red meat, right? The heavy emphasis on red meat is concerning. So it's not the protein the problem, because we we need protein and how much, right? That's also another thing. But emphasizing that we should just eat red meat, right, is concerning because that has been shown, right? Research shows that it can increase heart disease, right? It can increase colorectal cancer, it can increase higher LDL cholesterol, which is your bad cholesterol. So for populations already struggling with heart disease, high cholesterol or blood pressure, this could send the wrong message, right? It could be like, well, all this time my dietitians or my doctor has told me I shouldn't eat red meat, but now the new dietary guidelines tell me that I should eat more red meat. See how the conflict lands here and how the misinformation can cause really, really devastating problems, right? Because if we were already having, you know, we're already managing heart disease and bringing those LDL cholesterols down, levels down, and now we have this other conflicting information. And so our patients are doing the opposite now. That can lead to heart disease, right? Um, a stroke, heart attack, and so many other health problems. So this is my frustration here, right? That it shouldn't just be a generalized guideline. There should, there should have been a lot of research, right? Taking into account the current research that we have. More dietitians involved, right? The spokesperson that should be speaking on the dietary island should have been dietitians, right? And no people that have their own agendas. I completely you can probably hear in my voice, I'm very passionate about, and I'm always so conflicted that I don't see dietitians more on the upfront of these, right? Speaking about these. And perhaps they are in the background, right? Doing the the artwork. I, you know, maybe this is my calling. I don't know. Talking more about this specifically, right? Where are my dietitians here? Anyway, uh, let me take a breath here. My other concern is saturated fat messaging that becomes confusing. We're seeing a softening around saturated fat, but the science hasn't changed, right? Dietary guidelines come out every five years, right? And again, a lot of dietitians and a lot of healthcare providers that are in the board for making these changes are looking at the research, right? They're also looking at the data and how and just the overall health of the of the US population, right, to adjust to change the diet, these dietary guidelines. And so we're not gonna we're not gonna see a change in saturated fat in a matter of months, heck, not in a matter of a couple of years, right? Because we have to gather enough information to tell us, okay, how has the saturated fat deal, right? Has the saturated fat amount changed, right? But that hasn't changed. So saturated fat, you're gonna find it in mostly in your animal foods, right? When you think about your wholesale your whole meal uh products, right, your red meats, you can also find it in your other protein sources, right? Your your chicken, your turkey. So that usually the recommendation is choose leaner sources of protein, right? Choose not butter as often, right? No fat that's coming from an animal as often, because the research, again, has shown that this can contribute to heart problems. And although the recommendation hasn't changed, which is interesting and conflicting, the saturated should be less than 10% of your total daily calories. But by adding red meat, butter, whole fat milk, it's very difficult to not go way over that 10%. You know, I create meal plans, I've created meal plans, I don't know, I think I have like over 2,000 uh meal plans that I've created. Saturated fat is something that I always looked into. More so specifically for my patients that have high cholesterol, high LDL, heart disease. Again, because we're trying to decrease the risk, right? And as I'm creating these meal plans and I'm looking at the percentage and I'm looking at the products that they're getting, if they're not using low-fat, fat-free, leaner pieces of protein, not a lot of butter, right? Probably like, I don't know, one teaspoon. It's very difficult to not go over those 10% of saturated fat. So there is a conflicting message there because saturated fat still raises LDL in most people. Individual tolerance varies, of course, right? The genetics vary as well, but it doesn't mean that we're immune to not getting to not saturated fat, to not increase our LDL cholesterol. So a blanket guidance can be very risky and also confusing, right? Where you were saying, okay, you still have to limit your saturated fat to 10% or less of your total daily calories, but you should also add red meat. That should be the basis of your of your meals and butter and whole milk, whole fat milk. You know, it's confusing there. The other thing, too, that is again, and I mentioned it at the beginning, it's that grains are minimized, and that's a problem. Whole grains are one of the most consistently protective food groups we have because they provide fiber. They have been shown to um help with gut health, cholesterol reduction, where the fiber comes in. When greens are lumped together or minimized, people often eliminate them entirely, including nutrient-dense, culturally important foods. When we think about rice, right? Tortillas, oatmeal, whole grain pastas, quinoa, these are nutrient-rich foods that we need. They provide energy, right? They help with our brain function, they fuel, right, our workouts. If you're an active person, that's how we get most of our energy, right? But this is concerning too because this food group sometimes is also fortified, right? Fortified with B vitamins, which are metabolism vitamins, fortified with folic acid, which helps to prevent neurotool defects, right, in in pregnant women. So when we eliminate them, right, again, we're eliminating a whole food group, the likelihood of getting nutrient deficiencies is pretty high. But we also shouldn't. I've seen diets come and go, the keto diet, a low carb diet. Um and in private practice, I've seen these, you know, a whole spectrum of changes. And it's concerning that we're demonizing a food group, right, without sound science, right? Without backed by science. Because, again, personal agendas, or we're because we might think that this is a problem. Carbs are not the problem, grains are not a problem. We have other problems. And again, oh man, this is the other frustrating thing is that the food itself, right, the food groups themselves are not the problem. And there's some data that shows to you that the majority of the US population don't always follow the dietary guidelines, right? Because essentially this is not a problem. The problem is the cost of food, the problem is food deserts, the problem is not getting enough, you know, SNAP funding, right, for a lower income population. So guidelines should work for real life, not just ideal scenarios, right? This is again where it makes me angry that we're changing these things, but whoever decided to make this change, right, is not looking at the true root cause, right? That it's not because maybe someone doesn't have access to wholesome foods, right? They probably do, but do they have the income? Most likely they don't. Or, you know, let's take an example of maybe a single parent, right, that only has enough food stamps, right, to feed their family until you know they get paid or the next month. And so they're going to choose foods that are going to last, right? Or they're going to be more affordable. And yet, there might not be the wholesome foods, the foods that as dietitians, those healthcare professionals, we want them to have. But do you choose that the wholesome foods over fueling your family? You know, as a parent myself, I'd rather fuel my family, right? Knowing that they're not gonna go hungry. Um, yeah, of course, I would want them to eat healthy, right? And have these wholesome foods. But if I don't have enough money to do that, right, how can I make that happen? Or how can I access food if the grocery store, you know, is miles and miles away. But the closer store to me is maybe a convenience store, right? Or a fast food restaurant. So again, how do we make these decisions? So it's not just about changing the food groups or changing, inverting the pyramid. This is like literally nonsense. But why don't we focus on the true root causes, right? The cost of food. Holy moly. I was looking at a receipt from, and I know inflation and food costs is going to change. The the difference is just astronomical, right? I was spending maybe$150 to feed my family of four, right? Like two years ago. And now I spend like$400, right? Maybe more every week. And I can afford that, right? But most families cannot afford that. So again, we go back to that, right? In these dietary guidelines, yes, as healthcare professionals, as a prior practice dietitian, right, I choose individual individualization, right? Looking at my whole client and making individualized changes. But the dietary guidelines are used in the school systems, right? In any food system that uses grants or that uses USDA funding. So they are going to be affected, which means they are going that they are going to end up affecting our children. If our children eat in the school, they're going to be affected by these dietary guidelines, right? So, man, I hope things change in the in the positive way. It's definitely not practical because we cannot just look at this almost like AI-generated image and be like, well, I am going to just eat protein, right? Or I'm just going to eat butter, right? It's not like that. But when we look at it, right, when the general population looks at it, that's what they're seeing, right? As opposed to like, let's make these meals more balanced, right, more wholesome. So the ultimate goal is to decrease chronic disease, right? To decrease diabetes, obesity, heart disease, kidney disease. But just looking at that image, that doesn't tell me anything, right? It doesn't give me the guideline that I need, right, to be able to achieve that. So, yes, as a dietitian and as my other fellow dietitians, right, our job is even more important now to help the population, to help our clients, to help the people that we can help, right? To disseminate this information and put it into practical perspectives. So, anyway, uh there's so many other shortfalls, right? Like the emphasis on fiber, fiber-rich foods, which this is something that I see. And again, another problem here, right? The people that are making these decisions don't even take the opportunity to really analyze the information, right? That if we eliminate high fiber-rich foods, we're gonna have a lot of other issues, right? Not only from GI problems, from constipation to not getting enough fiber to protect our arteries, right? But also there's not, it's almost like the guidelines are not taking into account cultural foods, right? As well as people that maybe don't eat animal products, right? That are vegan or plant-based, which there's a lot of research that has also been shown that focusing on plant-based foods, right? They're cardioprotective, they're also colorectal protective, kidney protective. So it's almost it almost seems like this, again, this research was thrown out, right? Like, okay, let's just come up with our own thing. Who cares about the research? We don't even care about science. Let's just put something, let's just invert the pyramid and let's put something together. But that's not how things work, people. Anyway, let me take a deep breath again. So, yes, when guidelines shift dramatically, they don't just change behavior, they change policy, menus, and food systems. And that's concerning. All these this is these things are going to change, but again, we haven't looked into the root cause of the problem, right? And yet we're gonna create even more so bring bringing it back, right, to what can I do as a dietitian, right? And it's my focus is no extremes, right? I don't teach extremes, I teach balance, sustainability, and personalization. And it's so individualized, right? Because every single person is so different. So I don't just graph something and I said, okay, well, you get this one and you get this one and you get this one and see you later, right? It's so individualized because that's how it should be. And so, yes, I'm using the dietary guidelines, I'm using the my plate to personalize individualized interventions. And I will continue to do that because this works for my clients, right? And it will continue to work. So, to end it here, my friends, protein matters, but variety matters more, fat matter, but quality and amount also matter. Greens are not the enemy, culture matters, laughs matter, your body matters. Focus on you, right? Focus on the changes that are going to help you, and not just take this blanket statement and pretty much undo everything that you have done to help you and help your health. Foundational framework still work, frameworks still work. Protein, vegetables, carbs when apply it intentionally, and even more so now. Work with a dietitian. Work with a dietitian that you feel comfortable with and that someone that is going to help you sift through this information, help you understand better these new dietary guidelines, and create a personalized nutrition plan that is going to work for you. And simple guidance, right? It's mostly whole foods. Don't fear carbs, choose fiber rich ones, whole grains, vary your protein sources, right, from plant based to animal based. Be cautious with red meat frequency. Don't eliminate food groups without a reason. And again, work with a dietitian if you have labs or conditions that need to be addressed. Nutrition science evolves, but It really rarely flips overnight. When guidance changes dramatically, it's okay and responsible to ask questions. Question everything. That's how we learn, right? Be curious. As dietitians, our job isn't to follow trends or politics. It's to protect health, interpret science, and meet people where they're they they are. If you found this helpful, share it with someone who's confused by the headlines because nutrition shouldn't feel this overwhelming. Thank you, my friends. Stay safe, stay healthy, and I will see you and talk to you in another episode. Bye bye for now.