USDA Rebuilds the Food Pyramid

After 15 years of hanging on the walls of elementary school cafeterias, the Department of Agriculture’s famous food pyramid has gone digital. It has also been reconstructed, with an eye toward personal customization, so that now instead of offering a one-diet-fits-all approach, the USDA asks users to enter their age, gender, and amount of time spent exercising each day. The site then returns dietary guidelines that are (somewhat) personalized for each user. The L.A. Times finds a big improvement in the new pyramid’s abandonment of the mysterious concept of "servings," replacing it with specific measurements such as ounces and cups. The new guidelines call, for example, for each person to consume 3 ounces of whole grain foods per day, 2 cups of fruit, 2½ cups of vegetables and 3 cups of fat-free or low-fat milk every day. The guidelines also recommend, for the first time, that we shoot for 30 minutes of moderate exercise every day, and that those who are overweight work out for a full hour.