Food Pyramids

Dietary Guidelines are the cornerstone for federal policies regarding nutrition and dietary education. The Guidelines are updated every five years jointly by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Health and Human Services. In 1992, the Food Guide Pyramid recommended a hierarchal dietary pattern based on breads, cereals, rice, pasta, dairy products, and fruits and vegetables. It recommended that high-fat meats be limited and that only two to three servings of meat, poultry, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts be consumed daily. These recommendations were based on four major studies conducted during the 1980s that identified the need to restrict fat, particularly saturated fat. As the Pyramid was hierarchal, many food companies lobbied to change the Pyramid.