MyPlate Shopping Savvy

The Choose MyPlate program based on the 2010 US Dietary Guidelines can help you with shopping for health.  The spiffy new portioned plate graphic that allocates half the plate to fruits and vegetables and the other half split between proteins and grains can assist you in putting your shopping and eating in perspective.

Keep the MyPlate graphic in your thoughts as you travel the aisles of the supermarket. Visualize your shopping cart half full of fruits and vegetables–this means that you need to spend half your time in the produce section picking out the best fruits and vegetables.

• Think a rainbow of colors—including white when choosing produce. Variety is key!
• Celebrate the season. Buy fresh in season and canned or frozen when not in season. Choose fruit canned in 100% fruit juice and vegetables with “no salt added” on the label.  
• Buy small amounts frequently to assure you can eat them before they spoil.
• Buy in bulk when produce is on sale and you have plans to use it all. If you can’t use it all, cut up and freeze.

On the other half of the plate, grains should dominate and half of your grains should be whole grains.

• Purchase popcorn for a whole grain snack.
• Read the ingredients list and choose products that name a whole-grain ingredient first on the list. Look for “whole wheat,” ‘brown rice,” “bulgur,” “buckwheat,” “oatmeal,” “whole oats,” or “wild or brown rice”.
• Substitute whole grain flour for half of the flour in baking recipes.

The smallest section of MyPlate is for Protein. Start at the meat department for some lean proteins.

• Vary your protein choices. Besides lean meat include beans, nuts, soy and seafood. 
• Choose seafood twice a week. Include varieties that are higher in oils and low in mercury, such as salmon, trout, and herring.
• Have an egg. One egg a day won’t increase your risk of heart disease.
• Eat plant protein foods more often. Try beans and peas, soy products, nuts and seeds. Plan to include a couple of meatless meals a week.

The smallest part of the MyPlate graphic is Dairy.  

• Choose fat-free or low-fat milk, yogurt, or cheese.
• Check the amount of calcium and make sure your dairy selection contains at least 10% Daily Value of Calcium and Vitamin D.
• If you can’t drink milk because you are lactose-intolerant, try lactose-free dairy products, soymilk, or other dairy alternatives.

Teach your clients how to shop for health using the MyPlate Presentation Kit that includes a 50 Power Point slides, 4 SUPERMARKET SAVVY Tip Sheets, 20 MyPlate Tip Sheets, 15 MyPlate recipes, a sample Daily Food Plan, Sample Menus, and a Dietary Guideliens Brochure.

Click here to learn more and purchase.

Click here for a FREE MyPlate Shopping List.

Portion Distortion

Portion distortion doesn’t just happen when you are eating out. It even happens in your own kitchen! The surfae area of the average dinner plate has increased 36% since the 1960s, encouraging us to eat more. Even our cookbooks have changed. The serving sizes of some entrees listed in the Joy of Cooking (2006) have increased by as much as 42% since the first edition was published in 1931. The size of muffins have grown and finding a small baked potato is a problem.

Let Leia Kedem, University of Houston Dietetic Intern, show you some common foods that have grown in size the last few years.

Portion Distortion Video

To assist you in determining the correct portions and types of foods, Del Monte has a “ReThink Your Plate Educational Tool”–a 9 inch plate made of melamine and imprinted with photographic images of healthy foods, sectioned into appropriate portions. It is dishwasher safe and designed for use as an educational tool in planning healthy portions or you can use it to make sure your portions are appropriate. You can purchase the Del Monte ReThink Your Plate for $9.95. Click Here.

To educate your clients on weight control and proper portions, purchase our new Supermarket Tour Kit for Weight Control. It contains 8 modules for different aisles of the supermarket with 3 activities for each aisle focusing on reading lables, comparing products and portion control. Included are 10 copy-ready tip sheets on stocking you kitchen, shopping on a budget, portion sizes, reading food labels, snacking, and meal solutions for weight control.