Healthy eating guidelines

To be healthy, it's essential that you eat a variety of foods. We recommend using the United States Department of Agriculture's MyPlate visual, their website and the guidelines below to help you.

See myplate.gov from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans emphasize four goals:

1. Follow a healthy dietary pattern at every life stage.
2. Customize and enjoy nutrient-dense food and beverage choices to reflect personal preferences, cultural traditions and budgetary considerations.
3. Focus on meeting food group needs with nutrient-dense foods and beverages and stay within calorie limits.
4. Limit foods and beverages higher in added sugars, saturated fat, and sodium and limit alcoholic  beverages:

• Added sugars should be fewer than 10 percent of calories per day
• Saturated fat should be fewer than 10 percent of calories per day
• Sodium should be fewer than 2,300 mg per day
• Alcoholic beverages should be two drinks or fewer per day for men, one drink or fewer per day for women.

Learn more about the latest dietary guidelines.