The U.S. government revises its Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs) every five years, most recently in 2005. Based on that update, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is in the process of developing rules to apply the DGAs to school nutrition programs. Although it will take a few years to complete the process, there is no reason to wait to put the most recent guidelines into action.
In advance of the coming rules change, school nutrition programs should strive for the following seven main improvements in order to achieve the 2005 DGAs:
Whole Grains: At least half of the grains offered should come from whole grains. Fruit and Vegetables: Meals should offer both a fruit and a vegetable, and vegetables should come from all five vegetable subgroups (dark green, orange, legumes, starchy vegetables, and other vegetables) several times a week. Milk: Only low-fat (1% or less) and fat-free milk and milk products should be offered. Sodium: School nutrition programs should reduce sodium incrementally, moving toward helping students meet the DGA of less than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. Fiber: Meals should provide at least 14 grams of fiber per 1,000 calories. Cholesterol: On average over the school week, breakfasts should provide less than 75 mg of cholesterol and lunches should provide less than 100 mg of cholesterol. Trans Fats: Trans fats should be minimized to the greatest extent practicable.Please visit http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/report/default.htm for details about the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
