The Food Pyramid

Ever wondered what to eat, how much to eat and from which food group? There’s no better guide to help you achieve this than the food pyramid which ensures that you eat a balanced diet, through a proper understanding of what and how much to eat. The model shows which kinds of food should be eaten in greater amounts and which should be consumed in a relatively lesser quantity to accomplish a balanced diet. 

Each group of the food pyramid is important as it supplies us with some nutrient or the other, so don’t miss out on any group. At the base of the pyramid stands the Bread and Cereal group. These foods help in maintaining a diet which is low in fat but high in carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins and minerals and thus should be eaten more. Foods such as wheat, rice, flour, flakes, vermicelli, etc are included in this group.

The suggested number of servings, in the cereal group, for a sedentary person is 10. One serving is equivalent to half cup rice, one medium flat dry-bread, one slice of bread, two tablespoons of dry rice flakes or any other breakfast cereal. 

The next level encompasses the Vegetables and Fruit groups. These are excellent sources of fiber, vitamins, and minerals and are generally low on fat and calories. Prepare your vegetables with minimum oil or butter to keep them low-fat and prefer whole fruit to fruit juice. Whole fruits are rich in fiber and a good source of Vitamin A and Vitamin C. Green leafy vegetables such as cauliflower, brinjal, apple, orange, etc are included in this category.

You can take 3-5 servings of vegetables and 2-4 fruit servings, where one serving is equivalent to one cup raw leafy vegetable, half cup any other vegetable, one small potato or onion, and one medium fruit.

Next on the pyramid is the Milk, Meat and Beans group, foods rich in protein. These foods include milk, meat, poultry products, fish, dry beans, peas, pulses, eggs, and nuts. Though rich in protein, iron, zinc, and vitamins, intake of animal foods from this group should be limited as they are high in saturated fats and cholesterol. Before eating these, trim all visible fat and avoid frying. Eat organ meats infrequently and limit your egg yolk intake to 3-4 times in a week. Foods from the milk, yogurt and cheese group are important for providing adequate calcium.

Here the suggested number of servings are 2-3 each for the milk and meat and beans group. One serving is equivalent to one medium cup milk, one cup curd, 25 gm paneer or cottage cheese, two small pieces of meat, poultry or fish, one egg, one cup dal or legumes or pulses or beans. 

At the top-end of the pyramid are Fats, Oils, and Sweets. Butter, margarine, ghee, mayonnaise, table sugar, jam, jelly, honey, etc are all included in this group. It is desirable to include only small amounts of these as they are high on fat and sugar. Excessive fat leads to obesity and other related illnesses, while too much sugar is a source of non-nutritious calories. For fats and oils, the suggested number of servings are 3-5. One serving is equivalent to one teaspoon of fats and oils and one teaspoon of sugar. It becomes easy to plan your meals once you are aware of the different levels of the pyramid and know how many servings you can take. Remember to choose foods from each level, eat what you like but balance your intake of proteins, carbohydrates and fat.