The United States Department of Agriculture has announced the release of the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, a report designed to help US consumers make healthier choices and avoid chronic diseases.
The report focuses on three main areas: Eat for health and the long run; Start with small changes; and support healthy choices for everyone.
'We know that a lifetime of healthy eating helps to prevent chronic diseases like obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, and Type 2 diabetes,' the USDA said. 'The Dietary Guidelines provides a clear path for the general public, as well as policy makers and health professionals and others who reach the public, to help Americans make healthy choices, informed by a thoughtful, critical, and transparent review of the scientific evidence on nutrition.
'Obesity and other chronic diseases come not only with increased health risks, but also at a high cost. Healthy eating is one of the most powerful tools we have to reduce the onset of disease.'
As part of the guidelines, the USDa recommends including a variety of nutritious foods, such as fresh fruit and vegetables, as part of what it calls a 'healthy eating pattern'.
