Because college students, as well as most Americans, don’t follow the food pyramid guidelines presented by the Food and Drug Administration, the trend toward obesity is skyrocketing.

The surgeon general has said that with the increasing rise in obesity, it may soon top the list for the most preventable cause of death in the United States; obesity may kill more people than tobacco.

Healthy-eating pyramid

Because the food pyramid is crumbling, many experts have been trying to find ways to patch up the existing pyramid or change it altogether. One of those experts is Walter Willett of the Harvard School of Public Health. Willett, along with his colleagues, are devising a Healthy Eating Pyramid, which is focused more on detail and placement of fats in one’s diet.

“The new food pyramid proposed by Willett and colleagues is a more detailed approach that focuses on very specific food choices within food groups,” said Martha O’Gorman, nutrition counselor at the University Health Services. “I often use the same ideas as are suggested by the new version of the food pyramid; it works well for some clients. These additions to the pyramid are backed by scientific research – mostly in the area of cardiovascular disease. One of the benefits I have seen in using the current food guide pyramid is in its simplicity.”

Fat isn’t all that bad

Willett’s Healthy Eating Pyramid helps guide Americans as to where to place the fat in their diet, which the FDA’s pyramid didn’t do so well, O’Gorman said. The tip of the FDA’s pyramid is fats and sweets, and it says to use them sparingly. Without proper quantities, Americans don’t know what sparingly amounts are, O’Gorman said. Willett’s pyramid does a better job at placing which fats should be excluded and which ones should be included in Americans’ diets.

“Americans need fat in their diets,” O’Gorman said. “As humans, we have a biological need for it. It protects our skin, gives us shiny hair and tissues ourselves. Vitamins A, D and K won’t absorb into your body without fatty acids in your body. Fat helps food taste good.”

Fats that O’Gorman recommends is the full fat salad dressings, peanut butter instead of jam on your toast and snack-sized bags of nuts.

Animal-based fats, such as saturated fats that come from red meats, should be reduced down to zero or twice a day. Fats that are plant-based, such as omega-3 fats, which come from seafood and nuts, should be controlled and not ignored. Trans fat also should be avoided. This fat is in margarine and hydrogenated vegetable oil. Oils such as olive, canola and sesame should be used in lieu of the trans fatty oils.

O’Gorman also stresses, just as Willett’s version and the FDA’s pyramid does, to consume at least five servings of fruits and vegetables.

“A lot of students go down to the cafeteria and grab a 20-ounce juice and think they have fulfilled their fruit servings for the day,” O’Gorman said. “One serving of juice is actually only six-ounces anyway. What they should be having instead is a fresh piece of cantaloupe or fruit salad to meet the fruit requirements.”

Once the serving sizes and food classifications are better understood by students, O’Gorman believes the pyramid approach will help users include all essential nutrients into their diet.