“Choose My Plate” – the new look on Eating Right

   Shivani Sharma R.D L.D C.L.T

On June 2^nd 2011 First lady Michelle Obama along with the Agricultural secretary Tom Vilsack gave us all a new reminder on eating right. My plate is the new icon to remind us about how to eat a balanced and healthy meal. We are now saying good bye to food guide pyramid and welcoming My Plate method of eating.

                                                                       

                                

So what does this really mean to us ? It’s colorful, simple, attractive and easy to follow.  This means making your meal balanced and including food from all different food groups.

First most important thing is the size of the plate. We are not talking about huge platter that is covered with rice to the top. We are talking about a regular dinner plate, that will help us control the portion size of our meals.

What are the four sections? In simple words our food should be a combination of Grains, Protein Sources, Vegetables, Fruits and Milk.

                                                         Not a Healthy Plate for sure....

Now let’s compare this plate to our Indian Thali. Do you think our South Indian Thali, Gujrati Thali or Hydrabadi Biryani Thali is somewhat equivalent to the new plate? I guess NOT.

Let’s see how we can make our same Indian vegetarian Thali a little Healthier –

Grains: Choose to use whole grains. That means choosing chapatti made from whole grain flour (atta). Using more oatmeal, brown rice, whole corn meal and cracked wheat will help you add more fiber and nutrition to your meals. Avoid using refined flour (maida), white rice, sooji  and sabutdana on a regular basis.

Vegetables: Make one-fourth portion of your plate full of vegetables and salad. Use more of green leafy vegetables like spinach, mustard, methi, lettuce, turnip greens and watercress. Other vegetables like cauliflower, carrots, cabbage, broccoli, okra, eggplant and kale can also be used. Use tomato, onion, ginger, garlic and peppers for palatability and for good digestion in all your preparations. Vegetables like potato, colacasia (arvi), corn, beans and peas are starchy vegetables but should be included with your vegetables. Key is to use vegetables of all different colors spread over the week so you get all the nutrients.

Fruits: Choose fruits over fruit juices. Eating fruits not only will provide more fiber, minerals and vitamins but also are rich sources of phytonutrients and antioxidants. Choosing seasonal fruits will also provide better nutrition. Fruits like watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew melon are good fruits to be included in summer.

Protein: Choose low fat sources of Protein. For vegetarians, lentils, beans and nuts are great sources of Protein. Moong sprouts, chand dal, chick peas (chole), kidney beans (rajma) and all other whole lentils like sabut moong, sabut urad, sabut moth and sabut masoor all are very high in protein and fiber. Sambhar and Rasam are also very good choices as they not only contain lentils but also have good amount of vegetables in them.  Beans and lentils contain complex carbohydrates or good carbs that will keep you full for a longer period of time. In ‘My Plate’ it would cover one fourth of the section or by measure we could say one cup cooked dal.

Milk: Choose low fat milk and milk products. Milk and milk products should be an essential part of the vegetarian diet. Milk provides important nutrients like calcium, magnesium and vitamin D that are extremely important for our bones. You can also add thin lassi or raita made from low-fat yogurt. Cucumber raita, mint raita or vegetable raita are also good options especially during summer time. Low fat greek yogurt can also be used to add more protein to the diet. People who are lactose intolerant can use lactaid, soymilk, ricemilk or almond milk.

My Plate also recommends avoiding foods like frozen meals, canned soup and bread that are high in sodium. Replacing sugary drinks with water is also an important aspect of a healthy meal plan.

These are just general guidelines. For accurate information on your nutritional needs specific to your health condition, it is important to contact a Registered Dietitian or go to www.rightfoodchoice.com.