Dairy retained a prominent position in the just-released dietary guidelines aimed at helping Americans develop healthy eating patterns. And there is good reason for that - vitamin D, calcium, potassium and fiber were once again listed as four nutrients of concern as Americans are not getting enough of those in their daily diets. Dairy helps fill that void as it delivers three of the four - vitamin D, calcium and potassium.
Overall food recommendations have more options in a report delivered to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA). Healthy U.S., Mediterranean and Vegetarian-style diets all appear in the report. The U.S. and Vegetarian diets endorse three servings of dairy, while the Mediterranean includes two.
The dietary committee found that when dairy is reduced or not included in diets, a number of essential nutrients drop below recommended consumption levels - calcium, magnesium, iron, vitamin A, riboflavin, potassium, and vitamin D. Also, when milk is replaced by beverages such as soft drinks, fruit drinks and sport beverages, all of the above nutrient intakes also fall below recommended levels.
These dietary guidelines also found that cholesterol was no longer a big concern after decades of vilifying products with the fat. Those products included eggs, butter and other animal-based foods. In fact, for the first time in more than 50 years, eggs will not be sold under the weight of a cholesterol warning once the report gains final approval. Under that ill-fated advice, U.S. per capita egg consumption fell for decades; peaking at 421 eggs and falling to 250 in 2012, according to USDA statistics.
For more on that topic, we encourage you to read The Big Fat Surprise.
On the flip side, sustainability entered the dietary discussion for the first time. Dairy has been ahead of the other groups in developing science-based research focused on sustainability. However, beef, pork and poultry have deeper concerns in this area, as it doesn't appear dietary experts gave these nutrient-dense foods enough credit on the sustainability versus food value.
To review the dietary guidelines. Final comments on the document are due April 8.
(c) Hoard's Dairyman Intel 2015
March 2, 2015
