Follow a Healthful Eating Plan

The Pyramid is a great tool to help put Dietary Guidelines into action. The Pyramid calls for eating a variety of foods to get the nutrients you need and, at the same time, the right amount of calories to maintain or improve your weight.
Cooking and preparing food at home allows you to tailor daily meals to fall within the recommended range of servings, as opposed to dining out where you may be unsure how many servings you are eating from each of the five food groups.

How many servings should people eat from each group every day?

OLDER CHILDREN, YOUNG ADULTS, AND ADULTS
Grain Group - 6 to 11 servings
Vegetable Group - 3 to 5 servings
Fruit Group - 2 to 4 servings
Milk Group - 2 to 3 servings
Meat Group - 2 to 3 servings
Fats and Sweets - Use sparingly

What counts as a serving?

Grain Group - 1 slice of bread - 1 ounce of ready-to-eat cereal - ½ cup of cooked cereal, rice, or pasta - 3 to 4 small crackers - ½ bagel or English muffin - 2 to 3 graham cracker squares
Vegetable Group - 1 cup raw leafy vegetables - ½ cup of other chopped vegetables, cooked or raw - ¾ cup of vegetable juice
Fruit Group - 1 medium apple, banana, or orange - ½ cup of chopped fruit, cooked or canned - ¾ cup of fruit juice
Milk Group - 1 cup of milk or yogurt - 1½ ounces of natural cheese - 2 ounces of processed cheese
Meat Group - 2 to 3 ounces of cooked meat - ½ cup of cooked dry beans or 1 egg counts as 1 ounce of meat - 1 egg; 2 tablespoons of peanut butter; ½ cup cooked dry beans, peas, or lentils; or 1/3 cup of nuts count as 1 ounce of meat

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