Plate of good eating: what is this nutritional guide for?

The plate of eating well is a graphic that shows how our diet should be. The best way to combat the growing obesity problem in Mexico is by promoting a balanced diet that includes different food groups.

For this, the Ministry of Health in Mexico created a tool that explains in a very clear and visual way how a healthy plate should be made up. This graphic is called "the plate of good eating", and from here we explain what it consists of.

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What is the plate of good eating?

This nutritional tool helps to divide the food we should eat into portions. It has been structured to include the food groups that we should eat daily, indicating the recommended amounts of each group to maintain an adequate nutritional balance.

Although the plate of good eating is a measure aimed at the entire population To help reduce the high rates of obesity, consider including some foods that not all people can consume, as for example in the case of suffering from a disease or food intolerance, such as celiac disease.

The well-eating plate chart includes the three major food groups: vegetables and fruits, cereals and tubers, and finally the products derived from animals and legumes. As a way to guide the quantities, those that should be consumed to a lesser extent are indicated with red, yellow for intermediate portions and green for those that can be eaten in abundance.

1. Green: Vegetables and fruits

The intake of vegetables and fruits should be abundant. One of the main situations that have increased obesity rates in the Mexican population is that the consumption of fruits and vegetables has decreased considerably, while the consumption of the rest of the food groups has increased, along with a growth in the consumption of sugary drinks and food fast.

This has undoubtedly been reflected in the form of a public health problem. Fruits and vegetables have been replaced by junk food, especially in the case of children, promoting an excessive intake of red meat and carbohydrates. For this reason, this group is marked in green on the plate of good eating of food, to explain that they should be eaten in abundance.

Although the nutritional value of fruits and vegetables may seem obvious, the importance of their regular intake should be emphasized in order to have a healthy and balanced diet. Fruits and vegetables provide fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. All these nutrients are irreplaceable and necessary to maintain a healthy body.

Many industrialized products are advertised with added nutrients. However, the body's absorption of these vitamins and minerals is not as efficient. For this reason, it is said that the nutrients provided by fruits and vegetables are irreplaceable, since only the intake of these guarantees that the body adequately absorbs the vitamins and minerals that they contain.

The group of fruits and vegetables includes, but is not limited to: banana, apple, pear, watermelon, oranges, guavas, grapes, strawberries, blackberries, papaya, melon, peach, kiwi, lemon, tangerine, grapefruit, tomato, eggplant, broccoli, spinach, carrot, pumpkin, cabbage, pumpkin flower, chard, onion, etc.

The recommended amount for any fruit is a serving similar to a tennis ball or a fist at every meal. As long as the nutritionist approves, a snack option can be a serving of fruit. For vegetables, the recommended serving is two small bowls or fists.

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2. Yellow: cereals and tubers

The group of cereals and tubers provides the body with energy and dietary fiber. It is common that when a person goes on a diet to lose weight, they minimize or eliminate their consumption of cereals, due to the high content of carbohydrates contained in most cereals that we consume with greater frequency.

But the reality is that it is not necessary to abstain from this food group if we are looking to reduce weight or sizes. This as long as a balance is maintained in its consumption and the portions are not higher than those suggested on the plate of good eating. What's more, there is a wide variety of cereals to choose from, which do not contain such high levels of carbohydrates.

The food group consisting of cereals and tubers must be consumed in fair measure. That is, it should not exceed the quantity and abundance of the green group of fruits and vegetables, but may be greater than the food group of the red area. However, there are many people who abuse the consumption of some foods made from cereals.

The advantage of cereals is that can be consumed and combined in various ways. This gives variety to our plate, at the same time that we do not stop having the nutrients that this food group offers to our body. Such as breads, tortillas, pasta, soups, or some types of cookies.

On the other hand, tubers also play an important role in our diet. Tubers are the thickened stalk of some plants, where nutrients accumulate. Most of them are rich in antioxidants and vitamins A and B, in addition to some minerals.

The cereals that we can include in our plate of good eating are rice, wheat, corn, barley, quinoa, amaranth, linseed, among others, and suggested serving size is fist size. On the other hand, the most recommended tubers are potato, yam, sweet potato, radish or jicama. In the same way as with cereals, the appropriate portion corresponds to the size of our fist.

3. Red: Legumes and foods of animal origin

Legumes and meat belong to the red group, these are recommended to consume in less quantity. As already mentioned, a serious problem that continues to grow is obesity. One of the main causes of this disease is the high consumption of soft drinks, fast food and foods of animal origin in quantities well above those recommended.

In the last decades, the diet of the Mexican population has changed. The consumption of red meat has increased and in many households this group of foods has become in the main and in greater quantity minimizing or even eliminating, the consumption of vegetables, fruits and cereals.

This is certainly not healthy. For this reason it is that in the graphic of the plate of good eating it is specified that the food group of animal origin, that is, meat from fish, poultry, beef, as well as dairy products, eggs and cheeses, should be consumed in moderation and in less quantity than cereals or fruits and vegetables.

On the other hand legumes are also recommended to consume them in a lower proportion than fruits and vegetables, but in a very similar way to cereals. It is even suggested that they be combined with each other or sporadically substituted for one another. Of course, while continuing to consume some of the foods in each group for long periods of time.

Suggested portions for meats are the size of the palm of your hand. This amount is sufficient to obtain the proteins that the body needs, so exceeding this portion is unnecessary and even harmful, since it substitutes other foods that do provide more nutrients, such as fruits and vegetables.

On the other hand, cheese, milk and egg are suggested in a smaller quantity. With the size of a pinkie, it is enough. The legumes that are considered part of the plate of good eating are beans, lima beans, lentils, and peas. Suggested serving is one fist of any of these or in combination.

Bibliographic references

• Center for research in food and development (CIAD), "Know the plate of eating well" extracted on 08/28/2019 https://www.ciad.mx/notas/item/1409-conozca-el-plato-del-buen-comer
• Slavin, J. L., & Lloyd, B. (2012). Health benefits of fruits and vegetables. Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.), 3 (4), 506–516.