The New 2019 Canadian Food Guide
Health Canada released the newly updated 2019 Canadian Food Guide today.
Major Changes:
- There is no longer a 4-food group rainbow
- There are now three main food groups of focus: Fruits and Vegetables, Whole Grains, & Protein Foods
- Meats & alternatives as well as Milk & alternatives are no longer their own food groups
- Juices have been removed from the Fruits and Vegetable group due to their high sugar content
- Water is now the recommended drink of choice
The new guidelines state that fruits and vegetables should be half of our plates during any meal. Foods with high saturated fats (high fat cheese, butter, cream, etc) should be replaced with foods that have unsaturated fats (like nuts & avocados). Health Canada still recommends lower-fat Dairy as a part of a nutritious diet, but it is now part of the protein group and is less emphasized (along with meat products) than the previous Food Guide, which was released more than 10 years ago.
This time around, Health Canada says it made a very strong commitment to not use industry-commissioned reports, but to rely on scientific evidence among other factors to create the new revised guide for Canadians.
Health Canada also has a list of ways to flavor your water, other healthy beverages, and which ones they suggest limiting, which include: colas, hot chocolate, and alcoholic beverages.
The updated website also has tips on healthy eating on a budget, meal planning, physical activity, replacing sugar with healthier choices, and even has recipes! See the website for full details on all of their new tips on keeping you and your family as healthy as possible, here.
Photo credit: food-guide.canada.ca