MyPlate: The New and Improved Food Pyramid For Kids

As a parent, you want the best for your child. Building an ideal plate for both you and them will instill healthy eating habits and teach your child from a young age what their plate should look like.

Growing up, you may have followed the food pyramid for kids. However, this food guide pyramid has been replaced by MyPlate.

What is MyPlate?

MyPlate is the new Food Pyramid for kids. In 2011, Michelle Obama took the lead in changing the confusing Food Pyramid to a more simplified model of the five food groups. Instead of a triangle, the image exemplifies what an actual plate a person should design around.

MyPlate is a guide that shapes what you would see when looking down at your table. Kids should eat a variety of different colored portions and a glass of milk on their weight. This model is more relatable and transferable for the public to replicate to their tables.

Food Pyramid vs. MyPlate The Food Pyramid for kids began at the base with a large group consisting of bread, cereal, brown rice, and pasta with the recommendation of 6 to 11 servings. In MyPlate, this section is condensed simply into the grains portion on 1/4th of the plate.

MyPlate For Kids As a parent, you want the best for your child. Building an ideal plate for both you and them will instill healthy eating habits and teach your child from a young age what their plate should look like.

The connotation of thoughts surrounding the ranking in a pyramid no longer exists in MyPlate. Grains are no longer the basis of a meal. This change is a positive one as in recent years, some have believed mainly carbs to be the main contributor to weight gain.

Making Meals with MyPlate

For breakfast, consider an omelet with eggs and raw leafy greens, a cup of low-fat milk, a dried fruit cup, and a slice of toast. This meal encompasses all components without it looking directly like the model.

Lunch could be a bean and veggie wrap with a fruit smoothie. This meal won’t physically look like the MyPlate image, but kids are still consuming all components.

While prepping dinner, snack on fruit while teaching your children proper kitchen techniques, and talk about each other’s day. You can make dinner by getting a  simple sheet pan meal with skinless chicken breast, sliced potatoes, and broccoli florets, then serving with a glass of milk or fruit juice.

The update to MyPlate is one that was needed in order to keep up with new nutrition information and trends. This tool is now simplified and easily replicable by the general population. Showing what your everyday plate should actually consist of makes creating your own and teaching children what an adequate meal is.

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