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A Conversation about the Dietary Guidelines for Americans · Talking FACS

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  Welcome to Talking FACS. What you need to know about family,
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  food, finance, and fitness.
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  This nationally recognized award-winning podcast is hosted by the University
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  of Kentucky Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Program.
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  Our educators share research knowledge with individuals, families,
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  and communities to improve quality of life.
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  Welcome to Talking FACS, where we share research-based information to help
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  you improve your health.
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  I'm your host, Dr. Heather Norman-Burgdolf, an Associate Professor and Extension
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  Specialist for Food Nutrition.
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  And today I'm joined by Dr. Courtney Luecking, an Assistant Professor and an Extension
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  Specialist for Food Nutrition and a dear friend and colleague.
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  So day in and day out, Courtney and I, we work together supporting food nutrition
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  programming within UK Cooperative Extension.
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  So we thought it would be fun for us to have a conversation about the new Dietary
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  Guidelines for Americans that were released in January 2026.
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  So our goal is kind of have a casual conversation to share what the Dietary
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  Guidelines are, what's in them, and why this matters when we think about health and nutrition.
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  So welcome, Courtney. This is going to be fun.
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  Hello, Heather. I'm so excited to do this with you. So I'm going to give you
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  the big softball just to get the conversation rolling about what are the dietary guidelines.
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  I appreciate that you call it a softball question.
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  And yet I think there's a lot of maybe gray space around what the dietary guidelines are.
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  They are in the news. They have been over the last couple of weeks.
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  So let's talk about what they are and what they aren't.
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  Yes. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and we'll either be calling them
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  the Guidelines or the Dietary Guidelines for short as we go,
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  the Guidelines provide food-based recommendation to promote health,
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  help prevent diet-related chronic diseases, and meet nutrient needs.
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  The intention of these guidelines is to help translate research findings about
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  individual nutrients like fiber or protein or sodium into actionable guidance
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  about nutritious eating that we, the public, can follow.
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  Because it's really hard, even though we've been trained on all of these numbers.
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  You know, limit your sodium to 2,300 milligrams or less. But what does that
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  look like when we're thinking about the foods that we choose to eat or not
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  each day? One thing that I want to make sure we understand is that the guidelines
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  have a public health lens, meaning it's on promotion of health, prevention of disease.
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  They are not clinical guidelines for treating chronic diseases.
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  And we know that many of our fellow Kentuckians have one or more chronic diseases.
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  And so that's one of the criticisms of this, the dietary guideline.
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  I think that's a misunderstanding. People think it is supposed to be prescriptive,
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  right, or like very narrow.
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  One size fits all. And the dietary guidelines definitely aren't.
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  It's like the best broad paint stroke we can make to generally promote nutritious eating.
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  And so one thing to keep in mind is that as nutrition research evolves,
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  which I know you and I can geek out about, the first vitamin was discovered
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  a hundred years ago. It's amazing. I love it.
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  It's like a baby when we think about nutrition research. But it's important
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  to regularly review what's out there and see if these guidelines need to change.
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  And so the last thing I'll say about like the dietary guidelines is that the
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  dietary guidelines, as we know, it launched in 1980. So that may be in memory
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  for some or before others were born.
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  But it wasn't until 1990 that Congress passed legislation,
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  the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act, that requires is
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  now that every five years, the
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  scientific evidence be reviewed and the guidelines be updated and issued.
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  And so the guidelines build on
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  previous editions, and we do expect them to evolve as the science evolves.
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  And so that's where I want to pull you in, is to talk about,
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  like, how different are these guidelines from the previous versions?
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  I think that's a great setup of how we hope that science evolves.
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  It means we're learning more.
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  And people will say, well, I remember back when it was this graphic,
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  or I remember when they used to tell us this.
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  And that's just because our science has gotten better, right?
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  We've been able to explore these things.
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  So yeah, when people hear new dietary guidelines, I think they're immediately
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  expecting some type of large overhaul or major changes that have kind of come down the pipeline.
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  Maybe they didn't realize that there's an actual federal law that requires that new ones are issued.
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  So they're like, oh, there must be something large that's changed.
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  But honestly, the foundational concepts of the new ones really haven't changed that much.
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  So at their core, the message for the new guidelines is still very consistent.
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  We want to encourage people to build a healthy eating pattern that works for
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  them, thinking about specific needs and context, maybe eating the right amount
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  for your body or prioritizing a variety of different nutrients and foods.
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  So protein foods at meal, including dairy, eating vegetables and fruits throughout the day.
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  These are things we continuously tell people, thinking about healthy fats,
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  focusing on whole grains, limiting highly processed foods.
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  And with that, considering added sugar and alcohol, some of these other nutrients
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  that maybe we've encouraged people to limit in the past.
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  So really, those principles have been steady across many iterations of the dietary
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  guidelines for the last few decades.
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  One of the visual changes people are talking about is the new inverted pyramid graphic.
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  If you haven't seen it, it is essentially an upside down triangle where we have
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  placed protein and dairy and healthy fats towards the top.
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  There's also vegetables up at the top. We have fruits that are represented within that graphic.
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  And then once you go down to the bottom of the pyramid or the triangle,
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  that's where we're going to find our grains.
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  So even though the image may emphasize visually animal-based proteins,
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  the written recommendations, if you actually dig into the words that go along
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  with it, it's still clearly promoting a wide variety of protein sources from
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  both animals and plants.
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  So eggs, poultry, seafood, your red meat, but also thinking about beans and
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  lentils, peas, nuts, seeds, and soy, where it may fit in.
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  And we will continue to encourage balance and variety from both animal and plant sources.
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  What I do think is important to say, especially from thinking about cooperative
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  extension, is that, you know,
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  while these guidelines are outlining what to eat, they don't fully address the
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  real world factors that shake the food choices, you know,
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  the listener of this podcast is making on a daily basis, like the cost of the
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  food or how often they can get to the grocery store or are there time constraints
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  for preparing meals or transportation,
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  family traditions, like all of those factors.
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  And so these are where we're having the conversations with extension and,
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  you know, our extension agents out there.
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  You know, every day in our local communities. So our programming,
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  our resources, whatever you hear from us moving forward, despite the fact that
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  new guidelines have been released, what we share is going to reflect all of those factors.
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  We're going to continue to support individuals making nutritious choices practical,
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  affordable, relevant to what meets their family or their individual needs.
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  So, you know, yes, new guidelines, there are really some consistent threads.
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  With that, it's not going to
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  change the type of information that you're going to hear from Extension.
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  I'm so glad you brought up the context and kind of how we put these guidelines
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  into practice, because it just reinforces that notion that the guidelines are
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  not a one-size-fits-all.
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  They are kind of the general recommendations, and then we can continue to work
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  with people to make that, as you were saying, that best fit.
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  Right. And so I think what I think could be concerning for some folks is hearing,
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  like, pro-team. It's been in the spotlight well before the dietary guidelines.
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  I would say, you know, fat had its moment, carbs had their moment,
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  and like now it's protein's turn.
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  But so can you walk us through the science of like why, you know,
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  what is behind this seeking increased emphasis on certain things?
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  And does the science support that?
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  Yeah, and it's perfect because even with the inverted graphic,
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  having some of these specific types of food like protein towards the top,
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  you automatically start to think, well, does that mean I'm supposed to have more of that?
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  Or are we not getting enough of that? So if we step back and we actually look
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  at the nutrition science,
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  the bigger picture is actually very consistent across lots of good research,
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  that it's dietary patterns and it's not a single food or a single nutrient in
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  isolation that supports overall health and well-being.
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  So for example, with protein, dairy, healthy fats being more prominent on that
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  graphic, the science hasn't suddenly declared that one of those is more important
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  compared to other foods that are.
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  Present on that picture. What matters most is the balance.
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  It's how protein and carbohydrates and fats and vitamins, mineral fiber,
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  all work together over time that truly is going to support health and well-being.
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  So you mentioned protein. So with protein specifically, the science shows,
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  yes, it is essential in muscle maintenance and growth and hormone production
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  and even feeling full after a meal. There's lots of benefits that way.
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  A lot of Americans already meet or exceed their protein needs.
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  So that's something to keep in mind as well. So the emphasis isn't eat more
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  protein at all costs or like seek out foods just because they have more protein added to them.
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  It's about choosing a variety of quality protein sources, you know,
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  both animal-based and plant-based sources that are out there.
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  And that variety also helps people stay within their recommendations to keep
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  our saturated fat lower because the protein food group or protein foods are
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  a place where we tend to see more unsaturated fat,
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  and we want to try to keep that to 10% or less of our total daily calories.
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  And I know I'm being long-winded, but I do want to bring up grains because this
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  is another area where people have noticed what looks like a big change.
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  And in the new graphic, the grains are lower in the pyramid,
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  which might feel like they're being less emphasized, but the science around
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  grains is still true, especially when it comes to fiber.
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  Fiber remains strongly associated with improved heart health,
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  lowering blood cholesterol, digestive health, and overall well-being.
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  And the guidelines, if you get into the newer ones, if you get into the words,
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  they still encourage prioritizing whole grains and limiting the refined,
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  highly processed grains.
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  And so, you know, they also acknowledge that grains, carbohydrates needs vary from person to person.
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  So the science hasn't suddenly changed within the last year or so.
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  There's a lot of consistency. And I think that's an important piece is we can
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  always go back to the science and say, what does the science say to inform the
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  food choices that we make?
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  So I want to stop talking for a second. And you kind of are the guru when it
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  comes to the policy behind the why we have dietary guidelines, what they are.
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  So I'm curious if you could help us understand why do these guidelines matter?
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  You kind of mentioned like it gives us that big picture, the representation
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  of this is our best approach at what we think supports health for the general
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  public, but who uses them? Why are they federally mandated?
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  What changes might we notice as they start to be rolled out and implemented
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  over the next couple of years?
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  Absolutely. So the guidelines, there's history behind it, and it's quite fun.
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  I won't, you know, it's supposed to be short and sweet, so we won't get into it.
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  But the long story short is guidelines were initially introduced as a way to
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  provide guidance to minimize deficiencies.
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  We needed our population to be ready for war. And over time,
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  what the priorities are, maybe the issues addressing our population have evolved.
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  And so our guidelines have evolved as well.
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  And ultimately, they've become a go-to resource for nutrition educators.
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  So like our extension professionals across the state.
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  It also becomes a go-to resource for health professionals and policymakers.
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  And the guidelines, I would say that they're largely a policy document,
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  and so they serve as that foundation for federal nutrition programs,
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  like our national school lunch program,
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  Meals on Wheels for older adults, and all the way at the beginning of the lifespan
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  for women, infants, and children.
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  So it determines what is provided, what's reimbursed as part of these meals.
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  Essentially, the guidelines are used to develop these programs or maybe modify
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  them to support implementation.
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  Money is always needed to execute big programs like this.
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  And so a great example to think about is what may or may not come of these newly
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  released dietary guidelines is thinking about school nutrition professionals
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  with the emphasis on, you know,
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  minimizing or reducing these highly processed or ultra processed foods.
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  A lot of school kitchens are not equipped.
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  They don't have the space or the equipment.
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  Or the people power. Or the people power to do that scratch-based cooking.
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  And so these guidelines could serve as kind of.
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  Promoting point of modifying funding that could be directed to schools to provide this.
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  Another way, a great example, and this is policy is slow.
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  I think we all know that, but it's just, you know, like this,
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  if you're at rest and you need to get in motion, it takes a lot of energy and effort.
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  The Women, Infants, and Children program provides supplemental food packages
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  that in 2017 were finally, there were recommendations for updating.
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  And that was based on dietary guidelines at the time, but also the National
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  Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine.
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  So they were looking at additional data to really decide what do these food
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  packages need to meet the health issues facing pregnant people,
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  postpartum people, infants in their first year of life in children up to five.
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  And that led to some pretty significant changes in terms of increased cash value
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  for fruits and vegetables.
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  Didn't have to be fresh. Also decreasing the amount of 100% fruit juice that could be provided.
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  Expanding dairy options so in addition
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  to cow's milk these plant-based ones
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  for individuals who maybe have allergies to
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  cow milk protein or who are have sensitivity to the sugar the lactose that's
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  in milk and then kind of increasing amounts for buying whole grains so this
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  is mirroring all these things that you were just talking about earlier is making
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  these more conducive to the health of our individuals.
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  So it's kind of slow and it's an and, right?
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  So the dietary guidelines are important. They are useful and they are not the end all be all.
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  So I think that's a great kind of point that having that local knowledge,
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  like our extension folks, we can really be there to continue to support providing
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  that evidence-based information and working with families and people and producers
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  to get the products that are going to promote health in our local communities.
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  I like this idea of thinking about the dietary guidelines as one source of information,
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  or it is one approach to kind of looking at nutritional sciences as a whole,
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  but knowing there's a lot of other science out there too that can inform what we're doing.
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  And then also kind of layering on that local context of a person who lives in
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  a rural community and what that actually can look like. So, again,
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  it's the best approach, but it is not the best approach for an individual person's needs, right?
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  So, that's awesome. Thank you for sharing. I would love to geek out with you
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  about the history of the dietary guidelines anytime you want, Courtney.
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  Thank you. Perhaps another episode if we get some listener feedback.
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  Well, with that, we want to say thank you so much for joining today about our
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  conversation about dietary guidelines.
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