Balance food choices with lifestyle

  • Published
  • 60th Diagnostic and Therapeutics Squadron and 60th Medical Operations Squadron
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Choosing the right balance of foods helps you get the right combination of nutrients. The food guide pyramid is a tool designed to help you make food choices that are consistent with the dietary guidelines for Americans. Using the pyramid as a guide allows you to eat a variety of foods daily so that you can get the nutrients you need. 

The key to the pyramid is to understand proper portion sizes. Knowing the size of a serving can help you determine your portions — the amount of a particular food you eat at a given time. 

Here are a few tips to help you size up your plate and better gauge your portions: 

•3 ounces of cooked meat is the size of a deck of cards 

•A medium piece of fruit is the size of a baseball 

•A medium bagel is the size of a hockey puck 

•1 ounce of cheese is the size of four die 

•A small baked potato is the size of a computer mouse 

•2 tablespoons of peanut butter is the size of a golf ball 

•1 cup of raw vegetables, yogurt and fruit is the size of an average woman’s hand. 

The food guide pyramid can help you build a healthy eating plan by showing proper portion sizes that can also monitor caloric intake. Balance your food choices from the pyramid with your physical activities to achieve and maintain a healthy weight and lifestyle. 

For more information about National Nutrition Month, visit www.eatright.org or contact the David Grant USAF Medical Center’s Nutritional Medicine Flight at 423-3696 or the Population Health clinic at 423-7867.