Good Advice, a Bit Hard to Swallow

New Food Guidelines Have Some Feeling Perplexed, Guilty

The warm weather, if not the new exercise and diet guidelines, entices joggers out around the National World War II Memorial. (Katherine Frey -- The Washington Post)

Those people who took the time to actually digest the fat new sheaf of dietary guidelines the federal government released this week had a few questions.

Like, remind us again what a trans fat is?

"It's something you're not supposed to eat," said Carol Frick, 56, a therapist from Silver Spring. "Stick margarine and potato chips."

And, what's up with 60 to 90 minutes a day of exercise for those wanting to maintain weight loss? What are we supposed to do, live at the gym?

At least changing the whole "serving size" to "cup" thing -- as in, Americans should now eat 4 1/2 cups of fruits and vegetables a day instead of five servings -- is welcome news. Especially because, as Melvita Campbell of Dumfries pointed out, "no one knew what a serving size was, anyway."

Meg Martin, the clinical nutrition manager for Inova Alexandria Hospital and a registered dietitian, said the guidelines have been revamped this time to focus on the nation's growing obesity epidemic. Almost two-thirds of the country's population is overweight, the report said, and half gets too little exercise.

"We have a serious problem, and they took that into account. These guidelines are on target to deal with the obesity epidemic," Martin said.

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines were issued Wednesday jointly by the Departments of Health and Human Services and Agriculture to set health policy objectives for the nation.

But whether they will help the millions struggling to lose weight -- already confused by a blizzard of conflicting information about low-carb vs. low-fat diets and fancy weight-loss programs such as Atkins and Weight Watchers -- is unclear.

"I'm panicked for our society about the idea of the new guidelines," said Katie Cook, 45, an Alexandria resident and fundraiser who was on her way into the supermarket yesterday holding a crumpled Wendy's bag. "Every time they come up with a new explanation or a new plan, we just get heavier as a nation. Now they're changing it again. We're like mice scurrying around in a maze and can't get to the solution -- which is getting harder and harder to find."

Registered dietitian Susan Moore of Falls Church agreed.

"Many people are already suffering from information overload," Moore said. "The guidelines are good because they tell people where they should be going, but I don't think it's going to noodge people into doing something great and different."

The guidelines, which are issued every five years, counsel consumers to keep the amount of trans fats they eat "as low as possible" and keep saturated fat intake -- the kind found in red meats -- to less than 10 percent of calories. A trans fat is hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil that turns up in chips, margarine and other fattening foods such as cookies. Foods with added sugar, such as soda, also should be limited.

The guidelines also recommend two cups of fruits and 2 1/2 cups of vegetables per day for those who are on a 2,000-calorie diet, three cups a day of low-fat or skim milk or milk products and three servings of whole grains.

Martin said the most dramatic recommendations in the new guidelines have to do with exercise. To reduce the risk of disease, the guidelines call for at least 30 minutes of moderate to intense physical activity "most days of the week." But for people who want to sustain weight loss, the recommendations call for 60 to 90 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity most days.

"I think that's where the shock value comes in," Martin said. "When you're thinking of upwards of 90 minutes to prevent weight gain, people are going to wonder how they're going to get all that exercise in."

Many Washington area residents -- including Cook, who said she had plugged her treadmill in but had not climbed on it since the holidays -- thought the new exercise guidelines were a bit much.

"I used to exercise a lot, but now I'm down to walking the dog 45 minutes five times a week," said Frick, the Silver Spring therapist. "My knees are shot, so I can't do aerobics, I don't like the gym, yoga's also hard on my knees, and I can't motivate to do exercise tapes. I guess right now walking the dog is the best I can do -- and it's better than nothing."

Marshall Davies, 62, an association manager from Hyattsville who was stopping at a Giant supermarket on his lunch break, said the guidelines didn't tell him anything more than he already knew: Eat more veggies. Exercise more.

He patted his belly. "I have my own ideas about what I should eat," he said.

Yet, later, he left the supermarket toting a carton of greens.

"Look what you made me do!" he said, shaking it in the air. "I got a salad."

Staff writer Jennifer Lenhart contributed to this report.