New U.S. Food Guidance System differentiates among types of fat

Healthy fats are distinguished from unhealthy fats in the new U.S. Food Guidance System unveiled today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The U.S. Canola Association (USCA), which called for such distinction, applauds "MyPyramid" and its related messages about oils and fats.

In its comments to the U.S. government in August 2004 about revising the Food Guidance System, the USCA recommended that a graphic and related messages differentiate among types of fats, namely between healthy unsaturated fats and unhealthy saturated and trans fats, and support a minimum intake level of healthy fats. The new system does so by representing oils as one of six bands in MyPyramid, which are needed each day for good health, and providing recommendations for choosing healthy oils "Inside MyPyramid."

In the latter recommendations, the USDA distinguishes between oils and solid fats as well as among vegetable oils based on saturated fat content. Vegetable oils and foods that contain mainly oil with no trans fat are recommended to be the main sources of fat in the diet, with the exception of coconut and palm kernel oils, which the USDA notes are "high in saturated fats and for nutritional purposes should be considered to be solid fats."

"The type of fat matters as much as the amount of fat consumed," said John Haas, USCA president. "The USCA agrees with the USDA's recommendation to keep total fat intake moderate and to consume mainly healthy fats that come from sources such as vegetables oils low in saturated fat."

Illustrating this concept, the new Food Guidance System depicts moderation by the narrowing of each food group band from bottom to top. The wider base stands for foods with little or no solid fats, added sugars, or caloric sweeteners, which "should be selected more often to get the most nutrition from calories consumed," according to the USDA. In addition, proportionality is shown by the different widths of the food group bands.

As listed in the oils section of "Inside MyPyramid," canola oil is a vegetable oil used in cooking that fits into the wide base of the oils food group. It is high in mono- and polyunsaturated fats and the lowest in saturated fat of any standard vegetable oil on the market.