New Dietary Guidelines-Why I'm a farmer, no longer a dietitian

 Hello!

    Hard to believe I haven't posted here since 2018. 8 years of writer's block..... Frankly, I found blogging to be a bit tedious and also felt as though I was regurgitating much of what others were saying and posting. I instead went to posting articles and things about my farm on my Foodie Farmer Facebook page. But this week, with the "new" dietary guidelines being released, I felt a longer post was going to be necessary and so figured out how to log back into this account.

    First, for those of you who are new or randomly finding this blog post, let me introduce myself. I am both a full-time farmer growing corn, soybeans, vegetables and fruits on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Ours is a 4th generation (in the USA) family farm as my nephew returned to the farm 2 year ago to join us full time. My first career was as a Registered Dietitian. I worked clinical, long-term care and public health settings in the years where that was my main career. My bachelor's and master's degrees are both in Nutrition, however both with a focus on agriculture. 

    Why I left clinical dietetic is pertinent to this week's release of the Dietary Guidelines. It's very frustrating to work with humans who are generally non-compliant with their diet recommendations. There I said it. Those of you who have heard me speak know that I typically say, "I left dietetics because plants and soils are way more compliant with their diet recommendations than people". And sadly, its true. Color me skeptic when it comes to releasing new dietary guidelines for the American public and expecting the federal government to influence eating behaviors outside of the food that is provide through federally funded programs such as school lunch.

                                                            "New" Food Pyramid 2026

    First, a clarification - the "food pyramid" hasn't been used since 2010. In 2011, USDA released the "My Plate" guidelines and graphics to simplify the information consumers were receiving. My Plate has been the guiding federal nutrition principal from 2011 until this week when the administration released a revised food pyramid that is upside down. You haven't been "misled for decades" with guidance that prioritizes processed food. Limiting intake of processed foods, eating well balanced meals, eating a diet high in fiber with more whole grains, fruits and vegetables to reduce your chance of colon cancer and improve nutrition are LONG standing recommendations going back even to the 1970s. The McGovern report issued in 1977 recommends Americans "American improve health through informed diet selection.... reducing sugar, refined carbohydrates, saturated fat, and limiting sodium" (1) None of this is new. 

                                                          "Old" Food Pyramid 1992-2010

    So what's good about the 2026 dietary guidelines? They do reiterate long standing science with regards to health and nutrition. (2)

• Eat the right amount for you.
• Eat fruits and veggies throughout the day.
• Incorporate healthy fats.
• Focus on whole grains.
• Limit highly processed foods, added sugars, and refined carbohydrates.

    Nothing new to see here. These have been the dietary recommendations for decades. And very few people follow them, and THAT is the underlying problem with the health of Americans and the increase in chronic disease. The federal government has been issuing dietary guidelines for over 50 years and in that time frame, chronic disease has gone up, not down. Clearly, it's not as simple as the federal government issuing dietary guidelines that basically confirm what dietitians have long been educating consumers. If so, we'd all be eating healthy and in compliance with the guidelines. The "typical" American diet diverges greatly from every iteration of past 50 years of dietary guidelines.

    Its been funny to watch folks post about the dietary guidelines like there is anything other than the same healthy eating guidelines. I'm going to leave the clinical analysis to those with more current scientific training than me. I encourage you to read Kevin Klatt PhD, RD post on substack. It's the most comprehensive, evidence based analysis I've read to date. 

Ambiguous DGAs & The Rancher's Pyramid

Will I be back posting here more often? Unsure. It still feels as though the noise is greater than the evidence and participating in the process somewhat less than rewarding. Your best bet is to find me here on Facebook .

(1) Dietary goals for the United States - USDA National Agricultural Library

(2) Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030