New food pyramid calls for more grains, exercise

? Not just any bread will do: Americans need more fiber, and whole wheat is better than white bread for getting it, a panel of scientists and doctors said Friday.

The federal advisory panel was offering its final recommendations for making the government’s food pyramid a better guide to proper eating.

But diet alone is not enough. The guidelines should put a new emphasis on exercise and other physical activity, the committee said. It explained that most people seeking to control their weight need 60 to 90 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity daily.

About two-thirds of the nation’s population is overweight or obese, according to the latest government figures.

The recommendations play down the current guidelines’ highlighted advice to “choose beverages and foods to moderate your intake of sugars.” Americans still should control their intake of sugar-sweetened foods and drinks, particularly people who need to watch their weight, the guidelines say, but they do not include that advice among nine major points the new proposals stress.

The panel’s report goes to government officials who will prepare a final version for the secretaries of agriculture and of health and human services. The final dietary guidelines and the updated food pyramid are due out early next year. The guidelines also will be used in decision-making for other federal programs such as planning menus for school lunches.

To get more fiber, people should eat at least three one-ounce servings of whole grains, such as whole wheat bread, preferably as a substitute for refined grains such as white bread, according to the recommendations. Whole grains are rich in 14 nutrients including fiber, which has been shown to lower the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

“We need more fiber,” said Eric Hentges, executive director of the Agriculture Department’s Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. “It’s getting a balance of our enriched grains and our whole grains, and the whole grains are the ones that are out of balance and lacking right now.”

The new report puts a strong emphasis on getting calories under control and pays no heed to popular diets that focus on specific nutrients, such as counting carbohydrates.

“To stem the obesity epidemic, most Americans need to reduce the amount of calories they consume,” the report said. “When it comes to weight control, calories do count — not the proportions of carbohydrate, fat and protein in the diet.”

The new proposals allow “discretionary calories,” including sweet treats, for the minority of Americans who eat and exercise right and get their nutrients without exceeding their calorie limits.

The change on sweeteners was welcomed by the sugar industry, which had argued that the committee should focus on total calories, not specific nutrients.