USDA Changes Pyramid to Pie

And at the top, you'll find enlightenment...

Yeah, maybe most of the world has been watching the Sistine Chapel for a plume of white smoke. My office has been salivating at their screens, counting down the moments to this morning's USDA webcast announcement for the new food pyramid.

Essentially, they've divided the hierarchy into vertical slices of varying widths to represent relative consumption. The slices are color-coded, and you have to check at MyPyramid.gov to get your own, personalized recommendation on what the government thinks you should be eating.

The reactions among the troops here?

"It's stupid!"

"It's terrible information design! The image isn't sufficient on its own. They don't provide labels for the sections, so it's just confusing"

"They tipped the pyramid over and spilled it out all over the place. It's like they're saying, 'hey you figure it out' "

"It's a food pie"

"Well... it takes into account individual people's needs."

"It doesn't tell me why I'm supposed to eat all these grains."

Overall, there's confusion and disappointment. Our nutritionist was the most cautiously optimistic among us.

The bottom line? Eat whole grains, vary your vegetables, focus on fruits, find calcium-rich foods, eat lean proteins, know the difference between fats, and exercise every day. I haven't yet found a mention about remembering to floss and getting eight hours of sleep every night, but I'm sure that's in here somewhere...