Thursday Thirteen

Here is information from  the 2015‒2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans,” as provided by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion:

1. A lifetime of healthy eating helps prevent chronic diseases.
2. Healthy eating is one of the most powerful tools we have to reduce the onset of disease.
3. Following a healthy eating pattern that’s right for you is important to improving health through nutrition.
4. A healthy eating pattern includes a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, protein foods, fat-free or low-fat dairy, and oils (including natural oils and those from plants).
5. Healthy eating patterns limit added sugars.
6. Healthy eating patterns limit saturated and trans fats.
7. Healthy eating patterns limit sodium.
8. Most Americans can benefit from making small shifts in their daily eating habits to improve their health over the long run. Small shifts in food choices can make a difference in working toward a healthy eating pattern that works for you.
9. Regular physical activity is one of the most important things individuals can do to improve their health. 
10. Everyone has a role — at home, school, workplaces, and food retail outlets — in supporting healthy food choices.
11. A healthy eating pattern includes a variety of vegetables from all of the subgroups—dark green, red and orange, legumes (beans and peas), starchy, and other; fruits, especially whole fruits; grains, at least half of which are whole grains; fat-free or low-fat dairy, including milk, yogurt, cheese, and/or fortified soy beverages; a variety of protein foods, including seafood, lean meats and poultry, eggs, legumes (beans and peas), and nuts, seeds, and soy products; and oils
12. You can download a very large .pdf of the "dietary guidelines" here.
13. I am not sure what happens if you didn't grow up eating well and exercising, and you're over 50 now. Too late to change?

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Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 461st time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.