Define the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, including their purposes, and how they play a role in food politics

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans are an evidenced-based document used to develop federal food, nutrition, and health policies and programs. They help translate the nutrient recommendations of the DRI into food recommendations.
By law, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans are reviewed and revised as needed every five years. Each edition shares some similarities with previous editions but also sets precedent in new ways. For example, the current edition, the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, focuses on eating patterns—the foods and beverages a person consumes over time. This edition recognizes that “healthy eating patterns and regular physical activity can help people achieve and maintain good health and reduce the risk of chronic disease throughout all stages of the lifespan.
The controversy surrounding the release of the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans is a reminder that food politics plays an ongoing role in defining nutrition policy and healthy recommendations. While most nutrition professionals applauded the work of the Dietary Guidelines committee and its scientific report, many objected to the final report, which had been substantially revised, claiming that those revisions reflected the special interests of the food industry and politicians. Specific wording became vague and a new chapter on sustainable diets had been deleted. Food sustainability recognizes that foods and beverages have a large environmental impact—from farm to plate to waste—and that a sustainable food supply is essential to a healthy population and planet both for today and in the future. Many in the food industry opposed the inclusion of sustainability and convinced politicians that sustainability was outside the scope of providing dietary guidance.