Andrea N. Bailey
The Food Guide Pyramid is one way for people to understand how to eat healthy. A rainbow of colored, vertical stripes represents the five food groups plus fats and oils. Here's what the colors stand for:
-
orange -- grains
-
green -- vegetables
-
red -- fruits
-
yellow -- fats and oils
-
blue -- milk and dairy products
-
purple -- meat, beans, fish, and nuts
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) changed the pyramid in 2005 because they wanted to do a better job of telling Americans how to be healthy. The agency later released a special version for kids. The girl climbing the staircase up the side of the pyramid is a way of showing kids how important it is to exercise and be active every day (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2009).
