Dietary Guidelines from the USDA

Every five years, the United States Department of Agriculture issues updated guidelines for Americans. The usual result is disastrous dietary advice—low-fat, high-fiber, high-carb, low-salt, lean-meat, skim-milk diets. In other words, an unsatisfying, nutrient-deficient puritanical diet, that is bound to lead to cravings and indulgence in processed foods. In January 2026, some positive changes occurred at the USDA which turned the food pyramid upside down. The result is not perfect but there have been significant improvements. https://cdn.realfood.gov/DGA.pdf

At the top of the pyramid, we now see red meat – with fat on it – cheese, whole milk, eggs and yogurt. Grains have sunk to the bottom. Butter is lower in the pyramid than it should be but at least it is there. The biggest disappointment is the statement that you should keep total fat consumption to less than 10% of total daily calories. This severe restriction might not be a problem for small rodent test animals but most people will not thrive on such a diet. The bottom line is: you will still get better nutritional advice from our healthy ancestors who passed vibrant health on from one generation to the next, as explained by the Weston A. Price Foundation, than you will from our government.

WAPF advocates a diet based on delicious, satisfying whole foods including fatty meats, eggs, cream, whole milk, butter, organ meats (delicious as pate), seafood, broth-based sauces, unrefined salt, sourdough bread, lacto-fermented foods and the occasional dessert made with natural sweeteners. This diet calls for wise choices, but no renunciation.