
Canada's New Food Guide - thtthings
https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/
======
benzor
This is great. A no-nonsense, modern take on healthy nutrition. It's simple
(no more food groups, portions, etc.), and actually healthy (e.g. not catering
to the dairy industry with a daily glass of milk recommendation, pizza is not
a vegetable, etc.).

Compare it to this:
[https://www.cnpp.usda.gov/sites/default/files/archived_proje...](https://www.cnpp.usda.gov/sites/default/files/archived_projects/FGPPamphlet.pdf)

~~~
village-idiot
Oh, it’s still catering to some industries, they’re just far less blatant
about it than in America.

~~~
bb101
In the Pork and apple skillet dinner[1], they recommend using canola oil, a
recommendation one doesn't see all that often. With canola oil having been
engineered in Canada, is it an oil of choice for Canadians?

[1] [https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/canada-
food-...](https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/canada-food-
guide/tips-healthy-eating/meal-planning-cooking-healthy-
choices/recipes/speedy-pork-apple-skillet-dinner.html)

~~~
freeone3000
I'm surprised you don't see that recommendation often. It's a very cheap,
versatile cooking oil. I wouldn't say it's anyone's favourite, but it's
effectively the default?

~~~
RugnirViking
No? At least where I'm from, the default is sunflower oil and if you want to
upgrade its olive oil. I've never heard of canola oil

~~~
tom_mellior
FWIW, you may know it as rapeseed oil. "Canola was originally a trademark name
of the Rapeseed Association of Canada, and the name was a condensation of
"Can" from Canada and "ola" from other vegetable oils like Mazola,[6][7] but
is now a generic term for edible varieties of rapeseed oil in North America
and Australia. The change in name serves to distinguish it from natural
rapeseed oil, which has much higher erucic acid content."
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canola_oil](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canola_oil)

------
kszxgz
For comparison: Harvard Healthy Eating Plate
[https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-
eating-...](https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-eating-
plate/)

At least among the Harvard faculty, there appears to be a consensus that
healthy fats are important, which the Canadian guide doesn't seem to stress
that much.

[https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-
you...](https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/fats-
and-cholesterol/)

===

Comments on the Harvard Healthy Eating Plate
([https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/diet/intervie...](https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/diet/interviews/willett.html)):

INTERVIEWER: Some nutritionists have criticized your pyramid as "floating on a
lake of olive oil."

WILLETT: The formal studies that had compared a more moderate fat intake as
we've suggested, with low-fat diets, have actually consistently shown that
people did as well or better controlling their weight on a moderate-fat diet
compared to a high-carbohydrate, low-fat diet.

INTERVIEWER: Even good fats are more fattening than good carbs. So they think
you're contributing to the obesity epidemic, or there's a risk of that. A
tablespoon of olive oil is 14 grams of fat.

WILLETT: There are all kinds of beliefs about the amount of fat in a diet,
tremendously strong opinions. What we really need is sound data, and the
studies that have been done show that people actually end up controlling their
weight at least as well, and usually better, on moderate-fat diets compared to
low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets.

INTERVIEWER: Is it okay to get more than 30 percent of your calories from fat?

WILLETT: The evidence is quite clear that it's perfectly fine to get more than
30 percent of your calories from fat, and probably, in fact, it's even better
to be getting more than 30 percent of calories from fat, if it's the healthy
form of fat. ...

===

EDIT: formatting

~~~
NumberWangMan
Olive oil is not a healthy fat (as much as I'd love it to be) -- it's got a
substantial amount of saturated fat, and the interviewer is correct -- it's
very easy to get a lot of empty calories with oil.

Aside from that, weight is not the only issue. A high fat diet (even a vegan
one) is not good for your cardiovascular system.

There's a widely quoted study by high-fat diet proponents comparing two groups
eating a high-fat Mediterranean diet (one with olive oil, one with nuts) to a
"low fat" control group:
[https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1200303?query=re...](https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1200303?query=recirc_curatedRelated_article)

This study can't really be used to advocate a high fat diet, though, because
all the diets (even the control group) were actually high fat. Looking at page
28 of the appendix
([https://www.nejm.org/doi/suppl/10.1056/NEJMoa1200303/suppl_f...](https://www.nejm.org/doi/suppl/10.1056/NEJMoa1200303/suppl_file/nejmoa1200303_appendix.pdf))
shows that the fat intake of all three groups was really very similar -- about
41% calories from fat for the olive oil and nut groups, but only...37% fat
from the control group. 37% calories from fat is not "low fat".

On the other hand, a true low fat diet, with fewer than 10% of calories from
fat, has been shown to actually reverse the progression of heart disease:
[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7500065](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7500065)
(this was one of the first studies to demonstrate this, but they've repeated
this with larger groups and gotten the same results)

~~~
SECProto
Where's the proof of your assertion that olive oil is not a healthy fat due to
the saturated fat content? I'm under the impression saturated fat is a
bogeyman similar to cholesterol.

~~~
Someone1234
The very same Harvard web-site?

> Saturated fats, while not as harmful as trans fats, by comparison with
> unsaturated fats negatively impact health and are best consumed in
> moderation. Foods containing large amounts of saturated fat include red
> meat, butter, cheese, and ice cream. Some plant-based fats like coconut oil
> and palm oil are also rich in saturated fat.

[https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-
you...](https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/fats-
and-cholesterol/)

~~~
SECProto
> The very same Harvard web-site?

Thanks, but that is not from the post I was responding to, and only addresses
part of the claim I was disputing. The link says unsaturated fats are better
than saturated fats... and _specifically_ calls out olive oil as being
healthy:

> “Good” unsaturated fats — Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats — lower
> disease risk. Foods high in good fats include vegetable oils (such as olive,
> canola, sunflower, soy, and corn), nuts, seeds, and fish.

------
sattoshi
Canada.ca is a recipe website now and it's what HN always wanted: a recipe
with no weird preface personal stories about grandmother's or something
drinking tea.

~~~
piceas
I'm a fan. Other examples:
[https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes](https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes)
[https://www.bbc.com/food/recipes](https://www.bbc.com/food/recipes) With a
light sprinkling of meat propaganda:
[https://www.trueaussiebeefandlamb.com/recipes/](https://www.trueaussiebeefandlamb.com/recipes/)

------
ricardobeat
I reckon this is influenced by the pioneering Brazilian food guide [1]
released in 2014, which was created in partnership with the Universiy of
Montreal[2].

[1] [https://www.vox.com/2015/2/20/8076961/brazil-food-
guide](https://www.vox.com/2015/2/20/8076961/brazil-food-guide)

[2] [https://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/features/brazils-
revolutio...](https://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/features/brazils-
revolutionary-new-food-guide-focuses-on-how-food-is-made)

------
nickelcitymario
New guide, same as the old guide, minus dairy as its own category, and carbs
are de-emphasized.

This seems pretty non-controversial.

The old food pyramid suggested having as many carbs as you could handle, and
made it seem like milk and meat were absolutely vital.

The new take just lumps those into protein and suggests proteins as a whole
should be about 25% of your diet.

While no guide could possibly please everyone (there's a diet trend for every
possible food combo out there), this seems like a reasonable baseline to me.

As for the recipes they list... omg no.

------
vkaku
Great Job, Canada. They've shot down many of the lobbying companies when
publishing this.

It's not perfect, but it's a good start.

~~~
sridca
> Great Job, Canada. They've shot down many of the lobbying companies when
> publishing this.

They only shot down diary, meat and juice industry[1], while conveniently
ignoring mentioning of lobbying from others (plant-based foods).

Canada actually produces over 50% of the world's supply of lentils and they
also grow a large amounts of various grains, legumes that they may be looking
to push and make a profit for[2].

The whole food guide is extremely biased and hardly anyone here in HN seems to
get it, lol.

\--

[1] [https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-new-food-
guid...](https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-new-food-guide-shifts-
toward-plant-based-foods/)

[2]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3uewoEocYY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3uewoEocYY)

------
novaRom
My food guide is to learn from examples: How average people of my age and
older look like in different parts of the world? Are they healthy? What do
they eat? What their habits? etc.

~~~
ddeokbokki
A people's traditional diet does not necessarily correlate to their longevity,
there are many other factors one needs to take into account (way of life,
access to healthcare, access to food, etc)

------
moltar
Jesus, who invented that???

Mac and cheese with a veggie twist

* 375 mL (1 ½ cups) whole grain macaroni or fusilli * 10 mL (2 tsp) soft non-hydrogenated margarine

~~~
humanrebar
Yeah. That recipe looks pretty rough. I hate it when people try to transform
unhealthy dishes into healthy "treats".

Just serve pasta with olive oil, some sort of acid (lemon juice, rotating cast
of vinegars, tomatoes), and maybe a little grated sharp cheese if you really
need that.

Honestly, I'd rather just eat barley, farro, or bulgur in a bowl than try to
force whole grains into crumbly pasta. But I guess that's a matter of taste.

The big problem with this dish is the relative lack of umami. Sauteed
mushrooms (shitake, portabella) really help here if you don't want to use
meat. Or nutritional yeast really does the trick here. Depending on your
palette, various fish sauces also help, though most Canadians probably aren't
adding fermented fish products on everything.

~~~
cknoxrun
I would imagine several of the recipes are directed at families with young
children?

~~~
humanrebar
Most kids love simple noodle and rice dishes.

------
kentosi
From what I read, and someone please correct me on this, they put a bunch of
scientists in a room to do their work without any influences from industry and
lobby groups.

I love this. Great job Canada!

------
14
I haven't looked over this food guide and probably will not put too much
thought into it as a Canadian. Everyone knows that last food guide was
completely out of touch with reality and was actually influenced by some of
the big food companies. So now they want to try again and they didn't have it
right for the last few decades why should I listen now? If they want to get me
to listen now they need to highlight the old food guide and the changes they
made and why. I notice they now recommend water as the drink of choice when
the last one companies like Minute Maid fought to have a glass of juice placed
on it. So my generation was sold out on the food guide. My trust now is
strained. I will take this one with caution as well and continue to question
if there is some alternative motive for the foods recommended.

------
lavignegagnon
I can't believe they still promote horrible industrial oils high in omega-6 as
healthy fats:

    
    
      Unsaturated fats that are good for your health: peanut, soybean, safflower, sunflower.
    

[https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/tips-for-healthy-
eating/comm...](https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/tips-for-healthy-
eating/commonly-used-terms/#oils-with-healthy-fats)

------
robbrit
It's great that they highlight the effects of targeted advertising on eating
behaviour: [https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/healthy-eating-
recommendatio...](https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/healthy-eating-
recommendations/marketing-can-influence-your-food-choices/)

Definitely good to see a government organization being aware of how the modern
world works.

------
hema_n
This is simply perfect.. Everyone can follow this by making small changes in
their eating habits towards a healthy lifestyle.

------
benj111
I hope that plate at the top of the front page isn't a suggested meal size!

Has anyone got some background on this, is it part of a larger policy? Is it
going to be added to, or is this it now?

~~~
ginko
Why? Too much? Too little?

~~~
benj111
The egg seems to be the most reliable scale indicator? Assuming that's a
normal size egg, that is a very large plate of food.

I know the intent is to indicate relative proportions of food, but you
question suggests more work needs to be done on portion control also.

~~~
chki
I think if you divide the food on the plate over the course of a day that
might be a reasonable amount, maybe a bit too much. Generally the site tends
to focus too much on the problems of overeating while some people (myself
included) might rather have problems to eat enough (healthy) food sometimes.

------
PalantirSlayer
If governements tells you what to eat please be skeptical. They have got it
wrong in past and they might be wrong today. The best diet advice always comes
from grandma.

~~~
eumenides1
Just because they tried and got it wrong doesn't mean we should be skeptical.
We should be comparing what is known about food science to what is presented.
Honestly, this food guide has been closest to what people currently consider
healthy than any other previous guide.

The whole advice from grandma is nonsense. You probably have a wealthy
background, but my grandma was poor, uneducated, and cooked meals based on
what was affordable. That isn't advice, that's an economic condition.

------
sixothree
What are the little balls to the left of the egg?

~~~
Vinnl
I think pine nuts, perhaps some other type of nuts or maybe even lentils?

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ponderatul
It's not the same anti-evolutionary guude promoted by the EAT foundation is
it?

~~~
sridca
Looks like it, and for which there is a good rebuttal:
[https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/diagnosis-
diet/20190...](https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/diagnosis-
diet/201901/eat-lancets-plant-based-planet-10-things-you-need-know)

------
Vinnl
It's interesting how we can all check out Canada's food guide, but we cannot
do the same with e.g. the Dutch food guide, or the Italian one, or the Russian
one, unless you speak those languages.

In any case, this one appears pretty similar to the Dutch one, so I guess that
that's a good sign. The Dutch one recommends specific portions (250g of
vegetables for an adult, for example), but I think in similar ratios as shown
on that example plate, and similar products.

~~~
tom_mellior
Literally typing "dutch food guide" into DuckDuckGo got me to this summary in
English: [http://www.fao.org/nutrition/education/food-based-dietary-
gu...](http://www.fao.org/nutrition/education/food-based-dietary-
guidelines/regions/countries/netherlands/en/)

Then following some broken links to
[https://www.voedingscentrum.nl](https://www.voedingscentrum.nl), here is The
Netherlands Nutrition Centre's English home page:
[https://www.voedingscentrum.nl/nl/service/english.aspx](https://www.voedingscentrum.nl/nl/service/english.aspx)
where following some more broken links you get to their "Wheel of Five", "the
practical information tool used by the Netherlands Nutrition Centre to give
examples of healthy dietary patterns":
[https://www.voedingscentrum.nl/Assets/Uploads/voedingscentru...](https://www.voedingscentrum.nl/Assets/Uploads/voedingscentrum/Documents/Professionals/Pers/Factsheets/English/Fact%20sheet%20The%20Wheel%20of%20Five.pdf)

(I don't speak Dutch, and I feel silly pointing out that national dietary
guidelines make most sense in national languages, and that English happens to
be a national language of Canada.)

~~~
Vinnl
Wow interesting, it didn't even occur to me that the Voedingscentrum would
have made available English-language content. To be clear, I wouldn't expect
the Canadian food guide to be made available in Dutch either.

It's just that I often compare Dutch guidelines with foreign (usually
American) ones, and they often diverge. For example, in the Netherlands it's
common not to use anaesthesia when giving birth, where most other countries
AFAIK do.

