What are five steps to a healthy eating plan? These considerations include the protein, fat, and carbohydrate (macronutrient) composition; qualitative aspects of macronutrients such as the glycemic index; food constituents not considered to be nutrients such as fiber and carotenoids; and possible benefits of essential nutrients at intakes above those known to prevent overt deficiency.
Despite public health promotion to eat healthy foods, only 23 percent of Americans consume the daily recommended amounts of fruits Disease and Diet and vegetables, according to the 2010 Annual Status Report of the National Prevention, Health Promotion and Public Health Council.

Diet, that meets the food group recommendations, receives maximum scores for the nine adequacy components of the index: total fruits, whole fruits, vegetables, dark green and orange vegetables and legumes, total grains, whole grains, milk, meat and beans, oil.
According to Sasson, there may be an overlooked element of the Mediterranean diet: It may not be so much about what the people who live around the Mediterranean Sea are eating, but rather about what they're not eating, such as oversized portions and heavily processed food.


In the 2001 Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity, former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher stated, Individual behavior change can occur only in a supportive environment with accessible and affordable healthy food choices and opportunities for regular physical activity” (HHS, 2001).
Canned sardines may keep your heart healthy, according to a study cited by the experts at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Researchers have found that eating one to two servings of fatty fish per week may lower the risk of cardiovascular death by up to 36 percent.

If you're a meat- and dairy-eater, fish, eggs, plain Greek yogurt and certain leaner cuts of poultry and meats are the way to go. Just consume animal products in moderation since their saturated fat content can increase bad cholesterol, inflammation and risk for heart disease, Moskovitz says.
In a randomized trial conducted in a region of China with low consumption of fruits and vegetables, a supplement containing beta-carotene, vitamin E, and selenium reduced incidence of stomach cancer ( 27 ). In a study conducted among Tanzanian women infected with HIV, a multiple vitamin containing B-vitamins, vitamin E, and vitamin C reduced progression of the disease and HIV-related mortality ( 46 ). The French SuViMax trial of a combination of zinc and low-dose antioxidants yielded a significant 31% reduction in cancer incidence and lower overall mortality in men, but results were not significant among women who had a better nutritional status at baseline ( 66 ). Recently, the Physician's Health Study II trial reported a statistically significant 8% reduction in total cancer incidence (a prespecified end point) in an 11-year trial among 14,641 male physicians ( 54 ). One may speculate that perhaps greater benefits might accrue to less well-nourished individuals.
In the 1990s, the USDA's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion created the Healthy Eating Index to measure how well American diets conform to recommended healthy eating patterns.” 4 A score of 100 meant following the federal recommendations to the letter while a score of 0 meant totally ignoring them.