Printable Food Pyramid

The food pyramid or formally, the food guide pyramid, was developed by United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as a nutritional guide. The intention of a food pyramid is to provide comprehensive information regarding the types of food and the quantity of each type of food a person should consume every day for achieving optimal health standards. According to the food pyramid, there are five main food groups, which are bread and cereals, vegetables, fruits, dairy, and protein. In April 2005, the food pyramid got a makeover into "MyPyramid", the title of the new USDA nutrition advisory program. The newly introduced pyramid's appearance features a rainbow of vertical, colored stripes that is symbolic of the five major food groups, and fats and oils.

Each person can choose any one of the 12 pyramids that suits his or her dietary and health requirements. Each pyramid is designed considering your age, gender, level of physical activity and other relevant things. The different pyramids also offer you additional guidelines and suggestions. Each gives specific guidelines and suggestions as to the amount of oil you can consume, the number of servings of vegetables you will require etc. This way, each person is provided with a customized pyramid taking into account the particular person’s health needs. Exercise is also given paramount importance by the new pyramid and specifies the amount of exercise that is required for different individuals.

The new food pyramid was introduced with some much-needed changes incorporated to the older one. The new food pyramid guide is more specific when it comes to servings and age. The old food guide did not provide information regarding the servings of the constituents of the balanced diet according to the age of an individual. The old food guide adopted a generalized approach whereas the new guide is specific in terms of the dietary and exercise requirements of different people. The old food guide was less attractive to the children whereas the multi-colored approach of the new food pyramid guide makes it more appealing to children.

Why Men Needs to Care Their Skin?

Skin care is not a big issue for most men. They do very little in this regard, which at best is applying a toning gel or moisturizer after shaving. The reality is that a healthy skin is vital for the overall health of a human being. Damages done to the natural barrier of the skin can permit micro-organisms and harmful substances to enter the blood stream. In fact, shaving is one process that can get rid of the protective outer layer thus inviting danger.

Damaging the natural barrier of the skin cam also permit harmful molecules to dig deep into your skin and possibly the bloodstream. Shaving also removes some superficial layers of the skin that includes some living layers of the skin cell, which can considerably expose the skin to external attacks. Using an effective skin care product can help you to protect your skin against such risks. Natural skin care products have been found to be user-friendly and free from side effects than chemical based skin care products.

Side-effects can include skin discoloration and allergic reactions. Skin care products containing essential oils and herbal extracts as their major ingredients have been able to provide powerful resistance against micro-organisms and harmful substances. The potent antiseptic effects of essential oils can assist in keeping micro-organisms at bay, which eliminates inflammation and infection of the skin. Also, the combination of essential oils and herbal extracts enhances the skin health and makes it softer and brighter. So, it is high time that men started protecting their skin.