The nation’s obesity numbers continue to climb, yet surprisingly many Americans are falling short on key nutrients that could put their health at risk. To address the obesity epidemic the nation faces, the federal government recently released the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, urging adults and children to reduce calories and watch portion sizes, make more nutrient-rich choices, and move more.

The new Dietary Guidelines confirm the importance of milk and milk products in a healthy diet by maintaining the recommendation of 3 daily servings of low fat or fat-free milk and milk products for those ages 9 and older. For children ages 4-8, the recommendation was increased from 2 to 2.5 servings, and for children ages 2-3, the recommendation remains 2 servings.

Closing the nutrient gap

Most of us are missing out on critical nutrients because 85 percent of Americans are not meeting the Dietary Guidelines’ dairy recommendations. Adding just one more serving of low fat or fat-free milk, cheese or yogurt can help fill some of America’s nutrient gaps.

Dairy’s powerful package

For Americans looking to follow the Dietary Guidelines’ advice to increase the nutrient-rich foods they eat while keeping an eye on calories, dairy’s nutrient-rich package really delivers.

• Dairy foods provide just 10 percent of the calories in the American diet, but just a single glass of milk provides nine essential nutrients important for good health.
• Milk is also the single greatest source of three of the four nutrients the Dietary Guidelines identified as lacking in the American diet – calcium, vitamin D and potassium.
• And, at just about a quarter per glass, dairy foods are one of the most affordable sources of nutrients at the grocery store.