View source for Food-based Dietary Guidelines

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Many National Governments have developed food-based dietary guidelines.  These are short, science-based, positive messages on healthy eating and lifestyles aimed at preventing all forms of malnutrition and keeping people well-nourished and healthy. They embody national nutrition recommendations and express the principles of nutrition education in terms of food. Dietary guidelines translate general nutrient recommendations into contextualized simple information using language and symbols that the public can easily understand, and focus on foods that are commonly consumed, portion sizes, and behaviors<ref>http://www.fao.org/nutrition/nutrition-education/food-dietary-guidelines/en/</ref>.

Many dietary guidelines have things in common. For example, most promote variety and increased consumption of plant foods, especially vegetables and fruit, as well as reduced intake of solid fats, salt and sugar. But each set of dietary guidelines contains unique features to address the dietary needs of each country’s population.