Simple Guidelines to Develop a More Healthful Diet : Nutrition: Most of us have improved our dietary knowledge, but we continue to make unrealistic, harmful choices. Starting with the basic food groups is still the best way to design a diet.

The federal government has expanded its recommendation for a prudent diet to all Americans--not just those at risk for heart disease--which means that more and more people must learn to make sensible changes in their diets in order to ensure better health.

But most adult Americans admit that they are already confused on this issue. At least 95% of those interviewed for a recent Gallup Poll said that while they believe balance, variety and moderation are keys to healthy eating, up to 45% say they are eliminating red meat from their diets and 36% are cutting out dairy foods to achieve this goal.

Despite calls from health experts and agencies that fat in the diet be limited to 30% of all calories consumed for the day, with saturated fat intake restricted to just 10%--Americans are still consuming far too much fat for their own good. Fat consumption in this country still lingers around 36%, experts report.

Most Americans have improved their knowledge of nutrition, said Nancy S. Wellman, president of the American Dietetic Assn., but they still make unrealistic and harmful food choices. She noted that 52% reported increasing their consumption of oat bran, and 48% said they were taking more vitamin supplements.

More than two-thirds of the Americans queried in the national survey, commissioned by the ADA and the International Food Information Council, said that they select foods based on their perceptions of items as “good” or “bad” because of fat and other feared elements--despite advice to the contrary from health and nutrition experts.

What this demonstrates, said Wellman, is that “Americans are surprisingly knowledgeable about nutrition and health, but when it comes to translating facts into food choices, most still opt for quick fixes and the latest health fads.”

But it is possible to adhere to the 30% fat recommendation. Whether following the scientific approach--calculating fat grams and calories, or by taking some simple steps toward behavior modification.

“If you follow simple guidelines,” said Jackie Saracino, president of the California Dietetic Assn., “you’ll be getting good nutrition and it will assist in lowering the amount of fat you consume.” Following the basic four food groups is the best place to start, she said.

Choose meats that are lean such as poultry without skin, fish and lean cuts of beef, pork and veal. And, in the milk group, purchase low-fat or nonfat milk products, such as milk, cottage cheese or yogurt. Replace ice cream with sorbet or sherbet, which is lower in fat. Select cheese that is made with nonfat or part-skim milk.

“You have to read lables,” Saracino said, “Don’t just buy (a product) because of the health claim but read and analyze (the product to) see what it’s made with. The label should say whether it’s made with low-fat or skim milk.”

Saracino recommends that consumers try to choose whole grain products such as wheat, oats, corn. And be sure to include fresh vegetables and fruits each day.

Other suggestions include avoid adding fat to prepared foods or when cooking. Bake, broil and grill whenever possible and take advantage of the microwave, another low-fat cooking method, Saracino said. These changes are practical and leave room in the diet for favorite foods, on occasion, as “a special treat.”

“It is a very easy way to obtain the goal of a healthy diet,” she explained.

For those who prefer the more scientific approach, it is possible to figure out the amount of fat in the daily diet. But you’ll need to know the total fat content, in grams, of the foods you eat. This information is usually available on the product label. Or, a pamphlet, “Nutritive Value of Foods Home and Garden Bulletin 72” is available by mail from the Government Printing Office Bookstore, 505 S. Flower St., Level C, Los Angeles, 90071.

Here’s how to assess a day’s diet:

On a balanced diet, the day’s intake should be made up from foods from a variety of sources, with distributions of 55% carbohydrate, 15% protein and 30% fat as optimal. In order to determine how close you are to the goal for fat convert the grams of fat supplied by a food into fat calories. But product labels typically don’t provide fat information in terms of fat calories. Instead, product packages give the amount of fat in grams. An average croissant, for example, contains 235 calories and 12 grams of fat.

Fat is higher calorie-wise than any other element in the diet. Carbohydrates and protein, for example, each offer four calories for every gram consumed, whereas, every gram of fat is equivalent to nine calories. Multiply the grams of fat by nine and the croissant derives almost half of its calories from fat.

The process for evaluating an entire day is similar.

First, determine desired calorie intake from the Recommended Dietary Allowances, or total how many calories you eat each day--making sure to include every morsel you eat including snacks and tastes of foods.

On a 1,500 calorie-per-day diet, for example, based on the 30% fat allotment, you are allowed 450 calories from fat. Then, when you divide 450 by nine (the number of calories in each gram) you may eat up to 50 grams of fat for the day and still fall within the 30% fat range.

Assessing the diet based on the entire day is preferred to evaluating the amount of fat calories in individual foods because some items, a cheeseburger for instance, may be well above the 50% fat range--individually--but it still fits into a sensible diet when balanced with low fat foods the remainder of the day.

To help with either process, here are some guidelines for daily food choices, which were adapted by ADA from a USDA handbook.

--Breads, cereals and other whole grain and enriched products--choose six to 11 servings each day from among the following: one slice bread; one-half hamburger bun or English muffin; three to four small or two large crackers; one-half cup cooked cereal, pasta or rice; or one ounce ready-to-eat cereal.

--Fruits--choose two to four servings each day from among the following: three-quarters cup juice; one medium fresh fruit; or one-half cup fresh or canned fruit.

--Vegetables--choose three to five servings each day from among the following: one-half cup cooked or chopped raw vegetables or one cup leafy raw vegetables.

--Meat, poultry, fish and alternates--choose two to three servings each day from among the following: a total of five to seven ounces cooked lean meat, poultry, fish or other protein source; one ounce alternative protein source such as one egg; one-half cup cooked beans; or two tablespoons peanut butter.

--Milk, cheese and yogurt--men choose two to three servings; women, three to four servings; children, two or more servings; teens and pregnant or breast feeding women, four servings: one cup milk; one cup buttermilk, one cup yogurt, 1 1/2 ounces natural cheese; or two ounces process cheese.

--Fats, sweets and alcohol--limit intake.