The Food Pyramid

These symbols show fats, oils, and added sugars in foods. 

Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs, Nuts Group 2-3 Servings 

Cereal, Rice, Pasta Group 6-11 Servings 

White rice, white bread, potatoes, pasta and sweets USE SPARINGLY 

Plant oils (olive, canola, soy, corn, sunflower, peanut and other vegetable oils) AT MOST MEADS 

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FIGURE 1.2 The food pyramid. Photosynthetic organisms at the base capture light energy. Herbivores and carnivores derive their energy ultimately from these primary producers. 

V American dietitians and members of the medical community have ridiculed low-carbohydrate diets as quackery for the past thirty years, while extolling a diet that cuts down on fat, limits meat consumption, and relies on carbohydrates as its staple. Many Americans are famil-(V iar with the food pyramid promoted by the U.S. government, with its foundation of carbohydrates such as breads, rice, and pasta, and its apex allotted to fats, oils, and sweets. Adhering to the government s... 

Which type of biomolecule does the food pyramid recommend we eat the most of ... 

Willett WC, Stampfer MJ Rebuilding the food pyramid. SciAm 288 64-71,2003. 

A well-balanced diet contains the proper quantity of vitamins and minerals for a healthy life. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) defines a well-balanced diet with a guideline presented as a food pyramid. The food pyramid is organized into five color-coded groups, each with a general recommendation. These are ... 

Choose foods in the proportions recommended in the food pyramid, including a variety of grains and a variety of fruits and vegetables daily. 

Willett, W. C., and M. J. Stampfer. Rebuilding the Food Pyramid. Sd. Amer. 288 (1), 64-71 (2003). [A thorough explanation of the changes in nutrition recommendations since the old food pyramid was published.]... 

Once the primary producers fabricate organic compounds from inorganic sources, they can become sources of food for other heterotrophs. The ideal order of feeding is called the food pyramid (or food... 

FIGURE 5.5.5 The food pyramid, ako called trophic levels. Energy is transferred from the bottom to the top with an efficiency between levels of about 10%. (From Fried, G.H. and Hademenos, G.J., Theory and Problems of Biology, Schaum s Outlines, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1999. With permission.)... 

The pesticide DDT is also an endocrine disrupter, and concentrates in predator birds at the highest levels of the food pyramid. DDT causes eggshell thinning and other developmental abnormalities. Eggs in the nest break, and reproduction suffers. 

Perhaps, the most basic case of exploitation is herbivory. Herbivores consume live plant material but do not usually kill the plants they feed on. According to the food pyramid (see Section 5.5.4),... 

Explore this topic on The Food Pyramid website. 

Figure 6.4 Energy Flow Through the Filter Bed Ecosystem. Bacteria and fungi present in the zoogleal film assimilate nutrients from the settled sewage and constitute the first tropic level. Bacteria and fungi are eaten by the second trophic level mainly protozoans. Rotifers and nematode predators constitute the third trophic level. At the summit of the food pyramid are worms and insect larvae. The bed represents a complex and highly integrated ecosystem in which the bed community is responsible for complete oxidation of the organic content of the sewage.

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