The first United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Guide was introduced in 1916!  While the nutritional guidelines graphic has undergone many updates, the consensus within the nutrition community is that the Food Guide Pyramid is flawed, misleading, and outdated.

Nutrition and health scientist Matt Riemann explains why the food guide just doesn't work on Late Night Health.

Riemann tells listeners the guidelines remain an ineffective, and potentially even harmful, attempt to educate the public about appropriate nutritional requirements. The low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet they long encouraged has, in study after study, been associated with cardiovascular disease, Type II diabetes, and obesity.

“The guidelines are ineffective simply because they lack the consideration that of the 4 billion people in the world, each is completely unique and has entirely different biochemistry and metabolic needs.

The latest solution to address the problems of the existing dietary guidelines is Shae, an educational tool developed by Personal Health 360 (ph360) that aims to inform each person of the type and quantity of food that is optimal for them to be healthy and at their ideal weight. By taking inventory and gaining a comprehensive understanding of a person’s unique genetics, biology, and propensity for various diseases, it uses sophisticated algorithms to denote their current dietary and metabolic needs.

Riemann recommends personalized health solutions because everyone is unique and has different requirements. These personalized methods are proving to be effective. He tells Late Night Health listeners that worldwide, people are reporting improvements in digestion, weight, energy levels, and symptoms of chronic illness- just by having personalized nutrition recommendations at their disposal.

The goal of ph360 is as public education and government organizations abort outdated generic nutrition information, they will transition to personalized recommendations for each individual. The hopeful result will help people from around the world move from illness and obesity to health.

air date: 8/5/16