Buzz
Today’s children follow MyPlate, but when I was younger, we learned about the Food Pyramid. My parents divided food into four main categories. However, if you look back a bit further, dietary advice becomes even more unusual: in the 1950s, there were seven food groups, and one of them was dedicated exclusively to butter.
Welcome to Retro Week, where we’ll travel back in time with our flux capacitor, bringing you 1950s wisdom on everything from making casseroles to building fallout shelters, and even the simple joys of letting kids play with trash.
The Basic Seven, as these food groups were known, originated from World War II efforts to maintain nutritional standards when obtaining a varied diet was more challenging. By 1943, when the Basic Seven were introduced, rationing was enforced on meat, oils, butter and margarine, canned vegetables, and dried fruits.
In essence, the purpose of the Basic Seven differed from the modern food guides we use today. Now, the goal is to limit consumption due to widespread obesity, heart disease, and diabetes. Contemporary food guides provide serving sizes. But at that time, the government’s primary concern was ensuring people received enough vitamins.
The Basic Seven was initially intended as a guide to help people make sure they got a variety of essential nutrients from different food groups. For instance, fruits like oranges, tomatoes, and grapefruit were highlighted for their high vitamin C content, making them stand out from other vegetables. Butter and fortified margarine were included as sources of fat and vitamin A.
Following the war, the importance of adhering strictly to the Basic Seven faded. By 1954, a video aimed at children presented a simplified five-finger mnemonic that included food groups like 'bread and butter,' along with fruits, vegetables, meat and eggs, and milk and cheese. The video recommended these as daily essentials for a healthy diet.
In 1956, the U.S. Department of Agriculture decided to simplify the system even further, resulting in the familiar 'four food groups.' Today, MyPlate separates fruits and vegetables, creating five categories. Despite this shift, many people still remember the Basic Seven as a foundational approach to balanced nutrition, offering a useful checklist for healthy eating.
