Setting dietary guidelines: the US process

Nutrition and Your Health: Dietary Guidelines for Americans has been issued jointly by the US Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture (USDA) every five years since 1980. The Dietary Guidelines form the cornerstone of federal nutrition policy and provide the basis for all federal nutrition education activities. Beginning with the 1985 edition, USDA and HHS have appointed a Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee of prominent experts in nutrition and health to review recent advances in scientific and medical knowledge and to recommend revisions of the Dietary Guidelines, if warranted, to the Secretaries of HHS and USDA. The Committee's deliberations are informed by evidence-based reviews, consensus documents, peer-reviewed research studies, and by written and oral public comments. The Departments review the Committee's recommendations and rationale, make any necessary revisions, and jointly issue the final edition. Nutrition and Your Health: Dietary Guidelines for Americans is based on the best available science. Ultimately, its goal is to promote better health through food choices and physical activity. The Dietary Guidelines have been referred to as a "gold standard" of nutrition advice, amid often confusing messages about nutrition and health.