If we were to give them a score from 0 to 10, the official recommendations of France (and also those of Canada, Belgium, and Switzerland) would receive a 5 or a 6. This is not too bad, but still far from reflecting the state of scientific knowledge.

To go further and provide advice as close as possible to current knowledge, LaNutrition has decided to publish its recommendations and refine them as knowledge evolves. These recommendations will cover both foods and micronutrients. In this way, we want to offer benchmarks (and of course not dictates), objective, rigorous, and above all independent of economic interests. An approach that therefore represents an alternative to official dietary advice, which has not, to date, proven its effectiveness.

What should you eat to stay slim and healthy? The answer lies in The Best Way to Eat, a book written by the editorial staff of LaNutrition.fr in which our recommendations are included. These recommendations can be summarized in the form of a food pyramid that integrates the latest knowledge on the relationship between diet and health.

In many countries, to make it easier to represent what we should eat and in what proportions, a diagram representing a food pyramid is used. It is the representation of the ideal proportions of the different classes of foods to achieve a balanced diet. It is quite simple to read: at the base, we find the foods that should represent the largest part of our diet. The closer we get to the top, the less it is necessary to consume the foods represented.

There are several pyramids: that, until recently, of American recommendations, a “Mediterranean ” pyramid, the pyramid of the Harvard School of Public Health, the pyramid of the glycemic index developed by Dr. David Ludwig, the pyramid representing the ancestral Okinawan diet, and now the pyramid of LaNutrition.fr which summarizes the detailed recommendations published in the book The Best Way to Eat (MFM) .

The recommendations of LaNutrition.fr detailed in The Best Way to Eat (MFM) integrate the very latest knowledge on the relationships between diet and health. We have taken into account the different metabolic pillars to determine at which level, and therefore at what frequency, you should consume this or that food. The MFM integrates the eating habits of vegetarians and vegans since no food from levels 4 to 7 (animal origin) is obligatory.

The LaNutrition.fr pyramid by food family

Proteins, lipids, carbohydrates: what distribution?

Official recommendations give pride of place to carbohydrates, recommending that they contribute more than 50% of calories, but without taking into account their glycemic index as we have been demanding since 2004. These recommendations lead to consuming an excess of cereals and starches, and therefore an excessive glycemic load. In most studies, the glycemic load is associated with a higher risk of being overweight diabetes, and perhaps cardiovascular disease.

• We consider that a total energy intake composed of 40% carbohydrates can be sufficient. But carbohydrates can represent up to 55% of your energy intake provided that you choose the right carbohydrates, i.e. those with the highest nutritional density, the lowest caloric density, and the lowest glycemic index. This means first drawing your carbohydrates from other food families such as fruits, vegetables, and tubers (other than potatoes).
• Lipids can represent 28 to 38% of energy intake.
• Protein can contribute 15% to 30% of calories by favoring plant proteins.

These ranges are given as a guide, but we believe that quality is more important than quantity. The key here is to choose the right food sources. What we recommend:

• carbohydrates: 40 to 55%
• lipids: 28 to 38%
• Protein: 15 to 30%

Dietary recommendations

The base of the pyramid is made up of the drinks recommended by the MFM: 1.5 to 2 liters of water per day, if possible free of pesticides and chlorine by-products, favoring water rich in sodium; tea or herbal tea (2 to 5 cups per day) or coffee; a little red wine for those who drink alcohol (0 to 1 glass per day for women, 0 to 2 glasses per day for men, 1 glass of wine corresponds to 12 cL or one glass). Avoid sugary drinks, especially fruit juices, which have long been considered a portion of fruit.

The first floor

It is made up of vegetables, root crops, pulses, and legumes – including soya –, fresh fruits, and dried fruits which should provide the largest share of daily calories. We recommend eating 7 to 11 portions of fruits and vegetables per day, to which are added 0 to 2 portions of pulses (3 to 6 for vegetarians), which is on average much more than the health authorities recommend in their message “eat 5 fruits and vegetables per day” (Australia being an exception with its message which specifies the place of fruits “Go for 2 + 5”, which recommends 2 fruits and 5 vegetables per day).