Interesting Facts About Cooking

During the period of industrialization, food began to be mass-produced, mass marketed, and standardized. Factories processed, preserved, canned, and packaged a wide variety of foods, and processed cereals quickly became a defining feature of the American breakfast. In the twenties, freezing methods as well as the earliest cafeterias and fast food establishments emerged. This point in time is when processed and nationally distributed foods became a huge part of the nation's diet.
Along with changes in food, there have also been several changes in nutritional guidelines as well. Since 1916, there have been several different nutrition guidelines issued by the United States government, eventually leading up to the food pyramid. In 1916, "Food For Young Children" along with its sequel for adults, "How to Select Foods" was the first USDA guide to give specific dietary guidelines. Updated in the 1920s to these guides gave shopping suggestions for different-sized families along with a Depression Era revision which included four cost levels. In 1943, the USDA created the "Basic Seven" chart to make sure that people got the recommended nutrients. It included the first-ever Recommended Daily Allowances from the National Academy of Sciences. In 1956, the "Essentials of an Adequate Diet" brought recommendations which cut seven down to four groups that school children would learn about for decades. In 1979, a guide called "Food" was published, which addressed the link between too much of certain foods and chronic diseases. This publication also added "fats, oils, and sweets" to the four basic food groups and cautioned moderation. In 1992, the food pyramid was debuted. The USDA introduced this, which represented proportions of foods in a balanced diet. In 2005, the pyramid got a makeover and was renamed MyPyramid. Lastly, in 2011, "MyPlate" came about.