Discretionary Calories
MyPyramid.gov is the United States Department of Agriculture website used to educate consumers about the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
At this site, the visitor can learn the dietary recommendations for their own age, gender and activity level. They are told the amount of each food group they should consume and the number of total calories they should consume each day.
The total number of calories a person should consume each day can be divided into “essentials” and “extras”. The “essentials” are the minimum calories required to meet nutrient needs. The “extras” are the discretionary calories. By selecting the lowest fat and no-sugar-added forms of foods in each food group, a person would meet their “essential” limit.
A person can use their discretionary calories, or “extras”, to do one or more of the following:
• Eat more foods from any food group than are recommended by MyPyramid.
• Eat higher calorie forms of foods, such as those that contain more fats or added sugars. Examples would be eating high fat lunchmeats rather than lean meats, or drinking whole milk instead of low-fat milk.
• Add fats or sweeteners to foods. An example of this might be to add butter and jelly to toast.
• Eat or drink items that are mostly fat or sugar, such as candy, soda or alcohol.
Most discretionary calorie allowances are very small, between 100 and 300 calories, especially for those who are not physically active. Many people use their discretionary calorie allowance without even adding “junk foods” to their diet because they choose high fat, high sugar foods, or add fat and sugar to the basic foods.
For more information about discretionary calories, go to MyPyramid.gov, then to “Inside the Pyramid” then to “Discretionary Calories”.
