2-23 IAN USDA Diet and Potato

 The USDA  recently launched a web site that is filled with dietary recommendations along with suggestions for exercise. I thought this was a perfect opportunity to get them to weigh in on the fact that they are always maligning the potato. Talk about politics. This is why we don’t trust Washington. Listen in on a conversation that I had with a Washington nutritionist and co-developer of choosemyplate.gov   Dr. Robert Post.  “Being from the great state of Idaho, I have a bone to pick with you folks in Washington. The Obama administration has maligned the potato and doesn’t think it ought to be part of school lunches when the fact is, it is not the potato that is at fault, it is what is put on the potato. How do you weigh in on that? 1^st I have to take a step back and really look at the dietary guidelines and the science behind today’s science-based advice and guidance for consumers. It is really not a matter of a prescribed eating pattern that we are talking about. The science behind the dietary guidelines shows that all Americans, regardless of age, and we really need to understand that we have different food needs and nutrient needs at different stages of life. It is really a matter of choosing the foods we like understanding that we have cultural differences, taste differences, uh taste preferences I should say and staying within our calorie needs.” He went on like that for another 4 min. and never once mentioned potato. Your government at work.