WHO recommends healthy fats, whole-grains in updated food guidelines

BOSTON - The World Health Organization has updated its guidance on how much fat and carbs we should be eating with the goal of making people healthier.

The new guidance will help to prevent people from gaining weight and reduce the risk of conditions like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain types of cancer. The WHO continues to recommend limiting total fat consumption to 30% or less of daily calories but emphasizes replacing saturated and trans fats with healthier fats from plant sources such as olive and vegetable oils. 

 As for carbs, the organization now recommends that everyone 2 years and older should get their carbs primarily from whole grains, vegetables, and fruits and that adults should consume at least 400 grams of fruits and vegetables (which is about five servings) and 25 grams of naturally occurring dietary fiber per day. You can do that by adding more beans, lentils, whole-grain bread, pasta and cereals, brown rice, fruits, and nuts to your diet.

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Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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