What do GO foods have in common?

• High in water

• High in fiber

• Low in calorie density

• Low in fat

• No added sugar

GO foods are high in water content — this means that cooked whole grains like oatmeal, brown rice, barley, and whole grain pasta are better choices than lower moisture items like bread and crackers. Not that bread and crackers are bad — don’t make them the bulk of your preferences.

Fruits and vegetables are the best of all choices!! They are high in water content and fiber. And they are low in calorie density and fat.

GO! foods include fruits, vegetables, nonfat dairy, cooked whole grains, lean protein, and legumes.

What is calorie density?

Calorie density: the concentration of calories in a given weight of food.

Compare foods by grams, ounces, pounds or kilos:

Item Calories per pound

• lettuce 77

• apple 224

• potato, baked 320

• cheese 1824

• potato chips 2432

• olive oil 4000

See how the more refined and higher-fat foods are higher in calorie density than the unprocessed ones.

The GO foods are the base of MyPlate, too. They are right in line with all of the recommendations from the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.