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 Americans are killing themselves with very bad food choices, a panel of experts said Thursday. 
 
 New dietary guidelines for Americans should aim to get people to eat more vegetables, less fat and salt and to exercise more, the panel says. And they said people shouldn’t worry about cholesterol itself, which means an occasional egg should be all right. 
 
 The U.S. government issues new dietary guidelines every five years and enlists an independent panel of experts to advise on what they should be. The public gets 45 days to weigh in and then Health and Human Services Department and the U.S. Department of Agriculture use the report as the basis for new guidelines to be issued by the end of the year. 
 
 For the most part, the new recommendations “reaffirm” the 2010 guidelines, the committee says in its 570-plus page report. It doesn’t paint a pretty picture of the U.S. diet. Some key differences are easing up the restrictions on cholesterol-rich foods and, for the first time, advising children and adolescents to avoid consumption of high-caffeine energy drinks. 
 
 The panel also urges the federal government to do more to get Americans to actually follow the recommendations. 
 
 “On average, the U.S. diet is low in vegetables, fruit and whole grains and too high in calories, saturated fat, sodium, refined grains and added sugars." 
 
 “On average, the U.S. diet is low in vegetables, fruit and whole grains and too high in calories, saturated fat, sodium, refined grains and added sugars,” the report reads. 
 
 Americans eat too little vitamin D, calcium, potassium and fiber and eat way too much fat and salt. 
 
 And these bad eating habits are making us sick. 
 
 “About half of all Americans—117 million individuals — have one or more preventable chronic diseases that relate to poor dietary patterns and physical inactivity, including cardiovascular disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and diet-related cancers,” the report says. 
 
 “More than two-thirds of adults and nearly one-third of children and youth are overweight or obese.” 
 
 None of this should come as news, but despite sustained and dedicated education campaigns, Americans still eat too much white flour and sugar, drink too many sugary soft drinks and eat too much animal fat. 
 
 “These devastating health problems have persisted for decades, strained U.S. health care costs, and focused the attention of our health care system on disease treatment rather than prevention. They call for bold action and sound, innovative solutions,” the report reads. 
 
 The panel doesn't say what those solutions should be. It'll take some research to figure out how to get through to Americans, says Dr. Alice Lichtenstein of Tufts University, one of the panel members. In past years it's clear people misread the messages, she told NBC News. 
 
 "We somehow got the word across better about what you should be eating more of instead of what you should be eating less of," Lichtenstein said. So many Americans ate less fat but stoked up on processed carbohydrates instead. 
 
 "We need to understand more about why people make food choices so we can move people more towards these guidelines that are evidence based," she said. 
 
 The report does suggest cutting back red and processed meat, something welcomed by the American Institute for Cancer Research. "There is convincing evidence that if Americans moderate their intake of red meat, processed meat and added sugar today, it will lead to fewer cancers tomorrow," said AICR's Susan Higginbotham. 
 
 The most widely leaked part of the report concerns cholesterol. As a specific nutrient, past guidelines have mistakenly focused too closely on cholesterol, the experts suggest. 
 
 “Previously, the dietary guidelines for Americans recommended that cholesterol intake be limited to no more than 300 mg a day,” the report says. The new report is dropping that recommendation. “Available evidence shows no appreciable relationship between consumption of dietary cholesterol and serum cholesterol,” it says. 
 
 And most Americans eat less than that already, Lichtenstein said. 
 
 But this is a tricky issue. Cholesterol itself is not found in very many foods -- mostly egg yolks, liver, and crustaceans such as shrimp and crab. 
 
 And it doesn't mean you can eat all the bacon and eggs you want. "No," said Lichtenstein. "Especially not the bacon." 
 
 “Water is the preferred beverage choice.” 
 
 Many foods can and do raise cholesterol and they should be limited. They include saturated fat, including the fat found in meat and dairy products as well as palm oil. 
 
 “Partially hydrogenated oils containing trans fat should be avoided,” the report says. And people should not replace fats with processed carbs. 
 
 Other recommendations: 
 
 The dangers of mercury and other heavy metals do not outweigh the benefits of eating fish 
 
 A little alcohol is OK but no one should start drinking alcohol if they don’t already 
 
 Up to 400 mg of caffeine —3 to 5 cups of coffee—are all right. Moderate coffee consumption may offer some protection against type 2 diabetes and Parkinson's, the panel suggests 
 
 Kids should avoid energy drinks 
 
 Eat less salt. Americans get an average of 3,478 milligrams a day, far above recommendations 
 
 “Water is the preferred beverage choice.” 
 
 Kids should exercise an hour a day and adults should exercise at least an hour and a half a week 
 
 The panel looked closely at caffeine, particularly with recent concerns about energy drinks and questions about coffee. “There doesn’t seem to be anything with coffee that causes concern," Lichtenstein said. "For decades we have been looking for something that is bad about it, but we haven’t really found that,” she says. 
 
 Unlike energy drinks, coffee contains phytochemicals -- natural plant products that have been increasingly shown to benefit health. 
 
 The report also talks about sustainable diets that make sure there is plenty of food for everyone now and in the future. 
 
 “A diet higher in plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds and lower in calories and animal-based foods is more health-promoting and is associated with less environmental impact than is the current U.S. diet,” the report says. ||||| View Images Ground beef patties are packaged for distribution in Amarillo, Texas. New dietary recommendations released today suggest a diet high in vegetables and low in red meat, but no longer warn against foods high in cholesterol. 
 
 Photograph by Brian Finke, National Geographic 
 
 The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee issued its recommendations today, calling on Americans to eat less meat, watch their sodium intake, and start thinking about the environment more. As many had predicted, it also peeled back a 40-year-old warning against eating foods high in cholesterol, like eggs and shrimp. 
 
 "The overall body of evidence examined by the 2015 DGAC identifies that a healthy dietary pattern is higher in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low- or non-fat dairy, seafood, legumes, and nuts; moderate in alcohol (among adults); lower in red and processed meat; and low in sugar-sweetened foods and drinks and refined grains," the report says. 
 
 Not a surprise, unless you've been living under a rock somewhere, but the devil will be in the details. 
 
 One critical detail is that the committee, for the first time, is including "the impact of food production, processing, and consumption on environmental sustainability" in its recommendations. 
 
 "Linking health, dietary guidance, and the environment will promote human health and the sustainability of natural resources and ensure current and long-term food security," the committee says. 
 
 After intense lobbying by representatives of the U.S. meat industry and other special interest groups, the language calling on Americans to eat less red meat was softened somewhat by a footnote saying that lean red meat can be part of a healthy diet. (Read more about the meat debate in "Carnivore's Dilemma" in National Geographic magazine.) 
 
 Why It Matters 
 
 While some see being told what to eat as a "big government as nanny" moment, the recommendations—and what the U.S. Department of Agriculture ultimately decides to adopt—are used to set food policy for major institutions and schools. Those policies in turn serve as a guide for everyone who wants to do business with or just plain needs to eat at government offices, other big institutions, or schools. 
 
 The Big Picture 
 
 Dietary recommendations like these don't come around all that often. The U.S. Department of Agriculture releases them only every five years. A lot of science and politics can change in that time, and someone always has a beef with what ends up in the final document. 
 
 Despite some debate about saturated versus unsaturated fats, with some research suggesting that saturated fats aren't as bad as once thought, most dieticians and health experts are generally pleased with the recommendation to limit saturated fat intake to no more than 10 percent of daily calories. (Related: "Is Fat Our Friend?") 
 
 The committee members "don't move at all on the issue of what kinds of fats to eat. They continue to recommend limiting saturated fat and supporting polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats," Steven Nissen, chair of Cleveland Clinic's Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, told Time magazine. "I would have liked the guidelines to be a little more neutral on saturated fat." 
 
 What's Next 
 
 The public is invited to comment on the guidelines through April 8. The USDA will likely issue the final 2015 dietary guidelines by the end of this year. ||||| The nation’s top nutritional panel is recommending for the first time that Americans consider the impact on the environment when they are choosing what to eat, a move that defied a warning from Congress and, if enacted, could discourage people from eating red meat. 
 
 Members of Congress had sought in December to keep the group from even discussing the issue, asserting that while advising the government on federal dietary guidelines, the committee should steer clear of extraneous issues and stick to nutritional advice. 
 
 But the panel’s findings, issued Thursday in the form of a 571-page report, recommended that Americans be kinder to the environment by eating more foods derived from plants and fewer foods that come from animals. Red meat is deemed particularly harmful because of, among other things, the amount of land and feed required in its production. 
 
 “Consistent evidence indicates that, in general, a dietary pattern that is higher in plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and lower in animal-based foods is more health promoting and is associated with lesser environmental impact than is the current average U.S. diet,” the report says. 
 
 [ Top nutrition panel: The American diet is killing us ] 
 
 Many scientists say animal-based foods are a poorer choice for the environment because they are associated with significantly larger carbon emissions than their plant-based counterparts. (Jayme Halbritter/AP) 
 
 The environmental recommendations are part of a report meant to provide the scientific basis for the next version of the Dietary Guidelines, the federal government’s publication on what to eat. The Department of Health and Human Services and the Agriculture Department will issue the guidelines later this year. 
 
 Those agencies could ignore the panel’s recommendations, but major deviations are rare, experts and former panel members said. 
 
 Overall, the committee’s report amounts to a scientific update regarding what is known about healthy eating. Although Americans don’t necessarily heed the dietary guidelines ahead of each meal, the guidelines are influential and can help dictate what is on the menu of school lunches and how foods are labeled. 
 
 The panel found that Americans are consuming too much salt, added sugars and foods rich in saturated fats. And for the first time, the panel addressed concerns about coffee, saying that there is strong evidence that moderate consumption is not associated with long-term health risks. The panel also reversed decades of warnings about eating foods high in cholesterol, such as eggs and liver. 
 
 [ So can I binge on eggs now? Here’s what you need to know. ] 
 
 But the decision by the advisory panel to link the dietary guidelines to the environment will probably stir the most controversy. 
 
 In December, Congress approved language that expressed “concern” that the advisory committee was “considering issues outside of the nutritional focus of the panel” — alluding to the environmental discussions. 
 
 The nation's top nutritional panel released its report recommending changes to the U.S. dietary guidelines. Here are the main takeaways of what you should and should not eat. (Julio C. Negron and Jayne W. Orenstein/The Washington Post) 
 
 Moreover, Congress said at the time, the final Dietary Guidelines should “only include nutrition and dietary information.” 
 
 The advisory panel’s report prompted immediate criticism from Congress — as well as a warning from Rep. Robert B. Aderholt (R-Ala.), chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee that oversees the budget for the Agriculture Department. 
 
 “Chairman Aderholt is skeptical of the panel’s departure from utilizing sound science as the criteria for the guidelines,” according to Brian Rell, a spokesman. “Politically motivated issues such as taxes on certain foods and environmental sustainability are outside their purview.” 
 
 He warned that the panel committee would “keep this in mind” as it considers funding the agencies this spring. 
 
 Meat industry lobbyists also attacked the recommendation, asserting that the panel was stacked with health experts who know too little about environmental science. 
 
 “The Committee’s foray into the murky waters of sustainability is well beyond its scope and expertise. It’s akin to having a dermatologist provide recommendations about cardiac care,” Barry Carpenter, the chief executive of the North American Meat Institute, said in a statement. 
 
 He added that the recommendations “appear to be based on personal opinions or social agendas.” 
 
 In the past, federal bureaucrats have come under lobbying pressure from groups that discovered their particular product had been targeted for opprobrium by the Dietary Guidelines. 
 
 Americans are eating less meat than they have in the past, but they are still eating too much, according to the panel’s experts, and all that meat consumption is having detrimental effects on the environment. 
 
 Many scientists say animal-based foods are a poorer choice for the environment because they are associated with significantly larger carbon emissions than their plant-based counterparts. Animals generate a lot of methane, and the production of meat products requires large amounts of feed, fertilizer and fuel, all of which put stress on the environment. 
 
 Numerous studies have documented the outsize impact. A study published last year in the journal Climatic Change reported that meat eaters contributed more to global warming than do fish eaters, vegetarians and vegans. 
 
 Red meat in particular, which the committee says Americans need to scale back on for health reasons, has been linked to a larger carbon footprint than other meats. For instance, on a per-kilogram basis, beef is associated with more than twice the carbon emissions of pork, nearly three times that of turkey and almost four times that of chicken, according to the Environmental Working Group. 
 
 Red meat is also a comparatively inefficient source of calories and protein. The World Resources Institute has estimated that poultry, pork, shrimp, fish and eggs are all much better sources of those two nutrients relative to the amount of feed and land required to produce them. 
 
 “It’s pretty much a consensus view among global environmental scientists that we would be better off if we ate less meat,” said Timothy Searchinger, a research scholar at Princeton University who focuses on agriculture and climate change. 
 
 Miriam Nelson, a professor at Tufts University and one of the committee’s members, said the panel is not saying that people should become vegans. 
 
 “But we are saying that people need to eat less meat,” Nelson said. “We need to start thinking about what’s sustainable. . . . Other countries have already started doing this — including sustainability in their recommendations. We should be doing it, too.”
– When the federal government's new Dietary Guidelines come out later this year, the nation's top nutritional panel wants them for the first time to include a recommendation that Americans keep the planet in mind when deciding what to eat. That's the panel's advice, at least, and its inclusion in its 571-page report, issued yesterday, is quite controversial. In December, Congress warned the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee not to touch on anything other than nutrition, but the report urges Americans to eat more plant-based foods and fewer animal-based foods in an effort to have a smaller environmental impact, the Washington Post reports. The report calls out red meat in particular as harmful to the environment, and it also notes that Americans should cut back on it for health reasons. Members of Congress and the meat industry lobby were quick to criticize the report. "Politically motivated issues such as ... environmental sustainability are outside their purview," says a spokesman for GOP Rep. Robert B. Aderholt; the head of the largest meat-trade association said the recommendations "appear to be based on ... social agendas." But the American Institute for Cancer Research applauded the report's meat advice, NBC News reports. And, National Geographic adds, the report does include the footnote that "lean red meat" can be included in a healthy diet. The Department of Health and Human Services and the Agriculture Department could simply ignore the report, which is meant to provide a scientific basis for the guidelines, when they issue the official guidelines, but the Post reports the recommendations are rarely altered. Americans can, of course, ignore the guidelines once they come out, but as they can impact things like school lunch menus, they could have an effect. (Another first: a reversal of long-standing warnings about cholesterol.)