We are surrounded by a vast array of foods to eat and activities to pursue.  Every day we make choices among those foods and activities based on our cultural background, knowledge, experiences, and goals.  Each choice may have an impact on our overall health and quality of life.  Our ancestors’ food choices were limited by what they could gather, catch, cultivate, and harvest. Physical pursuits were determined by the work that needed to be done.  Today, advances in agriculture, transportation, food preservation, and storage bring nearly every type of food from every country of the world to our local supermarkets throughout the year.  With such a limitless array of foods, choosing the ones that promote health is easier than ever, but making these choices requires knowledge and motivation.  This chapter explains how the guidelines established by nationally recognized health and nutrition authorities can be used to help you understand the food choices that promote health, choose the foods that contain needed nutrients, and select appropriate serving sizes.