No! processed white-flour and white-sugar products!

Don’t! drink sugary sodas or eat too much red meat!

Transfats are Bad!

If you read every diet book on the market, you’d probably conclude that, like a teething puppy, you’d be happiest—and maybe healthiest—if you just chewed on your slippers.

But today you have reason to celebrate because today you’re going to hear new words:

That’s because, instead of focusing on the thousands of things we shouldn’t be eating, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is more concerned about seven important nutrients we should be eating. According to the department’s report “What We Eat in America,” here are the things you should be adding to your diet:

1. Potassium. This nutrient most lacking—the report found that 97 percent of us don’t get enough potassium—helps regular blood pressure. So say Yes! to oranges, tangerines, lemons, and limes. Do! select lima beans, cantaloupe, potatoes, and Popeye’s favorite: spinach. And remember that it’s especially Good! to go for bananas.

2. Fiber. Though fiber helps your digestion, lowers cholesterol, satisfies your appetite, and may even help prevent cancer, it’s a close second to potassium as one of the most ignored nutrients. So Yes! Do! eat plenty of Good! fruits and veggies, beans, and whole grains such as oatmeal, barley, brown rice, and high-fiber breads and pastas.

3. Vitamin E. This vitamin is believed to help boost the immune system along with working as an antioxidant to decrease the risk of heart disease and cancer. It’s also believed to promote healthy skin and to slow aging. You can increase your intake of vitamin E through supplementation but also by eating avocados (try your favorite guacamole recipe), almonds, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, and by making sure you consume the appropriate amount of healthy vegetable oil (generally no more than two tablespoons per day, and be sure to factor in any oil you consume from eating nuts and oily fish).

4. Calcium. At least 70 percent of all Americans and up to 90 percent of teenage girls fail to get enough calcium in their daily diets. The figures are alarming given that girls who don’t consume enough calcium when they’re young are more likely to experience fractures and osteoporosis as they age. Say

5. Magnesium. On the surface, it may sound about as appetizing as chew toy, but you can increase your intake of magnesium—needed for bone, muscle, and heart health—by eating halibut, almonds, cashews, peanuts, and peanut butter, as well as bran cereals, fortified oatmeal, spinach, and black-eyed peas. You can even get a shot of magnesium from a glass of chocolate milk.

6. Vitamin A. This vitamin promotes healthy skin, eyes, and immune systems, but more than 40 percent of us don’t get all that we need. To increase your consumption, say Yes! to the color orange. Eat carrots, sweet potatoes, cantaloupe, apricots, peaches, mangoes, and cheddar cheese. And Do! try to see the Good! in beef liver and chicken liver, both excellent sources.

7. Vitamin C. As with potassium, a good source of Vitamin C is citrus fruits: oranges, tangerines, grapefruit, lemons, limes. Other sources include strawberries, green and red peppers, and kiwi.

Try adding some of these foods to your diet (perhaps substituting them for things less healthy) and you may soon find yourself feeling … well, as frisky as a new puppy.