Get your personal pyramid

SHARON — Rachel Sobol is not new to Sharon Hospital, but she is the newest dietitian on staff.Sobol spent four years at the hospital as a dietary aide, working on the weekends and over the summers while she was in school at Framingham State University. Now she has earned a Bachelor of Science degree in food and nutrition and has passed the tests to become a registered dietitian.Sobol grew up in Sharon — “I was born at Sharon Hospital” — and lives in Falls Village. She said her main focus at the hospital is on patients. She also offers out-patient services such as nutritional counseling.“I do a lot of education,” she said.On Saturday, April 30, she was working to educate people in Kent about the United States Department of Agriculture’s revamped food pyramid as part of the K.E.N.T. (Keep Eating Nutritious Today) health and wellness fair at the Davis IGA.“The new pyramid came out in 2005, but a lot of people aren’t aware of it,” she said. The basics of the pyramid are the same — whole grains make up the core of the recommended diet, followed by vegetables and lean meats and dairy — but the big change is the incorporation of exercise.“Other countries’ pyramids involve activity,” Sobol said. “Now we recommend 30 minutes of exercise most days.”Sobol also pointed people to the USDA’s website, www.mypyramid.gov. The site has tools that allow people to input information about themselves such as age and health concerns and then get recommendations for diet.“My pyramid is designed for individuals,” she said. “It’s about variety, balancing your intake.”Contact Rachel Sobol at Sharon Hospital at 860-364-4170 or sobol-rachel@aramark.com.