15 Biggest Nutrition Myths
MYTH #1: High fructose corn syrup is worse than
table sugar
Whether or not added sugar is bad for you has never
been in dispute. The less sugar you eat, the better.
But whether HFCS is worse than plain ol' table sugar
has long been a contentious issue. Here’s what you
need to know: Both HFCS and table sugar, or sucrose,
are built with roughly a 50-50 blend of two sugars,
fructose, and glucose. That means in all likelihood
that your body can’t tell one from the other—they’re
both just sugar. HFCS’s real sin is that it’s
supercheap, and as a result, it’s added to
everything from cereal to ketchup to salad dressing.
Plus it may be affecting your health in ways not yet
fully understood by the scientific community. Is it
a good idea to minimize the HFCS in your diet?
Absolutely. It’s best to cut out all unnecessary
sugars. But HFCS’s role as nutritional enemy #1 has
been exaggerated.
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fiber- and protein-loaded snacks between meals can
help you control hunger and avoid overeating at
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MYTH
#2: Sea salt is a healthier version of regular salt
Everyday table salt comes from a mine and contains
roughly 2,300 milligrams of sodium per teaspoon. Sea
salt comes from evaporated seawater, and it also
contains roughly 2,300 milligrams of sodium. That
makes them, well, roughly identical. Advocates point
to the fact that sea salt also contains other
compounds like magnesium and iron, but in truth,
these minerals exist in trace amounts. To obtain a
meaningful dose, you’d have to take in extremely
high and potentially dangerous levels of sodium.
What’s more, traditional table salt is regularly
fortified with iodine, which plays an important role
in regulating the hormones in your body. Sea salt,
on the other hand, gives you virtually zero iodine.
The bottom line is this: If switching from table
salt to sea salt causes you to consume even one
extra granule, then you’ve just completely snuffed
out whatever elusive health boon you hope to
receive. Plus you’ve wasted a few bucks.
MYTH #3: Energy drinks are less harmful
than soda
Energy drinks like Red Bull, Monster, and Full
Throttle attempt to boost your energy with a cache
of B vitamins, herbal extracts, and amino acids. But
what your body’s going to remember most (especially
around your waistline) is the sugar in these
concoctions; a 16-ounce can delivers as much as 280
calories of pure sugar, which is about 80 calories
more than you’d find in a 16-ounce cup of Pepsi.
What’s more, a University of Maryland study found
energy drinks to be 11 percent more corrosive to
your teeth than regular soda. So here’s the secret
that energy drink companies don’t want you to know:
The only proven, significant energy boost comes from
caffeine. If you want an energy boost, save yourself
the sugar spike and drink a cup of coffee.
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MYTH #4: Diet soda is harmless
The obesity-research community is becoming
increasingly aware that the artificial sweeteners
used in diet soda—aspartame and sucralose, for
instance—lead to hard-to-control food urges later in
the day. One Purdue study discovered that rats took
in more calories if they'd been fed artificial
sweeteners prior to mealtime, and a University of
Texas study found that people who consume just three
diet sodas per week were more than 40 percent more
likely to be obese. Try weaning yourself off by
switching to carbonated water and flavoring with
lemon, cucumber, and fresh herbs.
MYTH #5: Low-fat foods are better for you
As it applies to food marketing, the term “low fat”
is synonymous with “loaded with salt and cheap
carbohydrates.” For instance, look at Smucker’s
Reduced Fat Peanut Butter. To replace the fat it
skimmed out, Smucker’s added a fast-digesting
carbohydrate called maltodextrin. That’s not going
to help you lose weight. A 2008 study in the New
England Journal of Medicine found that over a
2-year span, people on low-carb diets lost 62
percent more body weight than those trying to cut
fat. (Plus, the fat in peanut butter is
heart-healthy monounsaturated fat—you’d be better
off eating more of it, not less!)
MYTH
#6: “Trans-fat free” foods are actually trans-fat
free
The FDA’s guidelines allow companies to
claim 0 grams of trans fat—even broadcast it on the
front of their packages—as long as the food in
question contains no more than 0.5 grams of trans
fat per serving. But here’s the deal: Due to an
inextricable link to heart disease, the World Health
Organization advises people to keep trans fat intake
as low as possible, maxing out at about 1 gram per
2,000 calories consumed. If your cupboard’s full of
foods with almost half a gram per serving, you might
be blowing past that number every single day. The
American Journal of Health Promotion
recently published an article urging the FDA to
rethink its lax regulations, but until that happens,
you should avoid all foods with “partially
hydrogenated oil” (meaning, trans fats) on their
ingredients statements.
MYTH #7: Foods labeled “natural” are
healthier
The FDA makes no serious effort to control the use
of the word "natural" on nutrition labels. Case in
point: 7UP boasts that it’s made with “100% Natural
Flavors” when, in fact, the soda is sweetened with a
decidedly un-natural dose of high fructose corn
syrup. “Corn” is natural, but “high fructose corn
syrup” is produced using a centrifuge and a series
of chemical reactions. Other "natural" abusers
include Natural Cheetos, which are made with
maltodextrin and disodium phosphate, and “natural
advantage” Post Raisin Bran, which bathes its
raisins in both sugar and corn syrup. The worst part
is, you're likely paying a premium price for common
junk food.
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MYTH #8: Egg yolks raise your cholesterol
Egg yolks contain dietary cholesterol; this much is
true. But research has proven that dietary
cholesterol has almost nothing to do with serum
cholesterol, the stuff in your blood. Wake Forest
University researchers reviewed more than 30 egg
studies and found no link between egg consumption
and heart disease, and a study in Saint Louis found
that eating eggs for breakfast could decrease your
calorie intake for the remainder of the day.
MYTH #9: Eating junk food helps battle
stress
You’ve been there: Stressed out and sprawled across
your sofa with one arm elbow deep in a bag of cheese
puffs. In the moment, it can be comforting, but a
study published in the British Journal of
Psychiatry found that people who consumed the
most highly processed foods were 58 percent more
likely to be depressed than those who ate the least.
Your move: Find a healthy stress snack. Peanut
butter and Triscuits do the trick, or check out the
next myth …
MYTH #10: Chocolate is bad for you
Cocoa is a plant-based food replete with flavonoids
that increase blood flow and release feel-good
endorphins. Plus, it contains a healthy kind of
saturated fat called stearic acid, which research
has shown can increase your good HDL cholesterol.
But here’s the rub: When most people think of
chocolate, their minds jump immediately to milk
chocolate, which contains far more sugar than actual
cocoa. Instead, look for dark chocolate,
specifically those versions that tell you exactly
how much cocoa they contain. A bar with 60% cocoa is
good, but the more cocoa it contains, the greater
the health effects.
Myth #11: Granola is good for you
Oats are good for you, and the same goes for
oatmeal. But granola takes those good-for-you hunks
of flattened oat, blankets them in sugar, and bakes
them in oil to give them crunch. The amount of fat
and sugar added to each oat is at the discretion of
food processors, but you can bet your last cup of
milk it’s going to far sweeter and more fatty than a
bowl of regular cereal. Take this example: A single
cup of Quaker Natural Granola, Nuts & Raisins has
420 calories, 30 grams of sugar, and 10 grams of
fat. Switch to a humble cup of Kix and you drop down
about 90 calories, 2.5 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of
fat. Or better yet, find your favorite healthy
cereal here:
The 24 Best and Worst Cereals in America.
MYTH
#12: Bananas are the best source of potassium
Your body uses potassium to keep your nerves and
muscles firing efficiently, and an adequate intake
can blunt sodium’s effect on blood pressure. One
2009 study found that a 2:1 ratio of potassium to
sodium could halve your risk of heart disease, and
since the average American consumes about 3,400
milligrams of sodium each day, your goal should be
6,800 milligrams of daily potassium. You’re
extremely unlikely to ever reach that mark—and never
with bananas alone. One medium banana has 422
milligrams and 105 calories. Here are the sources
that earn you roughly the same amount of potassium
in fewer calories:
MYTH #13: Oranges are
the best source of vitamin C
Far more than a simple immune booster, vitamin C is
an antioxidant that plays a host of important roles
in your body. It strengthens skin by helping to
build collagen, improves mood by increasing the flow
of norepinephrine, and bolsters metabolic efficiency
by helping transport fat cells into the body’s
energy-burning mitochondria. But since your body can
neither store nor create the wonder vitamin, you
need to provide a constant supply. An orange is the
most famous vitamin-C food, and although it’s a good
source, it’s by no means the best. For 70 calories,
one orange gives you about 70 micrograms of vitamin
C. Here are five sources with just as much vitamin C
and even fewer calories:
MYTH #14: Organic is always better
Often, but not in every case. Organic produce is
almost nutritionally identical to its conventional
counterpart. The issue is pesticide
exposure—pesticides have been linked to an increased
risk of obesity in some studies. But many
conventionally grown fruits and vegetables are very
low in pesticides. Take, for example, the
conventional onion: It’s got the lowest pesticide
load of 45 fruits and vegetables tested by the
Environmental Working Group. Also in the
safe-to-eat-conventional group are avocados, sweet
corn, and pineapple. In general, fruits and
vegetables with impermeable skins are safe to buy
conventional, while produce like celery, peaches,
apples, and blueberries are better purchased
organic.
MYTH #15: Meat is bad for you
Pork, beef, and lamb are among the world’s best
sources of complete protein, and a Danish study
found that dieting with 25 percent of calories from
protein can help you lose twice as much weight as
dieting with 12 percent protein. Then there’s
vitamin B12, which is prevalent only in animal-based
foods. B12 is essential to your body’s ability to
decode DNA and build red blood cells, and British
researchers found that adequate intakes protect
against age-related brain shrinkage. Now, if you’re
worried that meat will increase your risk for heart
disease, don’t be. A Harvard review last year looked
at 20 studies and found that meat’s link to heart
disease exists only with processed meats like bacon,
sausage, and deli cuts. Unprocessed meats, those
that hadn’t been smoked, cured, or chemically
preserved, presented absolutely zero risk.
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