Nutrition myths aren’t limited to internet stories about eating magical foods for weight loss, some of them start right at the USDA food pyramid. Some nutritionists feel the pyramid is slanted in favor of promoting the agricultural industry rather than serving Americans what’s best for them nutritionally. In most cases, the food pyramid fails to differentiate between good fat and bad fat and lumps many types of carbohydrates together, ignoring the fact that some are healthier than others.
Starve yourself and you’ll lose weight is another myth.
While you will lose weight on an extremely low or no calorie diet, you’ll also do one more thing. You’ll throw yourself into starvation mode. That means the body slows down to conserve calories. You can’t eliminate food entirely, so eventually you’ll eat and any weight you lost will return, sometimes it even brings friends and makes it even harder to lose weight the next try.
Fat is bad.
Some types of fat are bad for your health. However, others are essential to keep your body functioning at its best. In fact, some vitamins require fat to go to your bloodstream. Saturated and trans fats are the culprits that give every fat a bad name. At one time, hydrogenated vegetable oil was considered healthier than other types of fat. Now we know it’s the worse offender. Omega-3 fatty acids can actually improve your overall health.
Calories eaten at night make you fatter.
Seriously, it really doesn’t matter when you overeat, so this is a huge myth. If you eat far more calories than you burn, you’ll gain weight. While raiding the freezer for a pint of Ben and Jerry’s at three in the morning isn’t going to help your weight reduction program, it would have the same effect if you ate it at three in the afternoon.
Another myth is about food cravings. You don’t necessarily crave foods for their nutrients. Sometimes you crave foods because of a sugar addiction or you just want the flavor.
Some diets restrict carbohydrates or cut them out completely. That’s a dangerous myth since fresh fruits and vegetables fall into that category and are ultimately important for your body.
Some myths about meat can leave you unhealthy. Meat is not the only complete protein. Plenty of plants contain all the amino acids your body needs.
All butter is bad for you. Some butter is better than others. Butter made from the milk of grass fed cows actually has additional heart healthy benefits.