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From i09 (which is strange because I go there to read up on fannish matters not nutrition, but for some strange reason they had this article today. Huh.) :
The Rules of Good Nutrition (that everyone agrees on)
Fewer things can generate more controversy and disagreement than discussions about food and nutrition. It often seems that people will never reach any kind of consensus on what we should and shouldn't eat. But there may actually be a few exceptions to this. Here are 10 nutrition facts that everyone actually agrees on — well, perhaps almost everyone.
1. Added Sugar is a Disaster
We all know that added sugar is bad. Some think sugar is a simple matter of “empty” calories, while others believe it to cause diseases that kill millions of people each year.
It is definitely true that added sugar (sucrose and high fructose corn syrup) contains empty calories. There are no nutrients in it and if you eat a lot of sugar then you’re likely to become deficient because you aren’t getting enough foods that actually have nutrients in them.
But this is just the tip of the iceberg; there are other, much more serious dangers of sugar that are now reaching mainstream attention.
Sugar, mainly due to the high fructose content, is being implicated as a leading cause of obesity, cardiovascular disease and type II diabetes (1, 2, 3).
How does fructose do this? Well, fructose is metabolized strictly by the liver over time, causing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, insulin resistance, elevated triglycerides, abdominal obesity and high cholesterol (4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9).
Fructose also makes our brains resistant to a hormone called leptin, which effectively makes our brains want to get fat (10, 11, 12). This way, eating an excess of added sugars sets up a relentless biochemical drive in the brain to keep eating sugar, getting fatter and eating even more sugar.
Bottom Line: Added sugar provides empty calories and is believed to be a leading cause of diseases that kill millions of people each year.
2. Omega-3 Fats Are Crucial and Most People Don’t Get Enough
Omega-3 fatty acids are extremely important for proper functioning of the human body.
For example, DHA, an Omega-3 fatty acid derived from animals, makes up about 40% of the polyunsaturated fats in the brain (13). Being deficient in Omega-3 (very common) is associated with a lower IQ, depression, various mental disorders, heart disease and many other serious diseases (14).
There are three main sources of Omega-3 fats: ALA (from plants mostly), DHA and EPA (from animals). The plant form, ALA, needs to get transformed into DHA or EPA in order to function correctly in the human body. There is some evidence that this conversion process is ineffective in humans (15).
Therefore, it is best to get Omega-3 fats from animal sources, including fish, grass-fed meat, Omega-3 enriched or pasturized eggs, or fish oil.
Bottom Line: A large part of the population is Omega-3 deficient. Avoiding a deficiency in these essential fatty acids can help prevent many diseases.
3. There is No Perfect Diet For Everyone
We are all unique, and subtle differences in genetics, body type, culture and environment can affect which type of diet we should eat.
Some people do best on a low-carb diet while others may do fine on a vegetarian high-carb diet. The fact is, what works for one person may not work for the next.( Read more... )
Bottom Line: The best diet for YOU is the one you get results with and that you can stick to in the long term.
4. Trans Fats Are Very Unhealthy and Should be Avoided
( Read more... )
Bottom Line: Trans Fats are chemically processed fats that cause all sorts of damage in the body. You should avoid them like the plague.
5. Eating Vegetables Will Improve Your Health
Vegetables are good for you.( Read more... )
Bottom Line: Vegetables are rich in all sorts of nutrients. Eating vegetables each day is associated with improved health and a lower risk of disease.
6. It is Critical to Avoid a Vitamin D Deficiency
( Read more... )
Bottom Line: Vitamin D is a crucial hormone in the body and many people are deficient in it. Reversing a deficiency can have powerful health benefits.
7. Refined Carbohydrates Are Bad For You
There are a lot of differing opinions about carbs and fat. Some think fat is the root of all evil, while others believe carbs are the key players in obesity and other chronic diseases. But what pretty much everyone agrees on is that refined carbohydrates are at the very least worse than unrefined carbohydrates.
There are some nutrients in high-carb foods like grains that can be beneficial. However, when you process the grains you remove most of the nutrients and then there’s nothing left but the bad stuff( Read more... ) It is very clear that whole grains and unrefined carbohydrates are at least a lot better than their refined, processed counterparts (30, 31).
Bottom Line: Refined carbohydrates like processed grains are unhealthy. They are lacking in nutrients and lead to rapid spikes in blood sugar and insulin, which can cause all sorts of problems down the line.
8. Supplements Can Never Fully Replace Real Foods
( Read more... )
But no amount of supplements will ever make up for a bad diet. Not a chance.
Bottom Line: It is much more important to eat real, nutritious foods than to count on supplements to provide the nutrients you need.
9. “Diets” Don’t Work, a Lifestyle Change is Necessary
“Diets” are ineffective. That is a fact. They may lead to short-term results, but as soon as you return to eating junk food you will gain the weight back. This is called yo-yo dieting and is extremely common. Most people that lose a lot of weight on a diet end up gaining it back whenever they “stop” the diet. For this reason, the only thing that can give you actual long-term results is to adopt a lifestyle change.
Bottom Line: Adopting a healthy lifestyle is the only way to ensure long term weight loss and a lifetime of improved health.
10. Unprocessed Food is Healthiest
( Read more... )
Basically, processed foods have less of the good stuff and a LOT more of the bad stuff. The most important thing you can do to ensure optimal health is to “eat real food.”
The Rules of Good Nutrition (that everyone agrees on)
Fewer things can generate more controversy and disagreement than discussions about food and nutrition. It often seems that people will never reach any kind of consensus on what we should and shouldn't eat. But there may actually be a few exceptions to this. Here are 10 nutrition facts that everyone actually agrees on — well, perhaps almost everyone.
1. Added Sugar is a Disaster
We all know that added sugar is bad. Some think sugar is a simple matter of “empty” calories, while others believe it to cause diseases that kill millions of people each year.
It is definitely true that added sugar (sucrose and high fructose corn syrup) contains empty calories. There are no nutrients in it and if you eat a lot of sugar then you’re likely to become deficient because you aren’t getting enough foods that actually have nutrients in them.
But this is just the tip of the iceberg; there are other, much more serious dangers of sugar that are now reaching mainstream attention.
Sugar, mainly due to the high fructose content, is being implicated as a leading cause of obesity, cardiovascular disease and type II diabetes (1, 2, 3).
How does fructose do this? Well, fructose is metabolized strictly by the liver over time, causing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, insulin resistance, elevated triglycerides, abdominal obesity and high cholesterol (4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9).
Fructose also makes our brains resistant to a hormone called leptin, which effectively makes our brains want to get fat (10, 11, 12). This way, eating an excess of added sugars sets up a relentless biochemical drive in the brain to keep eating sugar, getting fatter and eating even more sugar.
Bottom Line: Added sugar provides empty calories and is believed to be a leading cause of diseases that kill millions of people each year.
2. Omega-3 Fats Are Crucial and Most People Don’t Get Enough
Omega-3 fatty acids are extremely important for proper functioning of the human body.
For example, DHA, an Omega-3 fatty acid derived from animals, makes up about 40% of the polyunsaturated fats in the brain (13). Being deficient in Omega-3 (very common) is associated with a lower IQ, depression, various mental disorders, heart disease and many other serious diseases (14).
There are three main sources of Omega-3 fats: ALA (from plants mostly), DHA and EPA (from animals). The plant form, ALA, needs to get transformed into DHA or EPA in order to function correctly in the human body. There is some evidence that this conversion process is ineffective in humans (15).
Therefore, it is best to get Omega-3 fats from animal sources, including fish, grass-fed meat, Omega-3 enriched or pasturized eggs, or fish oil.
Bottom Line: A large part of the population is Omega-3 deficient. Avoiding a deficiency in these essential fatty acids can help prevent many diseases.
3. There is No Perfect Diet For Everyone
We are all unique, and subtle differences in genetics, body type, culture and environment can affect which type of diet we should eat.
Some people do best on a low-carb diet while others may do fine on a vegetarian high-carb diet. The fact is, what works for one person may not work for the next.( Read more... )
Bottom Line: The best diet for YOU is the one you get results with and that you can stick to in the long term.
4. Trans Fats Are Very Unhealthy and Should be Avoided
( Read more... )
Bottom Line: Trans Fats are chemically processed fats that cause all sorts of damage in the body. You should avoid them like the plague.
5. Eating Vegetables Will Improve Your Health
Vegetables are good for you.( Read more... )
Bottom Line: Vegetables are rich in all sorts of nutrients. Eating vegetables each day is associated with improved health and a lower risk of disease.
6. It is Critical to Avoid a Vitamin D Deficiency
( Read more... )
Bottom Line: Vitamin D is a crucial hormone in the body and many people are deficient in it. Reversing a deficiency can have powerful health benefits.
7. Refined Carbohydrates Are Bad For You
There are a lot of differing opinions about carbs and fat. Some think fat is the root of all evil, while others believe carbs are the key players in obesity and other chronic diseases. But what pretty much everyone agrees on is that refined carbohydrates are at the very least worse than unrefined carbohydrates.
There are some nutrients in high-carb foods like grains that can be beneficial. However, when you process the grains you remove most of the nutrients and then there’s nothing left but the bad stuff( Read more... ) It is very clear that whole grains and unrefined carbohydrates are at least a lot better than their refined, processed counterparts (30, 31).
Bottom Line: Refined carbohydrates like processed grains are unhealthy. They are lacking in nutrients and lead to rapid spikes in blood sugar and insulin, which can cause all sorts of problems down the line.
8. Supplements Can Never Fully Replace Real Foods
( Read more... )
But no amount of supplements will ever make up for a bad diet. Not a chance.
Bottom Line: It is much more important to eat real, nutritious foods than to count on supplements to provide the nutrients you need.
9. “Diets” Don’t Work, a Lifestyle Change is Necessary
“Diets” are ineffective. That is a fact. They may lead to short-term results, but as soon as you return to eating junk food you will gain the weight back. This is called yo-yo dieting and is extremely common. Most people that lose a lot of weight on a diet end up gaining it back whenever they “stop” the diet. For this reason, the only thing that can give you actual long-term results is to adopt a lifestyle change.
Bottom Line: Adopting a healthy lifestyle is the only way to ensure long term weight loss and a lifetime of improved health.
10. Unprocessed Food is Healthiest
( Read more... )
Basically, processed foods have less of the good stuff and a LOT more of the bad stuff. The most important thing you can do to ensure optimal health is to “eat real food.”
