Many people have bought into the myths and misconceptions about foods and how they affect our health and/or weight loss. These misconceptions come about largely due to the media and its promotion of faulty research data. An example of the myths that propagate the notion of weight would be ‘Eating fat makes you fat’ – we now know that this is simply a falsehood. To help you clear up any faulty beliefs regarding diet, check out the top four diet myths below:
1. Eating fat makes you fat
We are conditioned to believe that fat will make us fat. This sounds counter-intuitive doesn’t it? Healthy fats such as tuna, salmon, flaxseed, nuts and seeds, coconut oil and fish oil BURN fat and burn it faster! By replacing refined carbs and unhealthy fats with healthy fat, you allow your body to tap into your fat stores for energy. These healthy fats trigger the hormone Leptin that signals you have had enough food – you are satisfied which will in turn help to help to keep your portions smaller, but leptin also revs up your thyroid output, and in turn, speeds up your metabolism
2. All calories are created equally
Here again, we have been conditioned to believe that a calorie is just a calorie, that a 100 calorie candy bar is the exactly the same as 100 calories of broccoli. We now know that foods such as refined white flour and sugar, for example, are treated by the body very differently. When you ingest sugar, your blood sugar takes a roller coaster ride that not only triggers excess insulin, but low-level inflammation as well. One important key to optimal health is to be very sensitive to insulin. When foods such as candy bars and white flour products are ingested every day, insulin is triggered too much and the body starts to ignore it..there goes optimal health.
3. Eating late causes weight gain
It is really about how much you eat during the day and what you eat that makes the difference. Ensuring that you keep your blood sugar balanced is key to preventing weight gain. If you allow more than 3 hours to go by without eating, your blood sugar takes a dive and you will be vulnerable to poor food choices and more. Having said that, it is important to not get up in the middle of the night and eat. Why? Because when we sleep, our bodies go through a ‘fasting’ period – a natural ketosis then takes place – this is important for fat burn. So if your natural inclination is to get up after you’ve been sleeping to chow down, you are disrupting the natural fat reduction that occurs.
4. Fresh fruits and vegetables are more nutritious than frozen
Yes, fresh fruits and veggies are delicious when really fresh. Many do not realize that fresh produce is often picked before it is ripe to ensure that it is shipped ‘intact’ without damage. Much of this produce is shipped from long distance to get to your store further depleting its nutrient level and add to this the produce sitting on the store shelves and in your refrigerator for who knows how long degrading even more of its sensitive nutrient levels.
Frozen produce, on the other hand, is generally picked at its peak of ripeness and then frozen immediately.
Now that you know these are just myths, add some healthy fat to your diet, don’t be shy about choosing frozen fruits or veggies over fresh, don’t worry if your last meal is late at night and lastly, remember that all calories are not created equal.