Even with the scientific advancements in almost all aspects of our lives, when it comes to nutrition, nothing seems to be more perplexing to the masses. One day the media will claim a certain food is healthy, and then the next day you read just the opposite.
On top of this, food manufacturers make huge label claims on the front of their packages pulling you into the idea that their products are natural and healthy. So, because of what we are being spoon-fed on a daily basis most of us are just downright confused about what a healthy food really is.
Here are 5 perceived healthy foods that aren’t really healthy
1. Breakfast Cereals
Even though breakfast cereals are touted as a great way to start your day most brands are far from being healthy. In fact, most of them are among the worst foods we can consume. They’re not only a super refined carbohydrate; they are also usually loaded with tons of sugar.
As a marketing tactic, many breakfast cereals are often fortified with man-made synthetic vitamins and minerals while adding small amounts of whole grain so manufactures can make healthy claims on the front of their packages like; provides fiber, a good source of vitamins, with whole grain or helps support immunity.
But don’t be fooled by these label claims. Just check the ingredients list and you will quickly see that these products are not only filled with a lot of things you probably can’t pronounce, they’re also, more than likely loaded with sugar and/or high fructose corn syrup.
Starting your day off this way will surely set you up for a blood sugar spike followed by a crash a few hours later. This cycle is known as the blood sugar rollercoaster, where you will experience drowsiness, loss of mental focus and hunger, craving more refined carbohydrates high in sugar.
The bottom line here is that most breakfast cereals are just another form of over processed, sugar loaded junk food.
2. Fruit Juices and Sports Drinks
Many of us still believe that fruit juices are healthy and good for us. The problem is that many of the fruit juices you find in the supermarket aren’t really fruit juice at all. Most of the time there isn’t even any actual fruit in these juices, just a bunch of chemicals made to taste like fruit. So what you’re actually drinking is basically just sugar water with fruit flavoring.
With that being said, even if you are drinking 100% fruit juice, it’s still not a good idea or a healthy choice. You see, fruit juice isn’t at all like whole fruit. When fruit is made into juice all the good stuff like the fiber is extracted leaving behind just a small amount of vitamins with a whole bunch of sugar. And for those of you who are unaware, fruit juice actually contains a similar amount of sugar as a sugar-sweetened beverage. (1)
Orange juice, for example, contains the same amount of sugar as Coca Cola. Studies clearly point out that consuming sugar sweetened beverages are linked to the prevalence of obesity, type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease and many others chronic diseases. (2, 3)
The bottom Line here is that the fruit juices you buy today contain nearly identical amounts of easily digestible sugar as sugar sweetened soft drinks. So if you opt for the taste of fruit it’s best to just eat whole fruit.
Sports drinks were originally designed for athletes. They contain electrolytes which can be useful for athletes who’ve depleted themselves through rigorous training. However, these drinks are filled with added salt and sugar, and most regular people don’t need any additional salts in their diet, and they certainly have no need for liquid sugar.
Although these drinks are often considered healthier than sugary soft drinks, there really is no fundamental difference and consequently sometimes the sugar content is actually higher. While it is important to stay hydrated, especially around workouts, most people will be far better off just sticking to plain water.
The bottom line here is if you’re not doing super intense workouts, then you should avoid sports drinks altogether.
3. Gluten-Free Snack Foods
Since gluten has been singled out as being problematic for a high percentage of people many have jumped on the gluten-free bandwagon. In fact, according to this survey conducted in 2013, about a third of the entire U.S. population is now actively trying to avoid gluten. (4)
While there is a lot of controversy between experts on whether this is or isn’t necessary, the truth is, that for about 6% of the population, gluten, especially from modern industrialized wheat, can have an inflammatory response. (5, 6, 7)
So, in response to this mass movement the food manufacturers swiftly seized this opportunity to create a host of gluten-free foods and snacks. The problem is, these gluten free versions are actually no better or healthier than their gluten containing counterparts and may even possible be worse.
Most of these new, believed to be healthy, gluten-free foods are very low in nutrients, and are often made with refined starches that lead to very rapid spikes in blood sugar. And because they are viewed as a healthier option, much like fat free products are, people believe they can eat them with a free pass.
The fact is, these products are just as harmful as their gluten containing counter-parts, so if you are choosing to go gluten free make sure they are naturally gluten free, like plants and animal products and not gluten free processed foods.
The bottom line here is, gluten free snack foods are still just junk food.
4. Low Carb Bars, Protein Bars and Energy Bars
Better nutritional science is starting to help us understand that the over consumption of highly processed carbohydrates is a key factor in weight gain and many metabolic issues. This is most likely why low carb diets have become so popular these days. In the past decade alone numerous studies have confirmed that this type of diet is a highly effective way to lose weight and improve health. (8, 9)
Because of this, food manufacturers have seized this trend as an opportunity to bring an array of low carb friendly processed foods onto the market. This includes the many various versions of low carb bars. But by investigating the ingredients list, you will quickly discover that these are not really foods, they’re just a bunch of chemicals and highly refined ingredients.
It may be okay to consume these products occasionally without compromising the metabolic adaptation that comes with low carb eating. But you also need to understand that they don’t really nourish your body and even though they’re technically “low carb”, they’re still not healthy.
I put energy bars and protein bars in the same class as sports drinks. If you’re an elite athlete there may be a place for these bars, however, for the general population, these bars don’t contain anything that you can’t get from real foods. In fact, energy bars and protein bars are often highly processed products. Even though they may be higher in protein than chocolate bars, they often still contain most of the same unhealthy ingredients like sugar, flour, and artificial flavoring.
Of course, there are a few healthier brands available, but if you want to avoid the crap then you must learn to read labels. If you’re starving and far away from home, then healthier types of energy bars can certainly be a better choice than a burger and a coke, but your money is still better spent on nutritious real foods.
5. Fat Free and Low Fat Products
In the late 1980s, dietary fat, especially saturates fat was singled out as the most important change needed to be made in order to improve diet and health. This opened the door during the 1990s, as the fat-free low-fat craze changed the way Americans would eat. Despite the last several decades’ relentless propaganda demonizing saturated fat, science now has proven it to be quite harmless. (10, 11)
When the anti-fat message first hit the stage, food manufacturers seen a huge opportunity and started producing so called “healthy” products that were fat-free or very low in fat. There was only one striking problem, moving the fat from these foods made them quite unpalatable.
So to combat the taste issue, food manufacturers started loading their products with massive amounts of sugar, chemicals and artificial sweeteners. In essence what they did was removed the good stuff (fat) and replace it with bad stuff (sugar).This is how they managed to turn perfectly healthy foods like yogurt into very harmful products filled with unhealthy ingredients.
The bottom line here is, avoid anything labeled “fat-free” and minimize your consumption of foods that are labeled “low-fat.” These are highly processed products loaded with sugar and other harmful substances.
