The Truth About Diets: Diet Myths Clarified!

Myth: Carbohydrates can make you fat.

The Truth: It’s true that with white pasta, doughnuts and white bread in abundance can cause you to gain weight and spike your blood sugar. Instead choose complex carbohydrates such as 100% whole wheat bread, quinoa, whole wheat pasta, beans, fruits and vegetables – and do so in moderation. These foods provide important fibre for heart and digestive health, protective phytonutrients, and help regulate normal blood sugar levels.

 

Myth: Don’t eat after 8 p.m.

The Truth: Your body can’t tell time! If you’re hungry at night, choose your snack wisely. Instead of a bowl of ice cream, choose a piece of fruit or handful of nuts and dried fruit.

The Truth About Diets: Diet Myths Clarified!

Myth: You can loose weight by eating foods that are “diet”, “light”, “lowfat” or “nonfat” and “low-carb”.

The Truth: These foods don’t always mean low kilojoule.

These claims can fool you into feeling you can or eating more than necessary, and chances are these foods may contain artificial sweeteners and trans-fat.

Studies have shown a relationship between drinking diet cold drinks and packing on the kilograms.

 

Myth:  Avoid eating fat at all costs.

The Truth: Avoiding fat may keep you from feeling full, causing you to eat more carbs to fill up. Two studies show that eating full fat diary can help you loose weight and actually be healthier.

Tufts university researchers reviewed the diets of 120,000 people and found out those who ate more low fat and nonfat diary also ate more carbs, essentially replacing and adding to the fat kilojoules.

Another study analyzed the diets of 27,000 people and found that eating whole fat diary products yoghurt and cheese were associated with a 23% reduced risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, possibly due to specific fatty acids and other nutrients in whole diary.

Be sure to choose monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fats such as olive oil, canola oil and safflower oil, and nut oil, rather than saturated fats. Avoid transfats which are linked to heart disease.

 

Myth: You can eat as much as you want as long as you exercise.

The Truth: Unless you are training for 8 hours a day like an Olympic athlete, this is simply false.

You still need to choose healthy foods that are low in saturated fats, high in protein and fibre, and eat in moderation. Eat until you are satisfied.

 

Myth: It’s normal to feel  hungry when you are dieting.

The Truth: This dosen’t have to be the case if you choose nutritious foods with protein and fibre at each meal. Don’t wait too long between meals to eat or you’ll feel that hunger hormone kick in. try to eat every three to four hours.