We have already mentioned food myths on a variety of lists – but until now we have not made a food-specific misconceptions list. This list explores some of the most common myths we have about food and (no-doubt controversially) debunks them. In the case of the more controversial topics, I have included sources.
The Myth: Fat free food is calorie free
This is a very common myth – so common that food manufacturers market to it. The misconception that fat free is better is the reason that so many products are labelled “fat free,” “low in fat,” “fat reduced,” etc. So many people who want to lose weight will chow down on all of these “low fat” foods thinking they are going to lose weight – even worse, they often tend to eat more of the low fat food than they would have if it were full fat. What really matters when trying to reduce weight is calories – eat fewer calories than you burn and you will lose weight. When fat is removed from food a lot of the flavor is removed as well – consequently extra sugars and chemicals are often added to give back the flavor – fat free food can therefore be far worse and fattening for you than regular full fat food.
The Myth: Fast food salads are the “healthy option”
A 2005 report by the Independent said: “[a]n investigation of the food sold by the “big four” – McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC and Pizza Hut – found that [...] five out of eight of the salads used as “evidence” of their embrace of healthy eating had “high” salt or fat content.”1 It is all too common to see dieters who crave a little something naughty, ordering salads or other “healthy choices” from fast food joints – but what they usually don’t realize is that the salads can be as bad as the regular food and they would be more content if they just ate a Big Mac. For the sake of comparison, I looked it up: 1 Big Mac has 540 calories and 1,040 mg of salt; 1 premium southwest salad with crispy chicken and dressing has 530 calories and 1,260 mg of salt. The Mac is healthier.
The Myth: When trying to gain muscle, you should eat copious amounts of protein
According to the Mayo Clinic, 10 – 35% of your daily dietary intake should be protein – whether trying to gain weight, lose weight, or maintain weight. Most of this comes from our regular food and we seldom need to take protein supplements. Even more damning for this myth are two recent studies by independent sport medicine journals in which various people (including bodybuilders) were given varying extra quantities of protein each day; summing one study up, Dr Richard Krieder from the University of Memphis said: “Although it is important for athletes to get an adequate amount of protein . . . consuming additional amounts of protein does not appear to promote muscle growth.”
The Myth: Fresh fruit is better than dried fruit
This myth is true in only one regard: if you are looking for vitamin ‘c’, then fresh fruit is best, but other than that, dried fruit contains just as many nutrients and sugar for energy as fresh fruit. If you subscribe to the notion that you should eat 5 fruits a day, then you only need one tablespoon of dried fruit per portion – so five tablespoons of dried fruit fulfills your daily need. The same is true of canned or frozen fruit. Fruit juice is also able to be used as a daily fruit portion but only one per day should be made up of juice only.
The Myth: It is better to eat six small meals during the day instead of three larger meals
First off, this can be okay – but only if you are extremely good at controlling your portion sizes; it is all too easy to turn six small meals into six large meals. This myth again comes down to the whole “calories per day” rule. If your three large meals contain as many calories as your six small meals, there is no difference at all. For the majority of people it is easier to put the time aside for three meals – so this is still the best choice for most. As we have discussed on a previous list (item 1), the time of day that you eat does not have a bearing on weight gain or loss.
The Myth: It takes more calories to eat a stick of celery than are contained in the celery itself – making it a negative calorie food
This one is so popular that even Snopes believes it – and it is rare for Snopes to be wrong. But the problem is, the numbers don’t add up. One stick of celery contains around six calories2. A female weighing 150 pounds, aged 35, and 65 inches tall, burns 30 calories per hour3 eating whilst sitting. In the interests of science I ate a stick of celery (which is no mean feat considering I hate raw celery) to see how long it would take: 2 minutes and 14 seconds. If the female described above takes as long as I do, that means she can eat just under 30 sticks of celery in one hour – totaling 180 calories. That leaves an excess of 150 calories still not burned. Granted, there is some calorie burning involved in the digestive process as well, but there is no way these numbers allow for negative calories; on average you burn 62 calories an hour just existing4 (this includes digestion) – that still leaves an excess calorie count of 88. No matter which way you look at it – celery does not result in negative calories.
The Myth: Decaffeinated coffee contains no caffeine
International standards require decaf to be 97% caffeine free (EU standards are a little stricter at 99.9%). The process of removing caffeine is a long one and it also means that many other chemicals (up to 400 in fact) that are essential the taste of coffee are lost. If you have an allergy to caffeine, you should probably keep away from all forms of coffee – decaf included. But for those who can cope with caffeine – unless you really can’t stand the slight “high” produced by it, you will have a nicer tasting drink if you just opt for regular coffee. And if that hasn’t convinced you – the chemical often used in decaffeinating coffee beans (dichloromethane) is also used as a paint stripper.
The Myth: Craving is your body telling you it needs something
When we get a craving for certain foods – such as fruit juice, we often think it is because of a lack in our body of a certain nutrient. Interestingly, scientists who put this to the test found out that it wasn’t true at all. In the study, a person who craved chocolate, was given a cocktail of chemicals that contained all of the essential components (minus taste) of chocolate, and another cocktail containing chocolate flavor but no components of chocolate. The craving was satisfied when they took the chocolate flavored cocktail – but not the essentially flavorless chocolate. This strongly suggests that cravings are simply emotional. We crave certain foods because of the memories and emotions relating to that food in our lives.
The Myth: Excess salt increases your blood pressure
This is a myth that originated in the 1940s when a professor used salt-reduction to treat people with high blood pressure. Science has since found out that there is no reason for a person with normal blood pressure to restrict their salt intake. However, if you already have high blood pressure, you may become salt-sensitive in which case you should reduce salt or increase your potassium intake as it is the balance of the two that really matters. Furthermore, people who suffer from hypertension should be careful with salt as it can have an impact there. Ultimately, eating more potassium is probably more important than reducing salt. Potassium rich foods are spinach, broccoli, bananas, white potatoes and most types of beans.
The Myth: Fast food is bad for you
A very wise man once said: “all things in moderation”. This ancient phrase applies to most things in life – including fast food. A moderate amount of fast food is no worse for you than a moderate amount of home-cooked meat and vegetables. A constant diet of nothing but fast food may not be the healthiest choice you can make, but then again, eating macaroni and cheese every night is not very healthy either. Variety and moderation are the key to good eating and health. If you feel like a cheeseburger, eat one.
Sources:
1. Healthy options still full of fat
2. Calorie Count Food Nutritional Calculator
3. Fitday Calorie Calculator
4. Basal Metabolic Rate Estimation Forumlas
Contributor: JFrater
lately i’ve been craving salt/salty foods (and i’m not pregnant). i grew up in a home that kept the salt shaker in the spice cabinet to use sparingly in cooking, and i never want to salt things at the table.
i know most americans get their salt (more than required) in processed/fast/restaurant foods even if they don’t salt at the table. i don’t eat much of that stuff (i love to cook and i’m broke), but do eat some.
think it means anything?
96. VikingBerserker – “Unless I am out to lunch, I have to disagree with the salt not causing high blood pressure comment.”
…so when you’re staying IN for lunch, you agree with the salt not causing high blood pressure? color me confused….
sorry for the typos! my keyboard is not the best in the world.
it might be off topic eugene but then you dont have to read it do you?
I don’t eat fast food EVER. Maybe once every 4-5 years. It’s nasty. I don’t like sweet things either. Even fruit is too sticky. Love veggies tho. Make my own pizza and my own Chinese. I’m a great cook. My downfall (overindulgence) is steak and/or lasagna. I eat fish/seafood almost every night. Salmon, tilapia, shrimp, scallops are the best!!
124 6twistedbiscuits: Live and learn and then get Luvs. Talk all you want. Just take it to where we don’t have to subjected to it.
Oh BTW I have jock-itch and athletes foot. Any ideas?
My eczema is driving me crazy!! Any ideas?
My dandruff is acting up. Any ideas?
My psoriasis is getting really bad. Any ideas?
See how annoying it is?
BTW: I don’t have any of these issues. I’m fine.
125. Eugene-
i feel sorry for you if there are no fresh fruits you enjoy. fresh fruits, grown yourself or from a farmers/local market and just picked in their prime are some of the finest things in the world!
and Eugene-
in their defense, the progression from cravings (on list) to pregnancy cravings, babies, then a baby raising issue isn’t really out of line the way things seem to go here.
but it was a bit gross ladies!
eugene – have a go at me if you want to and try imagine how much i care, if you are going to have a go then have a go at every one with the “got any ideas?”, i’m not the only one, but i’m the one you’ve singled out. bit of a bully, are you? like to pick on a person, but not a group of people? theres nothing that irritates me more then a bully. BTW, if you dont like a conversation, dont join in. simple as.
lo – thnks for the defense, apologies to anyone who did find it gross,but then like i said, you didnt have to read it.
Blah blah blah.
Eugene…guess you havn’t been here long enough to know we always go off topic. ignore it and move on.
Its not annoying…its fun. You need to get out more.
6twistedbiscuits…don’t give up. He will do it when he is ready. My girl was 1 year old at the time.
gabi319 – not chinese take out…that’s gross! I am talking about the REAL stuff. I have a hole in the wall family resturant that serves all the best and fresh food. They go to the asian market across the street daily. I love their stuff! Because of them, I have managed to mimic some of their dishes so I can have it at home. I am getting pretty good at it too!
122. lo…are you getting enough water? I ask because that was my issue. Went to my doctor about it because I hate salt! Its so nasty. So when I started to crave salty items, he said more water. It worked for me.
such a witty, intelligent retort eugene. your not even a very good bully. i dont think i’m going to waste anymore of my time on you.
Canteloupe, bananas and berries are OK. I was talking more about oranges and the such. Frozen grapes (segue) sound good in theory. But they are too cold and make my teeth hurt in reality. I do like watermelon but only if it’s already cut up. Oh and cherries may be my favorite.
6twistedbiscuits: “simple as” Simple as what?
Simple as you?
D.B.
Eugene: You need some of those little fish… http://www.psoriasisfishcure.com/
I should learn to read All of a comment before replying.
Crimanon 137: Touche!! I didn’t even need to look. I know the reference. Quite the wit. That’s very cool.
I thought that they were temperate.
Good night ladies. It’s a long, dark, cold night here. Until tomorrow! More fun to be had. No hard feelings 6twistedbiscuits. Very interesting nik BTW. I admire your (sp?) hutzpah.
“A moderate amount of fast food is no worse for you than a moderate amount of home-cooked meat and vegetables.”
Not sure how did you end up with this statement, but if you take grams by grams and compare it, you can definately see/feel the “worse” b/w eating fast food and home cooked meals. If “worse” by your definition means you won’t die from both, then most is true and the comparison scale is weak.
“A constant diet of nothing but fast food may not be the healthiest choice you can make, but then again, eating macaroni and cheese every night is not very healthy either.”
This is like saying constantly eating A or A are not very healthy. If your second “A” was a “B” (vegetables), then your equation falls apart.
“Variety and moderation are the key to good eating and health. If you feel like a cheeseburger, eat one.”
It is true that variety and moderation are the key to good eating but it is the misconception of the word “moderation” that can be misleading. So if you feel like a cheeseburger, think about when did you last eat one, then decide to eat one.
Eugene sounds like it`s her time of the month.
ugh gross, bigski. I’m a girl but ‘time of the month’ references gross me out that toddler poo.
*gross me out more than toddler poo
It’s about time for the Laker game to begin. I’ll be off.line in a nonce.
I was trying to be clever because it`s a guy and he`s arguing with all you girls.
Get it ?
Someone gimmie a rimshot. ta ta tish.
129. 6twistedbiscuits-
no apologies needed for the gross factor, i’m okay with gross
but i don’t have any kids and i never even baby-sat in my youth, so when i stopped and thought about the posts causing Eugene’s complaint (which i hadn’t given a second thought until then -ironic, no?) i saw how it could be gross on a food themed list.
anyway, the 60-some% of readers who answered the poll love “the bizarre” and must be no strangers to “gross factor.”
131. oouchan- i think i’m good on water, it’s my main beverage, i think i drink about 1.5-2 liters a day. thanks for the suggestion:)
Yo if you want to lose weight move more and eat less! Simple as *****
I love these myth killing lists.
General- I agree with you,but if you also listen to death metal while you move more and eat less it`s more effective.
also if you have kidney failure or if your on dialysis
salt is very very bad it really needs to be watched
i should know :/
haha @ bigski (151)
I was kinda disappointed that GenTits didn’t have any death metal references in his comment. Thanks for picking up the slack!
“However, if you already have high blood pressure, you may become salt-sensitive in which case you should reduce salt or increase your potassium intake as it is the balance of the two that really matters. Furthermore, people who suffer from hypertension should be careful with salt as it can have an impact there.”
Kind of redundant, isn’t it? High blood pressure and hypertension are the same thing, JFrater.
@ 151
The head banging must burn of extra calories huh ?
One myth that could of have been addressed here is whether cooking food leads to a loss of nutrition. Eating it raw I’ve heard is healthier, as the food retains all its nutrition. Though steaming apparently doesn’t affect food.
Having a fast metabolism can be bad. It might seem good to eat everything and not gain weight, but I am slightly underweight, and I can’t gain weight. I could eat one trillion calories, and still not gain one pound. If I exercise to gain muscle, I don’t gain muscle, I lose fat only. What do I do?
underweight, and the other “too slim” posters-
your best bet is to find a registered dietician/nutritionist and work with him/her to find a program of strength training (muscle building) exercise and healthy diet with appropriate calories for your goals.
there are people who study this very thing (every hospital has dietitians on staff to plan meals appropriate to each patients needs) they can help you
You got most of these from here: http://health.msn.com/nutrition/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100215779>1=31036
You didn’t cite it in the sources either.
Even if you would have, it would still plagiarism. Write your own material and don’t just get it from other websites.
redbull has some 100k cals or sumthing..
will that make u VERY fat then???
akilla: God, I hope you’re joking. Have you even read a can of the stuff?
Nick: Jamie is actually pretty good with the not plagiarizing. I see a few of the same topics being discussed here as on the site you linked, however I don’t see any direct copy/pasting of the exact same wording. These are all incredibly common food-related myths & misconceptions, so it’s very unsurprising that some of the topics overlap. There is no plagiarism going on here that I can see.
I totally agree with #1.
That is why that movie supersize me is total bull crap. No one eats 4000 Calories a day (unless your Michael Phelps.) So of course your gonna gain weight. Don’t blame your obesity on McDonalds, blame it on your own stupid self
Thanks for the No.1 post -woo!
its irresponsible to say that salt doesn’t increase your blood pressure…it does so however indirectly. simply put salt causes fluid retention, the increased fluid puts more pressure on ur veins resulting in an increased blood pressure. THERE IS A REASON UR DOCTOR TELLS U TO WATCH UR SALT INTAKE WHEN U HAVE HIGH OR BORDERLINE BLOOD PRESSURE!!! To the person whose father has borderline low blood pressure: the blood pressure you mentioned is not dangerous low it’s actually just about perfect, however the pulse shouldn’t be below 55-60 at complete rest. A very slight increase in salt intake shouldn’t be harmful as it can correct the problem. however he needs to talk to his doctor before changing anything considering his history.
Lol Im really sorry jfrater, but you should really stop making these lists. You seem to know almost nothing about nutrition. 8 and 6 are complete bull*****. If you want to gain muscle, you should eat 1-2 grams of protien per pound of bodyweight, which is a lot.And it should be a lot more tham 10% of your diet.
And 6 is even more bull***** than number 8. There is a lot more to nutrition than calories. When you eat 6 small meals, your body has an easier time absorbing nutrients and burning the fat. It is much better for your body anabolically(I probably spelled it wrong lol). And by the way just eating less calories will constitute weight loss, but some of it could be muscle if all you focus on is calories.
treasg:
“What is the effect of cooking on digestibility of various foods? Clearly, a food can have a nutritive value only if it is digested. Hence, it is necessary to investigate the effects of cooking on digestibility. We’ll see that there is no general rule, and that there are many examples of foods for which cooking improves digestibility, and many examples for which it does not.
Postulated effects of dietary “food enzymes.” One of the main arguments of raw versus low-temperature cooking is that heating above 104°F (40°C) results in progressive enzyme damage; hence, even if you steam your vegetables, your food is “dead.” However, we will contend that such arguments are invalid, and that dietary enzymes have a very minor role in our health, if any.
Degree of vitamin and mineral losses. It is well-known that cooking may result in some vitamin and mineral losses. We try below to give an estimate of these losses. Not all vitamins are lost by heating; other factors (such as exposure to air or light) may result in vitamin loss; and heating by itself doesn’t destroy minerals (however, some minerals may be leached in water). In short, we try to determine how much vitamins and minerals can be lost by heating a food.
Evaluating the pros and cons. As with the question of toxicity that was assessed in Part 1, the consideration here cannot be reduced to black and white. Instead, the various factors must be weighed against each other. We conclude that cooking does not represent huge nutritional losses, but of course, when the choice is given, it is best to eat raw whatever is palatable in that form, and to cook as little as possible when heating is necessary to improve digestibility or to improve taste.” -http://www.beyondveg.com/tu-j-l/raw-cooked/raw-cooked-2a.shtml
Also the salt thing…believe it IF you don’t tells you to cut back or watch it, otherwise don’t think about it that much. Everything is fine in moderation, unless of course you have other health problems where salt could potentially worsen it.
Very well written and summed up with a great message in the number one slot.
This obsession with fat reached its peak in my observations when I heard a fellow elementary school teacher teaching the class that fat was BAD for you. It instantly reminded me of the book “The Nazi Doctors” which states that the early Germans learning that the doctors were killing their own selected German “less than desirables” with injections, began refusing to take their necesssary inoculations. The Nazis merely shifted to a NO FAT diet (mostly saurkraut)for their targets killing them off in about three months.
So remember folks -fat is not bad for your -it is good for you -even necessary for life -just don’t over do it or under do it like the Nazis.
Lol, I’m really sorry Ryan but you seem to know nothing about the human body. That volume of protein cannot be constituted into muscle in a single sitting, therefore most of it will merely leave the body in your pee as protein cannot be stored.
Get over yourself – these lists are for fun. Who cares if they are not academically accurate? What you just said isnt. Why do body builders think they know more than scientists?
Unless of course anabolic steroids are used. Then a larger quantity of protein can be constituted into muscle of course.
But if you are using steroids, protein intake is the least of your problems.
5. Mixglorios – please dont make a second comment!
12. Jollibee? Maybe noone cares about a Philippine fast food franchise – thats why!
36. Zimmers – you just wasted 30 minutes of your life
47. Randall – you just wasted an hour.
As for list item #7, fresh fruit is better because you dont eat as much. A handful of grapes has fewer calories than a handful of raisins.
Everything after #83 until this comment is a waste of life. Potty training? Struth! Isnt there somewhere else to discuss this?
Hey Jfrat, what is that a picture of in #6 because whatever it is I want some. It looks sooooo goood!
i still maintain that McDonald’s and Co. purposely put out the premium salads and chicken, knowing that a Big Mac was healthier as a way to “punk” everyone after the ‘Super Size Me’ hysteria.
eugene – no hard feelings.
….Very interesting nik BTW. I admire your (sp?) hutzpah….
i dont understand what that means?
Where is the thing about the gelitan???
i swear i seen it somewhere and now i can’t find it???
help please
171. Wally:…Everything after #83 until this comment is a waste of life.
****
Well, well, well. Some noob thinks he can waltz right on in and start telling the old guard how to run everything.
It seems to me, with all of his criticisms (4 by name, including Randall, and dozens by implication), that it isn’t the 88 posts that are a waste of life, but his 1.
The problem with #5 is that who eats celery without cheese or peanut butter all over it?!?!
The picture for #4 is adorable!
“As for list item #7, fresh fruit is better because you dont eat as much. A handful of grapes has fewer calories than a handful of raisins.”
So…eating too much fruit is bad for you?
Seriously Wally that comment was a waste of time. If you knew LV at all you would ALSO know that its fun when lists go off topic
JFrater-
“For the sake of comparison, I looked it up: 1 Big Mac has 540 calories and 1,040 mg of salt; 1 premium southwest salad with crispy chicken and dressing has 530 calories and 1,260 mg of salt. The Mac is healthier.”
Okay, you’re trying to hit us with shock-value statements here for the sake of making a point. “LOOK GUYS, A BIG MAC IS HEALTHIER THAN A SALAD.” In doing so, you’re creating a need for another list to debunk the so-called “facts” in this one.
Calorie intake in itself is not a bad thing. Yes, to the average overweight American, calories are something to avoid, but they are by no means a measure of healthiness for any given food.
Yes, sodium is bad, and that’s a lot of sodium for a salad…which is easily avoided by simply NOT using their Ultra Butter Salt-Flavored Southwest Ranch Dressing. How are you gonna take the sodium out of a Big Mac? I never eat at McDonalds, but I see that they also make salads WITHOUT chicken and probably offer different types of dressing. It’s irresponsible to lead people away from the salad option like this.
You’re also forgetting about all the saturated fat, carcinogens, and god-knows-what-else in McDonalds’ “meat,” as if only the calories and sodium matter in this comparison. Even that salad has some redeeming nutritional value when compared to a Big Mac.
i love how in the “fast food is bad for you” myth, you compare “unhealthy” fast food to (seemingly) “healthy” mac n cheese??? (which by the way is not that healthy, or should i say..no more nutritional than fast food…good way to legitimize your point there
but it’s true everything in moderation. even freaky fast-food preservation chemicals i guess..
that’s why the paleo diet is better than any diet in the world.