Just as the debate over diet coke versus regular coke lives on, so does the argument that certain “diet” foods will shrink your waist. According to scientific studies, full calorie and full sugared carbonated drinks such as Coca Cola do cause a higher BMI and weight compared to those who prefer the healthier(?) alternative, its diet opponent.
With a world so obsessed with weight loss and nutrition, it is clear there are many options in the food market that you are taught to assume are healthy alternatives to normal foods. For example, you would grab the low-calorie yogurt instead of the full-calorie from the same brand to skip a few calories, right? Wrong. With less calories and less fat can come as much as twice as much sugar in some brands. The healthier option here would be to grab a fat-free natural plain Greek yogurt, which is not at all what would be advertised as the best option. There are many foods that claim to be diet, gluten free, low calorie, fat free, no trans fat, etc, to lure in the customer.
To start things off, sugar free cookies and candy always trick people into thinking their guilt-free snack is appropriate. When you take out sugar, you get more fat. Same goes for veggie chips, or any type of chips for that matter. Also look out for healthy food gone wrong, such as banana chips. What you might think is just a dried fruit actually turns out to be a deep-fried luxury in a bag of trail mix.
What true healthy eating can be described as is anything a five year old can pronounce. Fruits. Vegetables. Lean meat. No preservatives, artificial sugar, additives, or chemicals that can be sabotaging your diet plan.
The Department of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health created the Food Plate, suggesting the Food Pyramid was not accurate in describing the amount of food and what type of foods we should be ingesting daily. Here is a picture of an accurate healthy diet.
“Diet” anything is nowhere to be found.
I get so frustrated with people who choose “diet” foods over regular foods with the mindset that they are making a healthier choice. People accept the notion that less calories means healthier, when really more natural means healthier. I love how you say that “What true healthy eating can be described as is anything a five year old can pronounce.” This is so true! I really think I will use this saying when grocery shopping. Here is a list of ingredients to avoid at all costs. http://www.wakingtimes.com/2013/03/04/20-ingredients-to-memorize-and-avoid-in-any-food-you-consume/
I hope everyone reads this! People really don’t get that “diet” foods are terrible for you. People need to be much more educated on what to eat to actually diet properly and benefit the most from it. People would lose weight and be healthier instead of what people do to their bodies to lose weight now. Another thing I don’t think people have realized is there are “good fats” and “good sugars”. Here’s an article on why natural sugars are actually healthy to eat (in the right amounts, of course).
http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/30/health/sugar-bad/index.html
I agree with you that our world is obsessed with losing weight and dieting. I am not one who needs to diet, but I do want to become healthier. Many people who diet either do it the wrong way or choose other options to losing weight. First it is always good to mentally prepare yourself because you can’t lose weight without a positive attitude and mindset. Next, you have be consistent in staying healthy. Here is also a good link about dieting tips and staying healthy: http://www.helpguide.org/life/healthy_weight_loss.htm