“I take only healthy diets! Gone are regular colas. I drink only diet cola and fruit juices. No potato chips or popcorns for me. Only low-fat snacks. No sugar only artificial sweeteners (with 0 calories, mind it). No parathas. Only corn flakes for breakfast (with soya milk). I’m torturing myself every day by this healthy stuff. Still, I don’t lose weight. What’s wrong with me”?? It is the usual rant we hear from the people who do a strict diet.
Believe me, everything is wrong about it. The common problem with these foods is that they use artificial stuff or add more harmful than regular ones.
Let’s look at some of these healthy foods in detail here:
- Diet Colas- Worse than regular colas
It is widely assumed that diet cola does not contain any calories; hence it is recommended for weight loss. But what we ignore is the fact that these drinks have artificial sweeteners and chemical that could lead to weight gain.
Research at the University of Texas Health Centre found that people who drink a can or two of diet soda per day, their chances of gaining weight were higher by 50% compared to people who drank regular cola.
- Corn flakes- Highly Processed Foods
Breakfast cereal always brings to mind cornflakes and milk. It generally has high fructose corn syrup and malt flavouring, all of which are rich in high GI carbohydrates.
Especially drinks containing high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a controversial subject. It has argued that they foster overeating and encourage obesity. Indians are susceptible to diabetes and have the ‘belly gene’. So taking high GI carbs, which is a prime component in Cornflakes, only raises the risk as it dramatically increases blood sugar, which in turn stimulates the fat storage in the body.
- Low-fat products- Big Marketing Ploy
If you have to choose between a low-fat food and a full-fat food you’d think the former would help you slim down, right? Well, the answer is tricky.
The ‘fat-free’ or ‘low fat’ is the trending terms. Removal of real fat replaced by something else, which is low fat. According to research conducted by the Council University Food and Brand Labs, these low-fat substitutes to digest and hence people end up eating 28% more calories.
Talking of fat-free foods, there are utterly nonsensical products. For instance, let’s take “Fat-free Mayonnaise”. A conventional way of preparing it takes one egg yolk with a cup of oil some citric acid and mustard. That makes it 98% fatty. So, what makes it fat-free? Substitute for oil are usually sugars, gums and starches. These elements are far more unhealthy than real fat.
The same is the case with “fat-free sour cream” and other such foods.
- Artificial sweeteners – Nothing natural about it
Don’t fall for them. They are merely chemicals that are not easy to become a part of the body’s metabolism. Our body understands every molecule of sugar. But the same can’t be said of artificial sweeteners.
We can get our sugar content from other products such as honey, jaggery and stevia.
These are natural, safe and will not damage the system.
- Soya – Highly overrated health food
If you believe what media tells you about soy being highly nutritious, think again. Soya is projected as the “wonder Food” with homogeneous health benefits. Unfermented soy is the type found in soy milk, tofu, soy meat, and soy protein supplements.
Why is unfermented soy bad for health? To keep it concise, here are a few reasons…
- It contains a natural toxin called anti-nutrient
- It is also rich in phytates that block the absorption of minerals.
- It helps in releasing more estrogen and lowers testosterone level. That’s why it is said, “real men don’t eat tofu”.
Japanese and Chinese ate mostly fermented soya that too in a small quantity. Fermentation process reduces the harmful effect of soya.
- Packaged juice – calories in a bottle
According to doctors and a study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, the fruit juices packages in a carton are more calories dense than the natural fruit.
Serving a can just after your gym not only affects your catabolism but also raises the chances of obesity.
While these juices undergo processing, the phytonutrients are lost. The goodness of natural of fruit is replaced by preservatives and high level of fructose.
While the doctor recommends 1-2 fruits a day, However, it takes around 5-6 fruit juice with artificial sweeteners per servings. Can this help you lose weight? Not at all.
- Refined Oils – a slow poison
Heart disease is rampant today, mainly due to the overuse of refined oils in our cooking. Usually, the cooking oils we use these days are processed to such a degree that they cease to be heart-healthy and are virtual poison. It is because, during the refining process, a chemical solvent called hexane is used to extract oil. Further, it is processed deodorized at a very high temperature of more than 300-400 degree Celsius. You probably have heard that every oil has a smoke point and it is usually less than 200- 250 C.
But unfortunately, during the refining process itself, the oil is subjected to a much higher temperature.
The resulting oil is usually tasteless and colourless and is packed with trans fatty acids. Consumption of such camouflaged hazardous compound results in inflammatory diseases like arthritis and cancer.
There is a much healthier option to extract oil: by using cold-pressed technology. In this process, seeds are not tortured at high degrees and oil is extracted at a much lower temperature. If you read “cold-pressed” or “kachi Ghani” on the label, go ahead and buy it. It’s the healthiest option.
Your goals of eating right and staying healthy are not those of food manufacturers. Don’t get caught in the advertising gimmicks and be manipulated by food makers rather choose wisely and eat healthily.
Stay tuned and stay healthy with TSA.
Reference: truweigh.in
