Conventional wisdom

There is a lot of conventional wisdom pertaining to what is healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle. Unfortunately, a lot of the time this conventional wisdom just isn't accurate or is based on repeated myths that have come to be accepted as truth over time.

What do you find to be some of the most flawed conventional wisdom which is widely touted, including by supposed health "experts" with regard to health?

A few of my choices for most flawed would be:

* A calorie is a calorie

* Obesity is caused simply by eating too much and not exercising enough

* High cholesterol is a leading cause in heart disease

* Eating egg whites is healthier than eating the yolk

* Eggs will raise your cholesterol and cause heart disease

* Margarine is healthier than butter (butter is bad because it's high in fat)

* Eating too much saturated fat will make you fat and lead to heart disease

* You should eat six small meals a day

* Taking a flu shot is the best way to prevent the seasonal flu

* Oatmeal, milk, toast and orange juice are part of a balanced breakfast

* The body needs carbohydrates for energy

* Whole grains are an essential, required part of the diet

 

Most of what the government says about good diet.
Here in Canada if you get cancer the first thin they do is promote the worst foods, even gravy, too keep the meat on you while in treatment.
They still think bread should be a staple in the diet, and why aren't they outlawing GMO stuff if they are so concerned about our health?

 

Yes, that is an easy way to sum it up. The first thing that comes to mind when I read this is the government's recommendations relating to the food pyramid, where people are told to eat 8-11 servings of bread, pasta and rice each day. In turn they have used this to market cheaply made foods high in sugar and refined carbs, which have no doubt cased the obesity epidemic and the overall health crisis facing this country (and now most of this world).

 

Oatmeal makes me horny.

 

Gary Taubes challenging the calories in/calories out dogma.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJnszUbkTNE"]10,000 Calories a day? - Gary Taubes on eating unlimited calories - YouTube

 

Sports are good for you.

 

Being a vegetarian is healthier (morality issues aside). If so, we would not have canines and incisors.

 

Yea some of the most ridiculous health scares are saturated fat and cholesterol causing heart disease and strokes and obesity. So back in the 80's and 90s everyone was going crazy on meat, dairy, eggs, and butter , removing yolks from eggs and such, and even lead to the spread of fad diets like the vegan diet for example as the way to live forever.
I think the medical community is starting to lighten up on all the propaganda about having an occasional steak, or putting a little butter on your toast once in awhile.
Ive read some sites though that are the opposite extreme and promote these carnivorous diets... they tell you things like that the eskimos get all their vital nutrients, even vitamin C and stuff just by making sure they eat every part of the animal they kill, I guess even the inside of the stomach of some critters, they get the partially digested plants in there for vit C so in a way its not TOTALLY carnivorous. Im not bashing this diet at all, if you really want to live that way, knock yourself out but I sure as fuck am not going to eat animal chyme unless I absolutely have to.

 

So, I'm curious, what's not good about a big glass of fresh orange juice for breakfast (except that there's fruity sugars in it maybe)?

 

It's loaded with sugar. When you eat fruit whole you aren't usually eating 6 or 7 oranges, or however many it takes to make a glass of juice. There is as much sugar in a glass of orange juice as there is in a can of soda. It might be "natural," but fructose is fructose, and is processed by the liver just the same. In a person who's metabolically inclined to be obese, it will no doubt make them or keep them fat.

Not to mention most store-bought orange juice barely resembles juice at all. It is made from the concentrate of oranges shipped to a factory in bulk, where they are turned to pulp which the air (and flavor) is sucked out of and put into huge storage vats so it keeps. When the juice is being made, flavor packets have to be added to the mixture just to give it flavor. It's hardly fresh-squeezed juice and basically just another processed foodstuff item that is contributing to making people sick.

 

Thanks for explaining dude! Always appreciate a well founded opinion. Anyway, it's of course not fresh or natural anymore but I noticed there's also light orange juice (or diet as you guys call it over there) where the sugars are removed from it. Sometimes they add vit C to it as well :biggrin: Not sure i'd recommend that stuff, but since I have a relatively lucky metabolism I guess I just keep on juicing oranges (or chew away some mandarins) in the morning for now.

 

Of course you can always use a juicer. Which I have but unfor haven't been getting out enough lately- okay, not at all lately. I don't eat a lot of fruit BECAUSE of the sugar but of course with juicers you can juice anything... greens, add supplements, etc. But yea, if you are craving a glass of OJ it's better to juice it than buy store bought. Tastes much better too!

 

To be honest, I think that a glass of orange juice is many many times healthier than a can of soda. Many people who point out that drinking a glass of juice is no different from drinking a can of soda are making a good point, when it comes to how it effects you metabolically and weight wise. But they forget that orange juice has way more nutrition in it than soda, such as potassium, vitamins and minerals and antioxidants. Sodas are made only for flavor.
In the long run, a glass of orange juice a day is going to be much better for you than a can of soda per day. But the effects on your waistline for the most part are virtually equal, and if your drinking grape juice, chances are your probably going to gain even more weight than you would from a can of soda even though overall grape juice is going to be much healthier nutrition and antioxidant wise.
It's all about moderation. I wouldn't recommend consuming too much fruit juice, but don't ever feel guilty about have an occasional glass, maybe even one per day(and make sure the glass isn't too big). A calorie will never hurt you unless your already at your caloric limit for that day. Just use common sense. If you need X calories to maintain your ideal weight, it won't matter what you put in your body past that point, it will just turn to fat on your waist. If your just getting up in the morning, and your tummy is empty what could possibly be wrong with a glass of juice for your first 200 calories? Lets say that you know for certain your only going to have 1500 calories that day. So long as this is appropriate for your particular requirments, and at least 10% of those calories are from protein you should be fine metabolically. The other 90% could all be just sugar if you wanted and you'd stay slim, though this is probably not advisable.

 

Of COURSE a glass of orange juice is healthier than a soda.

Eh, moderation with juices. If someone doesn't consume a lot of soda, sugar, candy, etc., yea, drinking a glass of juice a day is most likely fine. I just avoid most fruit other than berries for health reasons and not always.. in moderation I'll have anything, not even moderation being the right word but now and then. But that's just me... I spent a long time working on ridding my body of excess sugar. I'm not about to go overboard by fruit. Especially when I like veggies so much.

 

Thanks for your thought out comments, but I have to strongly disagree with you on a couple things.

First, a calorie is simply not just a calorie, and a calorie from sugar is metabolized by the body entirely different from fat or protein. Calories from sugars and refined carbs cause an insulin response that causes the body create and store fat. When one is on a carb restricted diet, you do not have such an insulin spike because FAT is being used as the body's primary energy source and is rapidly oxidized for energy -- NOT being stored. In the absence of carbohydrate, dietary fat is not stored as fat unless consumed in excess amounts, and on a low-carb, high-fat diet, it's hard to consume more than 2,000 calories from fat because fat is satiating and does that cause the blood sugar spikes and dips that cause hunger. This is why it's so easy to consume excess calories eating the Standard (high carb) American Diet. It seems almost designed to keep people hungry and always taking in calories.

Lastly, keep in mind that most brand name, store-bought orange juice is heavily processed, and most of the natural vitamins are stripped from it, therefore most of these juices are fortified, often with synthetic, low quality vitamins, so the excess amounts of sugar in orange juice far outweigh any health benefits that might come from whatever alleged vitamins it may contain. It's more of a marketing gimmick than anything.

 

Well, yes carbs are definitely metabolized differently from protein or fat. And, they tend not to be metabolically favorable. The food pyramid is a bit out of date. This new guideline you promote where fat is satiating and doesn't spike your blood sugar is much simpler and more effective than the food pyramid for weight loss.
But, we need to remember that its just a guideline. Carbs aren't all bad. Ive saved lives of diabetic people by stirring a bunch of sugar into a glass of grape juice and having them drink it. And there are individuals who live off of refined carbs and processed foods that are horrible for your blood sugar and metabolism and their skinny and underweight. It doesn't matter how horrible those carbs are for your metabolism and your blood sugar or your "satiaty" when all your doing is drinking a few sips of soda in the morning and having a half of a hostess cupcake, and then pretty much eating this way 4 or 5 times per day with a grand total of about 900 calories... People who do this become underweight, saggy, sickly, weak, and anemic and malnourished, some even prediabetic or diabetic(ive heard a slang name for this condition, they call it "skinny-fat"). While you could have a hefty fellow who eats a few servings of nuts, red meat, some leafy greens and potatoes a few times a day whose a tad bit overweight, but in overall good health and lots of energy. Then theres those really skinny people who are toned up very low body fat who eat a few servings of nuts, red meat, leafy greens and potatoes a few times a day too, and have good health and lots of energy.
Guidelines are nice, but you don't have to follow them 100% or follow them for every single meal. Have a hostess cupcake now and again if you want. Or a glass of processed orange juice. You'll be fine.
Even with the perfect diet loaded with all the nutrient dense foods in the perfect proportions with an occasional glass of deep red wine, green tea, and dark chocolate isn't going to give you any more longevity than someone who adheres to the perfect diet but will throw in an occasional doughnut or candy bar. You will die someday regardless.

 

Different people have different metabolisms and can therefore tolerate varying amounts of carbohydrate in their diets. Some people can go their entire lives eating sugar and refined carbs while never becoming overweight. Some people have metabolic issues from the time they are small. Others develop metabolic problems as they get older. Every person is different, but it seems at least half the population suffers from some degree of metabolic derangement and are carbohydrate intolerant, where even relatively small amounts lead to weight gain. Will an occasional candy bar or doughnut hurt someone? Probably not, but it can pose a problem for people with weight issues who are looking to lose weight.

 

I may be one of those who can eat lots of carbs without gaining weight. I dont really ever eat doughnuts or candy bars, I just don't like them. But im a big fan of watermelon in the summertime. Also potatoes, I like to eat a lot of them. Bananas as well. And I eat lots of air popped popcorn. Theres probably nothing better than air popped popcorn for weight loss since its about 20 calories per cup, takes a long time to chew up and is loaded with fiber(I think it swells in the tummy too). Its pretty much nothing but carbs though.
Things like potatoes, watermelon, carrots(especially cooked ones) are highly criticised because of the blood sugar spike they cause. They can be especially problematic for diabetic people from what ive read. Though it depends on the situation.
I tend to follow the high-fat and protein diet, but I do go many days each month eating mostly carbs from popcorn, potatoes, and leafy greens or fruits. I stay very very lean and all... And sometimes I feel its these foods that are high glycemic index that contribute to me being lean. Not that I should switch to doughnuts, theres just something different about apples, watermelon, and potatoes. There differnt than a fluffly doughnut or a snicker bar some how... Though its a gut feeling. Good thing im not diabetic....yet... Though if I do ill be fine ive been trained to manage diabetes. =P

 

me too

Like others in the thread have said, everything in moderation is good advice to follow.. I think people eat way more than their bodies actually need. I often have just a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast and I'm good to go. People need to listen to their bodies more and figure out what's healthy for them and know which foods make their bodies feel good. I really can't comprehend the people thinking that their 3 pancake breakfast, with sausage, eggs, hash browns and side of toast is gonna make them feel good.. that's way too much food, enough to feed a family. I don't think it's necessarily the fault of the ingredients in foods (though fda should regulate better ingredients), people are their own cause of the obesity epidemic because they just eat way too much.

 

Popcorn does not have a whole lot of fiber. A 1 oz. serving contains 21 grams of carbs, of which only 3.6 grams come from fiber. So the rest is going to contribute to a blood sugar spike and ensuing insulin response which probably isn't going to bode well for most people looking to lose weight. Of course if a person is otherwise limiting their carbs it won't be a huge issue, but there are much better snack foods than popcorn for people looking to lose weight. Nuts, dark chocolate, cheese and berries are what I would personally recommend from my perspective of what causes weight gain/loss.

People focus too much on calories when it comes to weight loss. While calories do play some role in weight gain, the emphasis on calories is an oversimplified one because it really depends on what you're eating, since the body processes different macronutrients much differently than others.

People see popcorn as a good weight loss food because it's relatively low calorie, but those calories come from the worst possible source for a person looking to lose weight. The same can be said for rice cakes, which are absolutely terrible for weight loss because they register so high on the glycemic index and are going to cause a person to store fat.

Really, it's a lot more complex than how much people eat. I sometimes eat close to 3,000 calories but don't gain weight because what I am eating is not being stored as fat and instead being rapidly burned for energy. If you have issues with carbohydrate intolerance, as many overweight and formerly overweight people do, eating sugar and refined carbs causes fat to be stored in your cells. Also, if you are following a low carb diet and eating plenty of fat, overeating is next to impossible. Really it's carbs that are responsible for people eating so much, because they ensure that a person is always hungry. Basically the food industry churns out food that is designed to ensure that people are always hungry and taking in low quality calories from heavily processed, refined foods.

It's really sugar and refined carbs that are responsible for the obesity epidemic. It's not so much the amount people are eating. But as I said, if people were eating the right foods from whole, unprocessed sources, overeating would not be nearly the issue that it is in modern society.