There's a lot of debate about nutrition and often people can't agree on anything but there are some exceptions. Here are the top 10 nutrition facts almost everyone agrees on.
1 - Added sugar
- To improve taste of processed foods, producers often add sugar. This type of sugar is called added sugar. Common added sugars include sucrose. Everyone knows eating too much added sugar isn't healthy.
- Some think sugar is just empty calories, but others say it raises the risk of diseases that kill millions yearly. It's true added sugar has empty calories with no nutrients other than sugar. Eating a diet high in added sugar can cause nutrient deficiencies. But that's just one bad side. There are many other health risks tied to too much sugar now getting a lot of attention.
- Added sugar is a major cause of obesity, heart disease, and diabetes. Often the blame is on fructose in added sugar because the liver processes fructose differently. Eating lots of added sugar links to fatty liver disease, insulin resistance, high triglycerides, belly fat, and high cholesterol over time. Still, the role of fructose in disease is debated and scientists don’t fully get how it works.
- Summary
Added sugar gives empty calories and is thought to be the main cause of diseases that kill millions each year.
2 - Omega 3 fats are a basic element
- Omega 3 fatty acids are really important for the human body’s good performance. For example, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega 3 fat from animals, makes up about 10-0 2% of total brain fat content. Eating low omega 3 is linked to lower IQ, depression, mental disorders, heart disease and many other serious illnesses.
- There are three main types of omega 3 fats: alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). ALA mostly comes from plant oils. The best sources of EPA and DHA are fatty fish, fish oils and some algae oils. Other good EPA and DHA sources are grass-fed meat and omega 3 enriched or free-range eggs.
- The plant form ALA must turn into DHA or EPA to work right in the human body. Still, this conversion process is weak in people. So it’s better to eat lots of foods rich in DHA and EPA.
- Summary
A big part of the population doesn’t get enough omega 3 fats from their diet. Avoiding a lack of these essential fatty acids might help prevent many diseases.
3 - There’s no perfect diet for everyone
- Everyone’s different. Small differences in genetics, body type, activity, and environment affect what diet works best. Some do better low carb, others with high-carb plant diets. The truth is what works for one might not for another. To figure out what you should do, you might need to try some things. Test different approaches until you find one you like and think you can stick to.
- Summary
The best diet for you is the one that fits you and you can stick to long term.
4 - Artificial trans fats are very unhealthy
- Trans fats form as a byproduct when vegetable oils are hydrogenated. Food makers often use hydrogenation to harden these oils for products like margarine. Because trans fats are linked to bad health, trans fat-free margarine has become more popular.
- Eating lots of trans fats is linked to chronic diseases like obesity, inflammation, and heart disease, among others.
- Summary
You should avoid unsaturated fats in chemically processed oils because they're linked to all kinds of chronic diseases.
5 - Eating vegetables will improve your health
- Eating vegetables will improve your health. They are rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants, and a bunch of trace nutrients science is just starting to understand. Studies show eating vegetables links to better health and lower risk of many diseases. We recommend eating a variety of veggies every day. They are healthy, satisfying, and add variety to your diet.
- Summary
Vegetables are packed with all kinds of nutrients. Eating vegetables daily links to better health and lower disease risk.
6 - It's essential to avoid vitamin D deficiency
- Vitamin D is a unique vitamin that actually works as a hormone in the body. The body gets vitamin D when exposed to UV sunlight, but many people worldwide are low on this vital nutrient today. In many places, the sun isn’t available most of the year. Lots of folks stay indoors or use sunscreen outside. Even with sun, sunscreen effectively blocks vitamin D production in the skin.
- If you’re low in vitamin D, you’re missing a key hormone in your body. Deficiency relates to serious diseases like diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis, and more. To check if you’re at risk, visit a doctor and measure your blood levels.
- Unfortunately, it’s hard to get enough vitamin D from diet alone. If sun exposure isn’t an option, taking a vitamin D supplement or a tablespoon of cod liver oil daily is the best way.
- Summary
Vitamin D is a crucial hormone in the body and many people suffer from its deficiency.
7 - Refined carbohydrates
- There are many different opinions about carbs and fats. Some think fats are the root of all evil, while others see carbs as the main factor in obesity and chronic diseases. But everyone agrees that refined carbs aren't as healthy as unrefined ones. Unrefined carbs are basically whole foods rich in carbs like whole grains, beans, veggies, and fruits. Refined carbs, on the other hand, are sugar and refined flour. Whole foods have lots of nutrients and antioxidants.
- On the other hand, when high carb foods like grains are processed, most of the nutritious parts are removed, leaving huge amounts of easy-to-digest starch.
- People who rely on refined carbs in their diet might lack fiber and many other healthy nutrients, making them more vulnerable to chronic diseases. Eating refined carbs also causes a quick spike in blood sugar. High blood sugar isn't healthy for anyone but is especially risky for diabetics. Clearly, whole grains and unrefined carbs are much healthier than their refined and processed versions.
- Summary
Refined carbs like processed grains are unhealthy. They lack nutrients and can cause rapid blood sugar and insulin spikes, which can lead to various problems.
8 - Supplements can't replace real foods
- "Nutrition" is the idea that food is just a sum of nutrients but that's a trap many nutrition fans fall into. Nuts, for example, aren't just food loaded with polyunsaturated fats and fruit is the same, not just water-filled sugar bags. These are real foods with a wide range of trace nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. You can also get those from cheap vitamins but they are only a tiny part of the total nutrients in food. So supplements can't match the variety of nutrients you get from real foods. Still, many supplements can help, especially those with nutrients you generally lack in your diet like vitamin D. But no amount of supplements will make up for a bad diet.
- Summary
It's important to eat more real nutritious food rather than rely on supplements to give you the nutrients you need.
9 - Variety is essential in your diet
- An ineffective diet might give short-term results but once you stop and go back to fast food you'll regain weight. This is the yo-yo diet and is very common. Most people who lose a lot of weight on a diet end up gaining it back when they stop dieting. That's why the only thing that gives long-term real results is adopting a lifestyle change.
- Summary
Following a healthy lifestyle is the only way to ensure long-term weight loss and better health.
10 - Unprocessed food
- Processed foods are generally not as healthy as whole foods. As processing in the diet increased, human health declined because during food processing, beneficial nutrients are lost. Food producers don't just remove healthy nutrients like fiber, they also add other possibly harmful ingredients like added sugar and trans fats. Plus, processed foods are loaded with all kinds of artificial chemicals, some with questionable safety records.
- Basically, processed foods have few good things and lots of bad things. The best thing you can do for optimal health is to eat real food. If it looks like it was made in a factory, don’t eat it.
