5 Foods You Must Avoid
By Kevin DiDonato MS, CSCS, CES
Buying local, fresh foods from Farmers' markets, organic farms, or from your local grocer can go a long way for your budget and your health. However, not everyone can benefit or wants to shop healthy. Here are the top five foods to avoid or minimize in your diet for a longer, healthier life and a leaner waistline, followed by the top five foods that will give you amazing health benefits.
Food #1 Low-fat Foods
Food labeling can be very deceptive when it comes to food geared for weight loss. Low-fat foods are one of the products to be careful about. Just because the food says "low fat," does not mean the food is low calorie. Be sure to check the label and see how many calories are typically in the product. Most people associate low-fat foods with lower calories, so they tend to eat more. Do not be fooled by this deceptive labeling technique.
Food #2 Sugar-Free Foods
Sugar-free foods are geared to people with diabetes or at risk for developing diabetes. Sugar-free foods have low calories and no sugar.
However, look at the label under sugars, and you will see something interesting. Sugar-free foods tend to have sugar alcohols, which is an ingredient designed to give it sweetness. Most of the time, sugar alcohol is made from sugar products, which can lead to increased calories. Sugar alcohols carry between 1.5 and 4 calories per gram. Not only do you get extra calories, but you also can get cramping, bloating, and other gastrointestinal problems if you ingest too much.
Food #3 Commercial Smoothies
Normally, smoothies are associated with healthy eating. They have skim milk, fruit, and yogurt, so they are considered a great, healthy food. Some commercial smoothies, however, have many hidden calories from extra sugar. Some smoothies are also made with ice cream, so you end up ballooning sugar, fat, and calorie content. Most of the time, the fruit in smoothies is blended up into fruit juice, or fruit juice is added. This eliminates the fiber that is found in the skin of most fruits. My advice: Make your smoothies at home, and leave the commercial smoothies on the shelf.
Food #4 Commercial Yogurts
Yogurt, again, has been considered a natural health product containing calcium, probiotics, and other products that have been shown to be beneficial to our health. Look at the label again, and you might see something surprising. When looking at the label, some of the first few ingredients in yogurt are different forms of sugar. All this extra sugar can lead to weight gain and stubborn, hard-to-lose body fat. So again, read the label and see exactly what is in the product before you choose the yogurt of choice.
Food #5 Sugary energy drinks including items with added vitamins and minerals
Energy drinks have been advertised as giving you that extra pick-me-up during the day, and a way to increase the intensity of your workouts. Energy drinks can contain high amounts of caffeine and sugar, which gives you that initial pick-me-up, but you end up crashing hard later. Also, some drinks that have added vitamins and minerals, can have loads of sugar as well. So stop and think before you drink and choose something lower in calories and sugar, maybe something like coffee or tea.
Source: Mike Geary
Certified Nutrition Specialist
Certified Personal Trainer
TruthAboutAbs.com
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