Nutrition – Do You Need to Believe Everything?
This is the time for being health conscious. People keep on talking about health, weight loss, calories and nutrition. Nutritional facts keep on being exchanged and amongst all that contradictory statements one can easily get confused about what is true and what is not. Here are some common misconceptions we get to hear again and again, and we start believing them at last. But before believing them, think for a while and know the truth, rather than plainly accepting them.
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Nutrients are Killed in Microwave – False
Microwave is actually an appliance which keeps all the nutrients in foods intact. In fact, other ways of heating food like boiling steam away vital vitamins and minerals. But as microwave doesn’t make use of a lot of water, food remains nutrient-packed in it.
A Lot of Grains are Good for Health – False
Yes, grains are good for health – but only if they are unprocessed. Grains contain a lot of fibers and vitamins, but only because a food contains multiple grains, it is not necessary that the grains are not processed and stripped of their many nutrients. Nicolette Pace, who is the spokesperson for the New York State Diabetic Association says that processing grains for convenience makes them lose the nutrients and change the way they are absorbed.
Ideally you should look for “whole” grains listed in the ingredients when you buy the “grainy” foods. Another thing to look for is the fiber content if it is really sufficient.
Fat-free Salad Dressings are Good for Health – False
Fats are not totally disposable! They have some job in our body and that’s why Nature has created them. Fruits and vegetables have some nutrients that are fat-soluble and work best that way (dissolved in fats), e.g. lycopene in tomatoes. If you choose a fat-free dressing for your salad, you may lose the benefits of such nutrients.
White Veggies are not Good – False
Colorful fruits and vegetables like carrots, beet and strawberries have now become popular as dieticians recommend them with full support. However, it doesn’t mean that their colorless or white counterparts are totally useless. Actually, potato, cauliflower, mushrooms, garlic and onions are full of fibers, potassium and antioxidants. And white potato which has been declared a no-no for dieters, actually is useful for weight loss because having just a little of it makes you full and eat less.
Coffee Makes you Thirstier – False
It is true that caffeine in coffee has diuretic properties, but coffee contains so much of water that it is actually a thirst quencher. While water is the best hydrating drink, you need not sacrifice coffee believing the myth that it dehydrates you.
