Sometimes you think you are eating healthy, when the reality is quite the opposite
It is important to eat healthy when it comes to losing weight. Unfortunately, some food items that are considered “healthy” by food bloggers and online dieticians are more harmful than they lead on.
Many online influencers often share “healthy” meal plans that contain food items which promise to help you lose weight. Some of these food items that pop-up in every single blog are in truth stopping you from reaching your weight goal.
Brown bread
Brown bread is often suggested as a substitute for plain white bread in many diet plans. Fitness blogs in particular appear to be obsessed with it.
A darker loaf of bread does not necessarily mean it is made with healthy ingredients; it could simply contain caramel colouring or such a small amount of whole wheat that its nutritional benefits are no different when compared to white bread.
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The real health benefits come from eating wholemeal bread instead of white. Check the label for ingredients such as whole wheat, oats, whole rye, whole grain corn, barley, quinoa, buckwheat or brown rice. Seeded bread is even better, since it contains vitamins, minerals and healthy fats.
Diet drinks
Diet drinks that claim to be low in calories do not necessarily make you gain weight directly, but they can have an indirect effect in making you pack on the pounds.
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Scientists have found that switching to diet drinks can make you hungrier and may cause you to consume more food, leading to obesity. Aspartame, an ingredient used in diet drinks instead of sugar, can cause headaches and even cancer in some cases.
Processed foods
Processed food may seem like an easy way out on busy days, in reality they are making you fat with the preservatives. A research by Nature shows that preservatives interfere with our hormones and disturbs the signals that tell us we are full.
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All the canned nuts, meats, and vegetables have preservatives that keep the food non-toxic. However, the very same preservatives slow down your metabolism and promote weight gain.
Fitness breakfast cereals
A bowl of milk with your favourite cereal is a healthy way to start the day to an extent. Sadly, all the nuts, raisins, dried fruits that contain little to no water only increase your calorie consumption as they are high in saturated-fat.
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A cup of Nestle Cornflakes or Fitnesse cereal contains over 100 calories. Add a cup of full-fat milk to it, which has 150 calories, and you will find yourself consuming more calories than you assumed.
Canned nuts
Canned nuts are common on-the-go snacks. It provides you 20-30% of your daily fat requirement. However, a cup of mixed nuts contains over 850 calories. Not to mention, a serving of mixed, roasted nuts contains 172 calories and about 21 grams of fat.
Rather than going for a diet that promises you a thinner waist by the end of the week, make positive lifestyle changes and develop a healthy relationship with food—one that does not include over-eating or starving yourself.
A healthier diet could involve fresh fruits or vegetables and cooking yourself some delicious stew. Switch to skimmed milk from full-fat milk and see the difference in your calorie intake.
That all being said, a healthy lifestyle can start just as easily with a glass of water. Nothing beats a proper detox when you are turning your life around.
