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elleng

(136,883 posts)
Wed Feb 1, 2023, 05:28 AM Feb 2023

10 Nutrition Myths Experts Wish Would Die

We surveyed some of the country’s leading authorities to reveal the truth about fat, dairy, soy and more.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/19/well/eat/nutrition-myths.html?



Myth No. 1: Fresh fruits and vegetables are always healthier than canned, frozen or dried varieties.
Despite the enduring belief that “fresh is best,” research has found that frozen, canned and dried fruits and vegetables can be just as nutritious as their fresh counterparts.

Myth No. 2: All fat is bad.
When studies published in the late 1940s found correlations between high-fat diets and high levels of cholesterol, experts reasoned that if you reduced the amount of total fats in your diet, your risk for heart disease would go down. By the 1980s, doctors, federal health experts, the food industry and the news media were reporting that a low-fat diet could benefit everyone, even though there was no solid evidence that doing so would prevent issues like heart disease or overweight and obesity.

Myth No. 3: ‘Calories in, calories out’ is the most important factor for long-term weight gain.
It’s true that if you consume more calories than you burn, you will probably gain weight. And if you burn more calories than you consume, you will probably lose weight — at least for the short term.

But the research does not suggest that eating more will cause sustained weight gain that results in becoming overweight or obese.

Myth No. 4: People with Type 2 diabetes shouldn’t eat fruit.
This myth stems from conflating fruit juices — which can raise blood sugar levels because of their high sugar and low fiber content — with whole fruits.

But research has found that this isn’t the case. Some studies show, for instance, that those who consume one serving of whole fruit per day — particularly blueberries, grapes and apples — have a lower risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. And other research suggests that if you already have Type 2 diabetes, eating whole fruits can help control your blood sugar.

Myth No. 5: Plant milk is healthier than dairy milk.
There’s a perception that plant-based milks, such as those made from oats, almonds, rice and hemp, are more nutritious than cow’s milk. “It’s just not true,”

Myth No. 6: White potatoes are bad for you.
Potatoes have often been vilified in the nutrition community because of their high glycemic index — which means they contain rapidly digestible carbohydrates that can spike your blood sugar. However, potatoes can actually be beneficial for health,

Myth No. 7: You should never feed peanut products to your children within their first few years of life.
For years, experts told new parents that the best way to prevent their children from developing food allergies was to avoid feeding them common allergenic foods, like peanuts or eggs, during their first few years of life. But now, allergy experts say, it’s better to introduce peanut products to your child early on.

Myth No. 8: The protein in plants is incomplete.
“‘Where do you get your protein?’ is the No. 1 question vegetarians get asked,” said Christopher Gardner, a nutrition scientist and professor of medicine at Stanford University. “The myth is that plants are completely missing some amino acids,” also known as the building blocks of proteins, he said. But in reality, all plant-based foods contain all 20 amino acids, including all nine essential amino acids,

Myth No. 9: Eating soy-based foods can increase the risk of breast cancer.
High doses of plant estrogens in soy called isoflavones have been found to stimulate breast tumor cell growth in animal studies. “However, this relationship has not been substantiated in human studies,”

Myth No. 10: Fundamental nutrition advice keeps changing — a lot.
This is not the case, said Dr. Marion Nestle, a professor emerita of nutrition,

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10 Nutrition Myths Experts Wish Would Die (Original Post) elleng Feb 2023 OP
I clicked on the link and hit a paywall. thucythucy Feb 2023 #1
Sorry, don't know how such works. elleng Feb 2023 #2
Here's how to bypass paywalls wackadoo wabbit Feb 2023 #10
Also me if..fish..had..wings Feb 2023 #3
See my post above ... n/t wackadoo wabbit Feb 2023 #11
I wish the myth of the ultra low fat diet as "healthy" would finally die. hlthe2b Feb 2023 #4
I mostly use olive oil as my suppy of fat. Ferrets are Cool Feb 2023 #7
Yup... That's the way. Nuts are healthy too, if caloric. hlthe2b Feb 2023 #8
Yeah, I always forget to add those as a source of oil. Ferrets are Cool Feb 2023 #9
Dietary recommendations have been so convoluted bucolic_frolic Feb 2023 #5
I especially like #5. Ferrets are Cool Feb 2023 #6
Everything in moderation. Elessar Zappa Feb 2023 #12
I find Myth #1 really galling Warpy Feb 2023 #13
Agribusiness RobinA Feb 2023 #16
The problem is picking them greener and greener Warpy Feb 2023 #17
Number 9 is just flat out wrong. Phoenix61 Feb 2023 #14
K & R Duppers Feb 2023 #15

wackadoo wabbit

(1,218 posts)
10. Here's how to bypass paywalls
Wed Feb 1, 2023, 09:22 AM
Feb 2023

First, use Firefox as your browser. (Tbh, you should be doing this anyway, as it's the safest browser.)

Second, install the NoScript add-on.

Third, when you go to the page with the paywall, just don't allow the script for that page to run. Et voila, there's no paywall and you can read away.

Personally, I haven't encountered a paywall in so long that I'm not even sure what one would look like.

hlthe2b

(106,837 posts)
4. I wish the myth of the ultra low fat diet as "healthy" would finally die.
Wed Feb 1, 2023, 05:44 AM
Feb 2023

It is so long-lived that real harm is being done. I don't refer to the need to limit saturated fats--but the misunderstanding that all fats are bad. Given the role of so-called healthy fats in maintaining/protecting healthy brain function, starving the brain and nervous system of that vital component when all forms of dementia risk have already been increasing is a frightening future for a lot of people. Add on the use of statins (which ARE necessary and can be life-saving for a lot of people, don't get me wrong) but we can be saving the heart at the expense of the brain.

bucolic_frolic

(47,643 posts)
5. Dietary recommendations have been so convoluted
Wed Feb 1, 2023, 06:46 AM
Feb 2023

Were trans fats largely a result of WWII? In an era of rationing it did provide fat content and became an industry. Then major nutritionists blamed heart disease on ... fats. Dairy, butter, animal fat. Finally they noticed trans fats. Then cancer, a product of carcinogens and fat. Now we're realizing it's the American diet laden with sugar. Sugar uptakes the fat and enables atherosclerosis. It burdens the liver, gall bladder, pancreas. Keto diets seem to prove fat is fine if sugar and carbs are avoided.

A nationally known alt nutritionist told my dad to get your nutrients from food, simple food, unrefined food. We Americans eat far too much. Ditch the sugar and sugar substitutes. Avoid the fat substitutes. Avoid protein substitutes, they seem mostly processed oils and altered carbs to me.

Elessar Zappa

(16,102 posts)
12. Everything in moderation.
Wed Feb 1, 2023, 10:30 AM
Feb 2023

The reason I’m fat is that I just plain eat too much greasy and sugary foods.

Warpy

(113,131 posts)
13. I find Myth #1 really galling
Wed Feb 1, 2023, 02:52 PM
Feb 2023

since most of the "fresh fruits" sold in supermarkets were picked so green that there is no flavor to them. The only way to taste peaches is canned and the only way to taste strawberries is frozen. Agribusiness has killed off any fresh fruits that don't grow in your specific area and oh lordy, the prices they charge for them.

The other myths are due to food fads and junk science and are just silly.

Warpy

(113,131 posts)
17. The problem is picking them greener and greener
Thu Feb 16, 2023, 12:02 PM
Feb 2023

They've gone way beyond the point of no return, no matter how much ethylene gas they spray at them. Fruits need to be picked slightly green, but not golf ball green.

The stuff in the produce section of the supermarket is just not worth it. It looks like fruit and tastes like cardboard. Fruit out of area or out of season is much better canned or frozen.

Phoenix61

(17,726 posts)
14. Number 9 is just flat out wrong.
Wed Feb 1, 2023, 03:00 PM
Feb 2023

Phytoestrogens, a component of soy products, have estrogen-like properties, and in large amounts they can lead to gynecomastia (4). We describe a case of gynecomastia related to consumption of large amounts of soy products.

https://www.endocrinepractice.org/article/S1530-891X(20)43303-8/pdf

It’s why most protein drinks are whey based now instead of soy based like they were originally.

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