Is fresh better than frozen produce?

Nutrition can be a hotly contested topic, but health experts agree that eating well is actually simple.
No matter which way you slice and dice the information, the conclusion is you should mostly eat a whole, minimally processed diet rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, legumes, nuts, seeds, and water.

 

1. Low Carb Means Grain Free!

Carbohydrates include highly processed foods, like crackers, chips, bread, and breakfast cereal.
But the category also includes berries, spinach, beans, lentils, and plant based foods that contain fiber and a variety of health promoting nutrients.

 

2. Carbs Are Bad and Should Be Avoided!
Consuming high fiber, unrefined carbohydrates whole grains, legumes, fruit, and vegetables is linked to a reduced risk of chronic disease.

 

3. Breakfast Is the Most Important Meal of the Day!
There's nothing special about breakfast.
The first food you eat during the day is technically breakfast, but it doesn't need to be consumed early or include certain types of foods.
If you're not hungry in the morning, you can skip this meal and move right into lunch.

 

4. Snacking Is Bad for You!
Snacking takes the edge off your hunger and can work for or against you depending on what you're eating.
Katz recommends apples, walnuts, bananas, carrots, hummus, and bean dip as nutritious snacks.
Skip highly processed vending machine food that will spike and then crash your blood sugar.

 

5. Always Eat Fresh Produce!
Sometimes, frozen produce may be healthier than fresh.
Frozen produce is often flash frozen at the peak of ripeness, while some fresh produce is picked before it's ripe.

The nutrition in fresh produce may degrade as it's shipped to stores.

 

6. Always Eat Local Food!
Eating locally produced food is a worthy aim.
However, the most important goal is to eat more fruits and vegetables even if they were grown far away.

 

7. Organic Produce Is Better Than Conventional!
If you can afford organic, eat organic, since organic produce contains fewer potentially harmful chemical residues.
But if it's out of your budget, buy conventional and rinse it off before eating to reduce the amount of pesticide residue.
The most important thing is eating more fruits and vegetables.

 

8. You Need to Detox or Reset!
The beauty of having organs, such as lungs, skin, kidneys, and a liver, is that your body relies on them to detox your body naturally.
You don't need to buy an expensive detox program to improve your health.

 

9. You Should Avoid Gluten!
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley, according to the Celiac Disease Foundation.
About 90 percent of people are gluten tolerant and consume these foods just fine.
What's more, research published in May 2015 in the journal Digestion shows that among people who believed they were sensitive to gluten, 86 percent could eat it just fine.

Unless you have celiac disease or a gluten sensitivity, you can continue to cook foods with gluten, such as whole grains.

 

10. Low Fat Versions of Foods Are Better for You!
Skip fat and you're skipping out on the most satiating nutrient.
Plus, low fat foods often backfire: these alternatives are often higher in sodium and sugar to make up for the lack of mouthfeel from removing the fat, so they're not necessarily healthier.

 

11. Green Juice Is Good for You!
Turning produce into juice strips away the fiber, making juice a more concentrated source of sugar.

The end result is a higher glycemic load, which means your blood sugar will surge after drinking the juice, according to How to Eat.

Better to consume whole fruits and vegetables.

 

12. Sweet Potatoes Are Healthier Than White Potatoes!
The humble white potato gets the short stick but shouldn't.
People demonize potatoes over sweet potatoes, but the nutrient composition is quite similar.
Sweet potatoes have more vitamin A and an additional gram of fiber, but white potatoes have more potassium essential for helping regulate blood sugar.

 

13. Beans Are Toxic!

This hinges on the idea that beans contain lectins, which are supposedly poisonous it's how the fad diet called the lectin free diet came about.
Lectins are most abundant in raw, dried beans canned beans tend to be low in lectins.
But because you cook beans before you eat them, that process reduces some of the lectin content.  
Also, beans are one of the healthiest foods you can eat.

Beans are a mainstay of all five Blue Zone diets.
Every study that has looked at beans has found that a higher intake is connected to better health outcomes, in areas like weight, heart disease, and dementia.

 

14. A Glass of Red Wine Is Needed for a Healthy Heart!

Most people wouldn't actually derive a benefit from a nightly glass of vino.
If you enjoy wine, can stick to moderate drinking recommendations, maintain a healthy lifestyle, and have a family history of cardiovascular disease, you may benefit.
Otherwise, there's no reason to start drinking in the hope of protecting your heart.

 

15. Eggs Will Kill You!

It's not as dramatic as it sounds.

Eggs have been unnecessarily demonized because they contain dietary cholesterol.

However, more recent research shows that saturated and trans fats in your diet stimulate the liver to make cholesterol.
And so, the bigger concern when it comes to unhealthy levels of cholesterol in your body is saturated fat rich foods, not necessarily foods higher in cholesterol.
And eggs are a food that’s lower in sat fat.
The American Heart Association recommends sticking with about one egg per day.

 

16. Nuts Will Make You Gain Weight!

They may be rich in fat and calories, but they also contain a good amount of protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals.
Research published in July 2017 in the European Journal of Nutrition concluded that nut eaters have less of a risk of gaining weight and becoming overweight or obese compared with those who avoid the food.
Of course, overeating anything, including nuts, can lead to weight gain.
Stick to a handful of nuts a day, or about 1 ounce.

Opt for something like plain almonds over honey roasted almonds.

 

17. There Is One Perfect Diet Plan for Everyone!
Every diet wants it's followers to believe it is the tops, but there is no such thing as a perfect diet.
The best diet is the one that promotes variety in nutrients, adds enjoyment, and can easily be sustained without a sense of deprivation.

 

18. Calories In, Calories Out Is All That Matters!
Folks looking to lose weight have heard this rallying cry, but diet quality matters when it comes to your health and ability to lose weight.
A study published in February 2018 in JAMA shows that as long as you’re eating a high quality diet, you can lose weight temporarily on a low fat or low carb diet.

 

19. Meat Is Needed to Have a Balanced Diet!
In the world's healthiest eating patterns such as the Mediterranean and DASH diets, meat is consumed in small amounts or not at all, according to How to Eat.
Bottom line: Meat is an optional part of your diet; though for the health of the planet, you should probably eat less of it.

 

20. Fatty Foods Will Make You Fat!
Diets that are higher in fat tend to be just as effective at encouraging weight loss as diets that are low in fat.