Nutrition Myth Busters

There are a lot of options and opinions out there of what we should and shouldn't be eating.  However, food and nutrition research published by IDEA is shedding light on 4 grey areas.  

Here is a summary:

1) Raw Food is not always better than Cooked Food

Sometimes, it takes a little cooking to unlock the nutrients in a food.  Raw spinach, for example, is great - but if they are slightly cooked, phytonutrients are activated which make some of the health benefits more bioavailable.

2) A little processing is sometimes OK

Don't get me wrong; adding excessive sugars, fats and sodium is a problem.  Sometimes we need a little convenience in our lives to make a healthy diet more realistic. We need to be careful with processed foods, but if we learn how to read nutrition labels properly, we can make good choices and not have to spend the whole day preparing our meals.

3) Natural means NOTHING

It is a marketing term.  Natural foods don't have labels.  And anything in a package labelled "natural" may not be the most healthy choice.  Read the labels carefully :)


4) Reducing Sugar is great - Eliminating?  Not so much

Most of us really need to REDUCE our sugar intake - but let's not eliminate it altogether.  There are as many as 257 names for sugar.  They are not all created equal and some are meant to be in our foods.  So take it all in context :)


There is a lot of information out there but as a rule, balance is key.  If you like red meat - enjoy! - but just watch your portions and how often you eat it.  Taking a little time to research is an essential part of a total fitness plan!