Food Myths Part 3 - The Final Chapter

1.) Eating small meals are better than three meals a day- According to a 2011 U.S. study, overweight volunteers felt more statisfied and less hungry when they ate three times a day rather than eating six. Another study found that those who ate between meals were 69% more likely to gain weight after five years. The trouble is the more chances you have to eat the more chances you have to over-indulge. Grazing only works if you choose nutritious foods and watch portion sizes. 2.) Exercising makes you eat more- It's natural to get hungry after a work out due to your energy stores being used up. Weight loss or gain depends solely on the amount of energy used versus total calories taken in. You'll only put on body fat if you eat too many calories than your body needs. If you stick to eating three main meals a day with two healthy snacks you can spread the total intake of calories over the whole day. This way you can have a snack after a work out to restore your carbohydrate levels but not adding any additional calories to your daily intake. 3.) Food cravings is your body's way of asking for certain nutritients- There's no known evidence of this. A study carried out found that people tend to crave the foods that they attempt to resist the most, whether that is chocolate or biscuits etc. A healthy balanced diet with a little of what you fancy will help reduce the risk of a pigout!!!!

Food Myths Part 2

Low fat and fat free foods are always a healthy choice:- Although when consuming milk it's best to go for the low fat choice beware of other foods with these labels. Always check the food label on these items, because just because it says its fat free or low fat it may be loaded with sugar or refined starch which could lead to weight gain. Also check if the amount of fat, carbs and calories is for the whole of the item or just a part of it, e.g. a tin may say 250 calories per 100g but the tin could be 400g. So you could be thinking that you're consuming 250 calories but it would be 1000! Raw food diets are better for you:- While cooking can destroy some nutrients such as vitamin C and some B vitamins in fruit and vegetables there is no evidence to suggest that a raw-food diet is better for you. Some studies have shown that some nutrients are more easily aborbed by the body after cooking, such as lycopene and beta-carotene. By all means enjoy some raw food in your diet but you don't have to make it the rule. Breakfast bars are always a healthy option:- Although there are some cereal bars on the market which are healthier as they contain oats, fruit, and whole grains which can keep you fuller for longer, releasing energy slowly, however a word of caution, not all of these bars are a healthy choice as they can be loaded with fats and sugars. A Tracker bar for instance contains hydrogenerated fat, which is worse than saturated fat! so always check the food label to be sure.