Last night I was reflecting with my wife on all of the nutrition and dieting "facts" that I have had to unlearn in the last two years while I have dived head first into this area. Basically everything but "green vegetables are good for you." Let's see what I can come up with:
- Losing weight is as simple as "calories in - calories out".
- Exercise is a necessary key component of weight loss.
- Red meat is bad for you.
- Saturated fat is bad for you.
- Eating fat worsens all of the cholesterol measurements.
- High cholesterol is a necessary precursor, and perfect indicator, for a future heart attack.
- Low cholesterol is a nearly fool-proof protection against a future heart attack.
- Canola oil is good for you.
- Lard and butter are bad for you.
- Margarine is a great substitute for butter.
- Lots of fruit is good for you.
- Fruit juice is good for you.
- You need to worry about getting enough Vitamin C through fruits.
- The RDA for Vitamin D is enough for those of us living in Michigan.
- Fat is something that needs to be limited.
- Protein is something that needs to be limited.
- You need a majority of your calories to be carbohydrates.
- Whole wheat grains (in bread and pasta) are good for you.
- We need lots of fiber in our diet.
- Drink lots of water on a regular schedule, even if you're not thirsty.
This is a truly amazing list. (I'm sure there are more but this is what I could come up with off the top of my head.) No wonder I get bitter when I reflect back on all of this. I was a "smart, health-conscious consumer" who paid close attention to nutrition and diet news and look what I learned: I learned how to kill myself with my daily food choices.
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