FoodFEB 15, 2023

40 Commonly Misunderstood 'Healthy' Foods That Are Actually The Opposite, According To People In This Online Thread

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There are so many food options out there in the world that it's often very easy to get lost in all of them. Food trends, diets, and workout plans are usually debunked or just forgotten about. We have no idea what's healthy, what isn't, how to lose weight, how to gain weight — and often, searching the internet leads to all kinds of different results. So the hype of finally 'eating healthy' gets fizzled out from the confusion and overwhelming information.

That's why when this internet user asked the question ''What food do people mistakenly consider healthy?" many people chimed in to share their opinions, and they might help you out and shine some light on deceptive foods that we think are good for us, but are actually pretty bad.

#1

40 Commonly Misunderstood 'Healthy' Foods That Are Actually The Opposite, According To People In This Online Thread

I spoke to a food scientist for work and he said (un)healthy foods don't exist, just (un)healthy diets.

Yes broccoli is good, but if you eat it for every meal, that's bad. Just as eating McDonald's for every meal is bad, but having McDonald's for dinner in itself is fine.

As long as you:

- Get all the nutrients you need
- Don't eat too much or too little of anything
- Have variety in your diet

You can basicly eat whatever you want.

biancastolemyname, Tyrrell Fitness And Nutrition

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309points

We talked with Dr. Joan Salge Blake, a nutrition professor at Boston University and the host of the nutrition and health podcast, SpotOn! She answered some important questions about healthy food and the misconceptions about it. Firstly, we asked about the topic of this article — what foods are often labeled as healthy, but really aren't: "Fried, batter-dipped veggies." It seems that vegetables are not as healthy if you eat them the wrong way. The doctor also mentioned that the healthiest food is probably vegetable soup.

#2

Fruit juice often has as much sugar as a soda

friendweiser, rawpixel

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211points

#3

Meat substitutes. Just because it’s vegan, doesn’t mean it isn’t processed and full of unhealthy fats, etc

anon, Tony Webster

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202points

We also asked Dr. Joan about the foods we should try and avoid as much as possible: "You shouldn't avoid anything if you WANT it. Just eat it in small portions. Balance the meal. If you want a hearty, heavy chowder for the appetizer, order a leaner main meal and bring half of it home." So it seems that as long as you eat small portions, you can get away with pretty much anything, as long as it has the necessary nutrition.

#4

People have this idea that "the point" of eating vegetarian and vegan food is because it's healthy.
And I'm like, "Dude, french fries are vegan. Oreos are vegan."

Krail, Hanxiao

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197points

#5

My coworker brags about how she quit drinking Soda because its so unhealthy and instead drinks 6 Gatorades a day. I don't have the heart to tell her.

Zanzaclese, SecretName101

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189points

Dr. Joan also shared some tips and tricks for healthy eating: "Order two veggies and sides and bring the leftovers home for the next day. If you don't like to make fish at home, order it at the restaurant and let someone else prepare it for you. Bring home leftovers for the next day's lunch."

#6

I mean a lot of the bread in the US has an unnecessary and unbelievable amount of sugar, even some of the “healthier” whole wheat breads.

pesky-pretzel, Baoothersks

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156points

#7

1200 calorie “Salads” from chili’s and other chains. Just get a burger

Edit: I also enjoy salads and will sometimes order them for reasons other than them being “healthy”. I’m mainly referring to situations where people deprive themselves of what they really want because they feel like the “should” be eating a salad instead. Eat what makes you happy; just be cognizant of the whole picture

trythis75615, theimpulsivebuy

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152points

All in all, every person is different and has certain needs. Just remember to not only focus on eating healthy but also to eat what makes you happy! After all, mental health is as important as your physical health, and who isn't happier after eating their favorite meal?

#8

Low-fat or fat-free products

rosaliasofia, JeepersMedia

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147points

#9

Almost everything. The sugar industry launched a smear campaign against fat in the 80’s and it still affects people’s understanding of healthy eating

Fullgrown_dirtbag, Rod Long

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142points

#10

Breakfast cereal. Grew up with the idea of it being "part of a nutritious breakfast". It's all lies. They might as well be donuts.

Much like donuts, doesn't prevent me from loving the stuff...

CirothUngol, Binyamin Mellish

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141points

#11

VitaminWater. This has to be the biggest food scam out there. One bottle of VitaminWater provides 50-100 precent of the daily adult recommendation for sugar. It also lacks any significant nutrients and vitamins other than traces of Vitamins B and C, which coincidentally are water soluble, and are plentiful in other daily food staples.

BeefPatty45, Cyiomarsina

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137points

#12

Gluten free alternatives and gluten free diet in general. Obviously healthier if you have celiac/gluten intolerance as I do. Might also be healthier if you just cut gluten products out of your existing diet without adding replacements (essentially just becomes a low carb diet). But it’s amazing the number of people who think just switching all the junk in their diet to versions made with rice flour is going to magically make it way healthier

ben121frank, Okitterman

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133points

#13

It’s not “unhealthy” in a universal sense but as someone currently on a diet I am in denial that peanut butter is about as calorically dense as actual butter

plum__hail, Tetiana Bykovets

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131points

#14

“MADE WITH CLEAN INGREDIENTS “

This literally means nothing.

IKillZombies4Cash, Mark Stebnicki

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118points

#15

Nutella - it's chocolate flavored sugar.

Tampadarlyn, Mikael Stenberg

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114points

#16

Not to say that Poptarts are healthy for breakfast, but being curious one day I compared a two pack to a Snickers bar. The Snickers was a far healthier choice.

lurker2487, jill

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111points

#17

Granola bars and a lot of the protein bars.

LadyoftheHounds, The Organic Crave Company

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106points

#18

Yogurt, especially if it's marketed towards kids. Crammed with so much sugar.

DrWonderpants, Beatos Virtuvė

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106points

#19

I read about a case where a guy was told to eat more fish, because of his heart health. But he only put on weight and his cholesterol, blood pressure and whatnot only got worse and worse. So the doctor asked a bit more carefully about his diet and the guy admitted to eating a lot of creamed fish soups, like chowder. So he was adding a little bit of seafood and a huge amount of cream to his diet.

Not a good way to lose weight or lower your cholesterol!

internet_commie, Leszek Leszczynski

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102points

#20

Air fried versions of foods that are normally fried in oil

“This was air fried, meaning no oil, so it’s healthier!”

They’re still dinosaur nuggets, Sandra.

TrinixDMorrison, Klaus-Dieter Keller

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94points

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