I see a lot of low fat/ carb and no fat/ carb versions of food out there but with too many additives to list.
I often feel like they are just more processed and contain ingredients that came straight from the laboratory instead of an animal or the ground.
When are these “healthier” versions actually better for you rather than worse?
Never. Eat real food.
If it has additives, it is no longer food. Controlling carbohydrate and fat intake by focusing on eating whole foods first, then worrying about macronutrient proportions is easier to follow and is more likely to lead to success even if your macro values fluctuate a little.
If a food is marketed as healthy it really isn’t food. It is filler calories with lower micronutrient density than vegetables, fruit, meat, fish, nuts, and even milk. Someone is trying to sell you something you don’t need or would not buy by appealing to your emotion and asking you to ignore how the body really processes and use nutrients.
What about things like dairy products? Yogurt, cottage cheese, sour cream. I eat yogurt and cottage cheese but not much sour cream. Is it better to consume the extra calories and fat in the all natural versions? I just compared sour cream to non fat sour cream and the ingredient list on the non fat was three times as long. It seems like not eating it in general is the best option but what if you had to choose?
Also, I am not vegan but I was wondering about all of these imitation products. Many vegans pride themselves on eating healthy like my friend but I see some of these imitation cheeses and mayonnaises and can’t help but wonder “what the hell is that made of?” How is eating this stuff healthier if at all. Seems dumb to make these sacrifices and settle for fake processed food and claim you are eating healthy. Am I wrong or is this stuff just as bad?
[quote]dalejohnson wrote:
What about things like dairy products? Yogurt, cottage cheese, sour cream. I eat yogurt and cottage cheese but not much sour cream. Is it better to consume the extra calories and fat in the all natural versions? I just compared sour cream to non fat sour cream and the ingredient list on the non fat was three times as long. It seems like not eating it in general is the best option but what if you had to choose?
Also, I am not vegan but I was wondering about all of these imitation products. Many vegans pride themselves on eating healthy like my friend but I see some of these imitation cheeses and mayonnaises and can’t help but wonder “what the hell is that made of?” How is eating this stuff healthier if at all. Seems dumb to make these sacrifices and settle for fake processed food and claim you are eating healthy. Am I wrong or is this stuff just as bad?[/quote]
Your not wrong. It’s just bad.
cueball
Edit: I hate it when people use your instead of you’re, and I fucking did it. Damn.
I don’t care what kind of diet or lifestyle you’re on. The more natural and less processed/added your food is, the more props you deserve. I don’t get a rise out of vegans who eat soy products as their major protein source. I’d rather eat a real ground beef hamburger than a “patty” made out of shitty beans.
Yea it’s one thing to be vegan and eat whole foods (like my g/f) and it’s quite another to eat all the textured vegetable protein…
Whole foods are where it’s at. I stick to whole fat cottage cheese, creams, etc. but even with the fat free you are better off than eating some of the frankenfood that’s out there.
I use nonfat Greek yogurt that has no additives. The nonfat gives me more flexibility to add other types of fat to the meal.
Great avatar! Gonna enjoy watching him rip off big Timmy’s arm like he did HMC.
[quote]Peter Orban wrote:
If a food is marketed as healthy it really isn’t food. It is filler calories with lower micronutrient density than vegetables, fruit, meat, fish, nuts, and even milk. Someone is trying to sell you something you don’t need or would not buy by appealing to your emotion and asking you to ignore how the body really processes and use nutrients.[/quote]
Quote of the week.
-dizzle
[quote]A-Dizz wrote:
Peter Orban wrote:
If a food is marketed as healthy it really isn’t food. It is filler calories with lower micronutrient density than vegetables, fruit, meat, fish, nuts, and even milk. Someone is trying to sell you something you don’t need or would not buy by appealing to your emotion and asking you to ignore how the body really processes and use nutrients.
Quote of the week.
-dizzle[/quote]
Thanks, too bad I misspelled uses with two words to go.
Dale, you seem to have the right idea, most people are idiots who would rather believe the palpably untrue than actually do something about it. You are on the right track with the full fat dairy. Higher CLA as a bonus (even if it is 1/4 the level of grass-fed, this fat is usually amongst the first to be removed as you get lower and lower fat percentages of milk).
Marketing is easy, make an appeal to emotion, make the person feel that if he buys your product he will be doing what he needs to be safe. Targeting specific groups is a little harder usually, but with food, hey that is everyone’s drug, not too hard to push.
Yeah. This supps and nutrition forum along with the articles on this site have taught me a lot about dieting. I think I have a reasonably good diet now. I started reading labels and looking for the right things instead of just protein content. I have been feeling great and I am positive my diet is the reason why.
At times it can be difficult sifting through all of the different opinions people have about certain foods. I think keeping it simple has worked the best. I really like the “Power Foods” article and try to consume most of those foods and other fruits and vegetables as well. Thanks for all of the feedback. I was just trying to confirm my suspicions.