The four most common nutritional myths

We hear everywhere that it is better to make an appointment with a doctor, and not self-medicate, that you need to consult a nutritionist, and not give up food altogether. But still, we continue to read advice on women’s forums and experiment with our health. What is important to know so as not to harm yourself?

Consider four myths about proper nutrition.

1. Myth – fruits and vegetables in the diet are healthy

A couple of days a month on an apple or other fruit diet will not harm your body, but no more. Diets based on vegetables and fruits alone can be hazardous to health. Excessive passion for vegetables (as well as mono-diets, such as apple ones) can be compared with strict veganism or a raw food diet. They lead to a lack of protein, vitamins B and D, calcium, iron, zinc, because these elements are poorly absorbed from plant foods.

In addition, a large amount of fruits and vegetables can cause flatulence, bloating, bowel problems, headaches, and even lead to hormonal problems. Also, do not forget about the lack of salt – since this diet can be attributed to salt-free – which can cause convulsions, dizziness, depression. With prolonged use of vegetables, protein-energy deficiency, polyhypovitaminosis and anemia occur. If you like fruits, you need to keep track of calories, because fruits are a source of sugars that do not make us slimmer.

It is also worth excluding this diet for people with gastrointestinal problems, pancreatitis, with allergies to fruits and vegetables, children and pregnant women, the elderly. A menu of fruits or fruit juices increases the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.

One of the common diets says: “To lose weight, you need to eat 1-5 servings of fruits and 2-3 servings of vegetables daily.” American nutritionists undertook to test the effectiveness of this recommendation. More than a thousand people participated in the study. His results showed that such a diet does not bring the expected effect. The study compared a “plant-based” diet with a Mediterranean diet based on olive oil and seafood. It turned out the second one worked better. What’s more, cores who followed the Mediterranean diet were 30% less likely to experience a heart attack.

Bottom line – replacing conventional products with vegetables and fruits is not effective. The main thing is to reduce the calorie content of food consumed.

2. Myth – you need to drink 2 liters of water per day

2-3 glasses of water a day is enough to maintain the normal water balance of the body. The total amount of water is individual for each: on average, 2 liters of water are taken per 66 kg of weight, and, of course, depends on humidity:

• if the humidity is 40%, then 35-40 ml per 1 kg of weight is in winter, with heating,
• average humidity 50%, i.e. 30 ml per 1 kg of weight,
• in summer, humidity is below 40%, which means that water consumption is higher.

For example, during training you spend a lot of energy and sweat, which means that you need to make up for the lack of fluid in the body. Drinking during meals is also possible and even necessary if the food is hard or dry.

According to recent studies, the body’s water balance can be maintained both with pure water and with tea and coffee. But it is worth drinking 2-3 glasses of pure water per day to the total volume of liquid. And remember that you should not force water into yourself.

Dietitian from the German Society for Nutrition (DGE) Antje Gal argues that you can not drink too much at a time. It’s bad for the kidneys. It should be drunk little by little during the day, at the rate of 40 ml per kg of body weight.

3. Myth – Vegetarians and vegans live longer than meat eaters

None of the many studies have proven that cutting out meat lengthens life. In addition, vegans (but not vegetarians) are generally more prone to fatal diseases: they have a higher chance of developing cancer, a markedly higher rate of death from diseases of the brain, respiratory system, and in general, mortality is slightly higher than adherents of other diets.

Adherents of strict veganism with age expect a lack of iron, zinc, calcium, copper (they may be sufficient in vegetables, but they are poorly absorbed from plant foods), vitamins A, B₂, AT₁₂, D and essential amino acids. This leads to dysbiosis, hypovitaminosis, protein deficiency.

There are several varieties of vegetarianism:

• veganism (exclusion of any products of animal origin),
• lacto-veganism (includes the use of dairy products),
• lacto-ovo-veganism (includes the consumption of dairy products and eggs).

Strict veganism is not recommended for children, pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, the elderly (because of the risk of osteoporosis) and menopausal women (due to lack of calcium). Lacto-veganism and lacto-veganism are more gentle systems, they can be used in small courses (a week or two), especially in summer. For example, people with obesity, hypertension, atherosclerosis, gout, urolithiasis with uraturia, chronic renal failure.

Vegetarians consume 75-80% carbohydrates (fruits, vegetables, cereals, bread), 10% proteins (nuts, dairy products, eggs, legumes) and 10-15% fats (oil, vegetable fats), while a person needs at least 30% protein animal origin.

Comparing death rates among vegetarians and traditional dieters, the researchers found little to no difference. The only exception was coronary heart disease (CHD): the number of vegetarians who died from this disease was slightly lower than in the case of meat lovers. But the incidence of coronary artery disease does not depend on the style of eating, in India, where the majority of vegetarians, mortality from coronary artery disease is one of the highest in the world.

Other studies have found that an active lifestyle, quitting smoking and drinking alcohol, but not a vegetarian diet, can lead to improved health and reduced mortality.

4. Myth – if you want to eat right – exclude sweets from the diet

Sweet is not poison or evil. Glucose is needed by the brain for normal functioning, but it can be obtained by various methods: you can eat sugar, sweeteners, honey, fruits, muesli, carbonated drinks – glucose is everywhere. The only question is, are you ready to settle for a couple of slices of chocolate?

The level of glucose necessary for the normal functioning of the brain, central nervous system, and other organs is 70-100 mg per 100 ml of blood. Excess indicates pathological conditions, possibly diabetes mellitus. Everyone has seen on the Internet a comparative picture of the sugar content in different foods and drinks – cola, packaged juices, chocolate bars, oatmeal, etc. Our norm is 5-10% sugar per day from the main diet. So you can and should allow yourself sweets, but in moderation, and remember that fruits also contain sugar.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducted a study that showed that there is no direct evidence that natural sugar or supplements have any unique effect, compared to any other calorie source, on the development of obesity or diabetes. If you are already suffering from a metabolic disorder, then it is worth reducing your sugar intake or giving it up completely. It does not harm a healthy person in moderate doses.

So, what to do when reading regular nutrition advice – believe them or not? Of course, if you have problems with being overweight, you need to consult a specialist and choose the right diet for you. Remember that your body is alive – it itself gives signals about what it wants at the moment, it directs you. Don’t force him. Learn to listen to yourself, and then no myths will confuse you.