The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! Diet and exercise are two keys to a healthy lifestyle. However, the foods you eat may play a much larger role in your health than you may think. In fact, the foods you eat may greatly increase your likelihood of you having either good or bad health. And, when most people go shopping, they look for foods that are considered healthy, diet, or health foods. However, what they may not know and what they should - is that some of these foods may not be the best choice for overall health. Here is a list of the 15 WORST Health Foods you Should Avoid eating for better health The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 2
The Top 15 WORST Foods for Health In order to improve your health, you should AVOID or limit the following 15 foods: 1 Unhealthy Health Food #1: Turkey Bacon Most people like to avoid pork bacon due to the high fat, sodium, and cholesterol content. And a lot of them turn to turkey bacon to get their fix. But is this the better choice? Not always Although turkey bacon may contain less fat than pork bacon, it makes up for it in calories. Some brands of turkey bacon have the SAME AMOUNT of calories or slightly even more calories than pork bacon! And, take a closer look at the label and you probably will find that it s not just turkey breast they are using, but parts from the whole bird! Besides that, turkey bacon may contain nitrates (just like pork bacon) which, when processed by your body, could increase molecules that cause cancer. 2 Unhealthy Health Food #2: Margarine Butter is another food that people like to avoid due to the high fat content so they turn to margarine. But what they may not know is that this choice may be WORSE for their health than regular butter! Margarine which is made by injecting hydrogen into the liquid to make it solid at room temperature may do nothing bed add LOADS OF TRANS-FAT S to your diet! And, as you all know, trans-fats are a no-no when it comes to better heart health. The simple act of hydrogenation takes away the good about the fat and turns it sour! The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 3
3 Unhealthy Health Food #3: Cereals Cereals seem like a healthy way to start your day, right? In some cases, you may be WRONG! Most cereals contain added sugar, which could promote fat gain, instead of burning loss! You see, when there is extra sugar floating in your blood stream, your body sends a signal for insulin to be produced and released into your blood. And what does that insulin do with all that sugar? Well, it shuttles some of the sugar into your cells, but the rest it stores in your adipose tissue (fat cells) as fat. And that could lead to greater weight gain and fat gain. Plus, too much added sugar, which is common in Western diets, could lead to metabolic syndrome, heart disease, and Diabetes, if you re not watching it closely. 4 Unhealthy Health Food #4: Diet Soda Think you re protecting your health by drinking diet soda or diet anything? Think again! Diet soda may be equally as bad for your health! The chemical sweeteners added to diet soda may be linked to the development of cancer, among other things. Since those added sweeteners are typically sweeter than table sugar, they may also make you crave sugary foods. Plus, in some studies, they show that diet soda containing artificial sweeteners, may lead to weight gain AND increase your risk for diabetes. The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 4
5 Unhealthy Health Food #5: Sugar-Free Candy Sugar-free products have gained popularity in weight loss circles, among diabetics, and others who are trying to maintain their weight. However, there are three things you should know! Sugar-free food products are filled with artificial sweeteners, which are sweeter than normal table sugar, and could lead you to crave sugary foods. Plus, they may lead to cancer, diabetes, and heart disease amongst other things. And, most people think because its sugar-free, then it s okay to overeat this food! However, you would be WRONG! Sugar-free foods usually contain around the same calories if not more than a full-sugar product. And this could easily lead to increased weight gain and adverse health conditions. 6 Unhealthy Health Food #6: Low-Fat ANYTHING Yes, these products may say that they are fat-free or low in fat. But, guess what? BIG FOOD knows just how to label things to MISLEAD you into thinking it s healthy- when it may not be at all! According the labeling guidelines, in order for a product to be labeled fat free, the product must contain less than 0.5 grams of FAT. And, if you don t follow the serving size per their instructions, then you may be adding extra calories and FAT to your day. For example, most cooking sprays are labeled fat free. But look a little closer and you ll see the serving size is 1/3 of a SECOND! In that 1/3 of a second, there is no fat. But if you re like most people, then you probably coat the pan with cooking spray! Now think of all the added calories and fat you just put on the pan! A LOT! Plus, when you remove fat from a product, well, you need something to take its place. Most BIG food companies add sugar and fillers to make up the loss of fat in the product. Result: more artificial crap in your system, which could lead to increased weight gain. The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 5
7 Unhealthy Health Food #7: Instant Oatmeal Now, everyone knows that oatmeal is a GREAT food for improving heart health. But, the question remains, is instant oatmeal just as effective? Looking at it from the outside, yes, instant oatmeal is considered a whole grain, and may provide the same benefits of lowered cholesterol and triglycerides. But there are TWO problems The first has to do with the glycemic index of instant oatmeal. Due to the processing and the makeup of it, it is designed to be easily digested and absorbed by your body. This makes it a higher glycemic food, meaning it could create a fast spike in your blood sugar. And this may cause a faster insulin release, which could result in more of those nutrients being stored as fat. The second, and this is the big one, is most instant oatmeal varieties may be loaded with ADDED SUGAR! The toppings, additives, and fillers may be adding extra sugar to your diet, which is very bad news for weight loss and overall health. 8 Unhealthy Health Food #8: Smoothies Smoothies can, and are (in most cases), a very healthy way to get nutritious foods into your day. However, most commercial smoothies are NOT! Why? Most commercial smoothies are loaded with milk, ice cream, and other caloriesladen foods. And this not only adds a lot of calories to your day, but it adds excess sugar and fat as well. Add all that up and you have a recipe for weight gain and an increased risk for heart disease and diabetes. The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 6
9 Unhealthy Health Food #9: Granola Granola may look great on the outside, but you should think twice before eating it! Although it provides a heaping portion of protein, potassium, and plenty of fiber, it also contains additives and fillers that could lead to weight gain. And if you look very closely, you will see one of the worst ingredients ever created: high-fructose corn syrup. Put all of these together and you have a recipe for weight GAIN and increased disease risk! 10 Unhealthy Health Food #10: Bran Muffins When you think of bran muffins, you probably are thinking more about heart health than anything else mostly due to the high bran content. But you may be DEAD WRONG about the health of bran muffins. Although one of the ingredients in bran muffins is actually bran (possesses a ton of health benefits), most bran muffins contain ADDED SUGAR and FAT which could lead to weight gain and increased risk for heart disease. And most commercial brands contain added fillers and preservatives which make it disastrous for your health! 11 Unhealthy Health Food #11: Farmed Raised Fish Although fish is a necessary part of a healthy diet, the type of fish you eat is very important. Farm-raised fish don t have the ability to swim freely and enjoy the food nature has provided for them. So instead, they are raised on food that may increase the amount of omega-6 fatty acids in their skin and oil. And this could lead to omega-6 toxicity in your body, which may be highlighted by higher inflammation levels and increased heart disease risk! Now, fish that is caught in the wild possess a higher omega-3 fat ratio, therefore giving added health benefits! The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 7
12 Unhealthy Health Food #12: Instant Breakfast Shakes Breakfast is the most important meal of the day! And if you re not eating breakfast, then you may experience low energy levels, poor concentrations, and hunger. For some people, they grab an instant breakfast shake as a way to get the nutrition they need to make it through the morning. The only problem: instant breakfast shakes contain loads of sugar, or they are made with artificial sweeteners. And both are linked to diabetes, heart disease, and even some forms of cancer! Best advice is to get up earlier and make a hearty breakfast full of protein, fiber, fruits, and vegetables. 13 Unhealthy Health Food #13: Frozen Healthy Dinners Are you in a rush and don t really have time to make dinner? Do you go straight to the frozen food section and pick out your favorite healthy, diet, or frozen dinner? Although they are low in calories and fat and have an adequate mix of lean proteins, veggies, and some complex carbohydrates, they do have ONE nutrient that may raise heart disease risk: sodium The American Heart Association has determined that people with pre-existing heart risk, such as hypertension (high blood pressure), should consume no more than 1800 mg of sodium in a day. And these dinners, well, some may provide upwards of half to two-thirds of your sodium content for the day. Extra sodium in your diet may also cause water retention, which could add extra weight plus dehydration. And this could significantly raise your risk for high blood pressure and all its illeffects. The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 8
14 Unhealthy Health Food #14: Products with Fat Substitute Back in the 1990 s, food companies started putting fat substitute into their food products in order to cut back on fat, calories, and cholesterol. The purpose was to retain the flavor of the product, but lose the unhealthy nutrients. However, these products may do MORE harm than good! In fact, they have been shown to reduce the absorption of vitamins, minerals, and carotenoids. Plus, they have been linked to INCREASED weight gain, gas, bloating, cramps, and diarrhea. 15 Unhealthy Health Food #15: Water with Added Vitamins One of the biggest misleading marketing hypes would be the use of vitamin water to replace vitamins and minerals that your body needs for better functioning. Now, you may be asking why products, such as vitamin water, may be bad for you. Well, first, vitamin water contains a very sweet product called crystalline fructose. This product is derived from cornstarch, and is very sweet tasting, so very little needs to be added to the water in order for it to taste good in your mouth! However, this ingredient has been linked to: gout in men, altered cholesterol levels, high triglyceride levels, increased body fat levels, and increased levels of VISCERAL fat (very bad type of fat in your body)! Secondly, the vitamins that are contained in vitamin water may not be fully absorbed by your body. In fact, some of the vitamins (which are fat soluble) may not be absorbed by the cells of your body, since it is lacking a fat carrier. The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 9
Avoid These Foods for Better Health Although there are many things that are important for overall health, choosing the right foods outweighs all of them. Avoiding these so called health foods may limit your exposure to added sugar, cancer-causing artificial sweeteners, and fat-laden foods. This could lead to better overall health and avoid the risk for premature death due to heart disease or complications associated with Diabetes or other chronic diseases. The 15 Most Dangerous Healthy Foods You ve Been Tricked Into Eating! 10