Common 'healthy' food myths BUSTED!
Updated: Mar 8
Busting really common myths related to health that people are literally suffering from is so satisfying! This post is all about busting some really big myths around so-called 'healthy foods'.
You may be emotionally invested in some 'healthy' food tips that we debunk here and may not like us very much after this! Or, you may be enlightened and inspired to learn more and make positive changes.
Either way we're putting this stuff out there to help you, and because we've tried these ourselves and want to share what we've learned in all the years we've been working hard to continually improve our health.
Myth: Drinking lemon water is healthy
Most of us have tried it at one time or another on our journey to better health. And some people notice slight changes/improvements to digestion but the cons of this seemingly safe health hack far outweigh any possible pros, especially the long-term effects.
The main concerns are high acidity level + teeth enamel erosion.
A lot of SM posts and blogs spout claims like “Lemon water encourages the body to absorb nutrients from the food better. It stimulates the liver, so toxins are eliminated more efficiently. Its mild diuretic effect also speeds up the elimination of waste.“
&
“Lemons may be acidic in your fruit bowl but once consumed and digested they actually have an alkaline effect in the body. As we know alkalinity is essential for weight loss, reducing inflammation, increases energy levels and improving sleep patterns.“
Finding legit info to back up these claims is damn hard!
But don’t we need help to detoxify the body?
Not with acidic foods. Nutrients found in animal foods such as meat and collagen can support detoxification though so adding a spoonful of pure grass-fed beef collagen powder to a glass of water is a far better option!
What about lemon helping boost immunity? Again, not founded and animal foods like meat, bone broth and gelatin, along with getting lots of earthing, fresh air and sun are far more helpful.
🦷 High-acid foods can break down tooth enamel so even if you’re using a straw, teeth can still be damaged.
What about lemon essential oil?
Just as bad, if not more, as it’s more concentrated.
The only time Clint and I add lemon to water is on the very rare occasion we have a sore throat with a cold coming on, along with raw honey and organic ginger tea to soothe the pain.
Watch my video about it here and here which got quite the response from all the platforms! Some just didn't want to believe it, while others thanked me for the insight!
Myth: We need loads of fibre-rich foods for good digestion
Aside from the fact that grain foods and high-sugar fruits are not healthy to consume daily or regularly, the other problem with foods like breads, cereals, pastas, fruit etc is the high fibre content.
𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮? 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵, 𝘪𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘣𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘨𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩?
… nope!
From my own personal experience with years of experiencing digestion problems I can honestly say my #2 toilet trips are the best when I’m eating mostly carnivore (animal-based)!
“We have also been mistakenly told by our trusted doctors that a high-fibre diet is a great defensive against the change of diverticulitis and IBS. On the contrary, it has been proven that a high-fibre diet decreases gut flora and irritates the lining of the gut; which increases risk of this disease.” – Keto Adapted
Gut microbiome can balance out nicely with a reduction in the paleo-friendly fibre foods such as fruit and veggies, and we can definitely do well without the grain-based high-fibre foods like breads, cereals etc. Even when the packaging says otherwise! And especially with avoiding the added fortified crap that goes into many products to “add essential fibre”. What a load of BS that stuff is!
Bonus extra info: Read Myths and Truths About Fibre by Dr. Chris Kresser
Myth: Vegetable oils are heart-healthy
Thanks to Dr. Stephen Hussey DC, MS for contributing to this week’s topic with this common healthy food myth… that vegetable oils are healthy for the heart… “When the body uses them for fuel they break our metabolism leading to insulin resistance, which is heavily causative in heart disease.“
Insulin resistance is one of the biggest health issues on the planet at the moment. Cafes, restaurants and processed food manufacturers use veg oils because they’re so cheap. Cheap and nasty. And the media tells us some vegetable oils are healthy. So we’re consuming them often and in large quantities. YIKES!
A better term for “vegetable” oil would be “industrial processed seed oil sludge” because most are made from waste products!
The main varieties we have access to and use today are corn, soybean, sunflower and canola.
These oils are damaging to our health for 3 main reasons:
– Their fatty acid instability
– They’re toxic by-products and highly processed
– The high omega 6 to 3 ratio
𝘽𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨?
– grass-fed rendered beef tallow and pork lard for cooking at high temps
– for consuming raw opt for cold-pressed (raw) organic coconut, olive, avocado and macadamia oils
– grass-fed ghee, butter or refined coconut oil for low temp cooking
I hope this inspires you to use healthier oils at home and to be proactive in asking restaurants what they use, and asking them to switch to better options also!
Myth: Kale is a superfood
Sorry about this but another ‘healthy food’ myth is that kale is a superfood. Don’t shoot the messenger!
I, personally, am SO glad I learnt this after a couple of years of eating kale cos I thought I had to. I felt it harming me and when I finally figured out why I was stoked! Especially because I struggled with low thyroid issues already, why would I want to make it worse?!
“Kale, and the whole family of plants known as the Brassicas are full of chemicals that wreak havoc in your body through a variety of ways.
The most common way is by interfering with iodine utilization at the level of the thyroid, preventing proper thyroid hormone formation, earning these plants the moniker “goitrogens,” or goitre-producers.
A goitre is the swelling of the neck that occurs due to expansion of thyroid gland when it can’t make enough thyroid hormone- not a good thing!” – Paul Saladino MD
Sure, lab tests show kale contains nutrients the body needs. But it also shows how many anti-nutrients it has which definitely outweigh the positives. When a food’s nutrients aren’t ‘bio-available’ – meaning how well they absorb into the body – they end up doing more harm to us than good.
We’ve all been there, thinking this leafy green was a ‘superfood’ and adding it to our morning smoothies, massaging olive oil, ACV and salt into it to add to salads (having to try and rub the anti-nutrients out of something is never a good sign btw!), or boiling and discarding the water… there’s no shame in that but knowledge is power so the more you understand it the better decisions you can make from now on 🙌
Swap kale for some meat, offal, eggs for a true nutrient-powerhouse meal.
And remember, don’t shoot the messenger! 😉
This reel received some interesting feedback!
Myth: Low-fat diets are healthy + safe
We used to eat low fat. It contributed to me having extremely low cholesterol and, as a result, severe depression and chronic agonising debilitating pain.
❌ Low fat diets have many downfalls including toxic over-load from consuming ‘low fat’ foods made from highly processed unhealthy ingredients, low hormone function, increasing sugar cravings, increasing food sensitivities, lowers cholesterol, causes unhealthy skin + more.
✔️ “Fat has been the primary fuel source for humans for 2.5 million years, both from storage and as the predominant macronutrient in the human diet. In fact, it was the energy-rich, high-fat elements of animal products (particularly omega-3 fatty acids) that facilitated the development of a more complex brain that allowed humans to branch out from their predominantly vegetarian great ape cousins and eventually rise to the top of the food chain.
Fat is a nutrient-dense source of fuel at nine calories per gram. By comparison, carbohydrates and protein each deliver four calories per gram. The energy provided by ketones is five calories per gram, while alcohol comes in at seven calories per gram.” – Primal Health Coach.
✔️Good quality animal and some saturated plant fats do not cause heart disease, make us fat, nor reduce cognitive function. They actually does the opposite and are essential for good health and well-being.
✔️ So keep the skin and chunks of fat on your grass-fed/pastured/free-range/organic meats, include the yolks in omelettes + throw out the low fat spreads and other dodgy products! 🍗 🥩🥑 🧈 🍳
Myth: We shouldn’t eat liver because it stores toxins
Many people question, whether liver is safe to eat as it is a ‘filtering organ’ so therefore must contain toxins. Yes, liver’s function is to clear out toxins from the body, but this doesn’t’ mean that’s where they’re stored.
Dr Chris Kresser says:
“A popular objection to eating liver is the belief that the liver is a storage organ for toxins in the body. While it is true that one of the liver’s role is to neutralize toxins (such as drugs, chemical agents and poisons), it does not store these toxins. Toxins the body cannot eliminate are likely to accumulate in the body’s fatty tissues and nervous systems.
On the other hand, the liver is a is a storage organ for many important nutrients (vitamins A, D, E, K, B12 and folic acid, and minerals such as copper and iron). These nutrients provide the body with some of the tools it needs to get rid of toxins.”
Wow! Did you learn something new there?
𝙇𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧, 𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙛 (𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙨𝙨-𝙛𝙚𝙙/𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙘) 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙯𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙖𝙡 𝙬𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙙 not to be avoided due to incorrect information but instead to be consumed and benefited from.
They’re some of the main myths we see floating around the health advice circles and platforms, even being advised by qualified health practitioners such as some dietitians and doctors. Scary!
I hope this information and our perspectives and experiences help you and your family on your journey to better health! Please comment if you have any questions.
Aimee
Primal Health Coach
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