Nutrition Myths – Are You Getting Caught Out?

Why are there so many nutrition myths?
We already know what you need to eat to have a healthy body – from vitamins and protein to fibre and healthy fats. So, if someone wants to stand out or sell a book or a new supplement, they have to come up with something new. And it is usually something designed to scare you. The best nutrition myths are the ones that frighten you into buying their book, product or supplement. Always ask “where’s the money” when someone pops up to scare you about some normal food or body function.
There are times when we do need to have a little thought about what we eat – things like limiting sugar for healthy teeth or avoiding gluten if you have coeliac disease. But we do need to stay away from the idea that ordinary healthy foods are all causing cancer or brain damage or blood glucose “spikes” or whatever is fashionable this week…
So, what are some common nutrition myths to dump?

Myth: High blood sugars after eating are bad…
Recently people are getting worried about the fact that your blood glucose (or blood sugar) levels increase after you eat food. The people selling this myth claim that you need to control these totally normal increases, or you will get a whole range of illnesses.
Fact: It is completely normal for your blood glucose levels to increase after eating. Your blood protein levels, and your blood fat levels increase too. Of course they do. The food has to get from your gut to your cells and your blood is how the nutrients are all transported. So, after eating, your blood levels will be a little higher. Then, after around 2 hours or less, they will come back to resting levels. It is perfectly safe, healthy and normal for this to happen. It is nothing to worry about.
The only time that your doctor will worry about your blood glucose levels is if they go unusually high after eating AND stay high for more than the usual 2 hours. This can be aa sign of diabetes and it will need treatment.

Myth: Dairy causes cancer… This is an old one but makes a come-back every so often. People talk about hormones in dairy, the idea that people can’t digest it and that it’s packed full of antibiotics…
Fact: Dairy has been widely studied in relation to cancer. What have scientists found? Dairy reduces the risk of colon cancer. People who drink milk and eat yoghurt and cheese get less colon cancer compared to people who avoid dairy. They have found that eating a huge amount of calcium (over 4 times the recommended daily amount) may slightly increase the risk of prostate cancer BUT it is calcium itself, from any food, that may be an issue. Before you cut out dairy (or other calcium-rich foods like kale or soya milk) to prevent prostate cancer, there is a lot more research needed and even the International Agency on Research for Cancer (IARC) do not recommend that people eat less calcium or dairy.
When it comes to dairy and hormones, it is illegal in Europe to use hormones to produce dairy foods. This is not the case in many countries outside of Europe so it’s always worth checking if the information you are getting on dairy and hormones is talking about European dairy or dairy from other countries.

Myth: Sugar causes cancer…people do love the cancer myths! The current myth runs with the idea that sugar both causes and feeds cancer, so you have to avoid all sugar if you want to avoid cancer.
Fact: There are only two foods that have been proven to cause cancer: Alcohol and processed red meat. Studies on sugar do not find a direct link between eating sugar and cancer. There is a link between being quite overweight and increased risk of cancer. Eating too much sugar can contribute to weight gain and this may, in turn, increase your risk of cancer. However, you can become overweight by overeating on anything – protein, fat, carbs, alcohol or sugar. So, although you do need to limit sugar to protect your teeth and have a balanced diet, there is no benefit to cutting out all sugar from a cancer point of view.

Myth: Intermittent Fasting helps to lower cholesterol, blood pressure and blood glucose levels more than other weight loss options.
Fact: Although intermittent fasting (where you fast for periods of time and then eat normally) can help you to lose weight, it doesn’t have any greater benefit for things like cholesterol, blood glucose or inflammation than any other way of losing weight. If someone has high cholesterol, high blood pressure or high blood glucose, and they are overweight, then losing weight will help with these things.
There are lots of different approaches to losing weight – people can reduce portion sizes, cut back on treat foods or try intermittent fasting. Studies show that the weight loss is the same no matter what approach you use. So why is intermittent fasting so popular? It is popular because it suits a lot of people who struggle to lose weight using smaller portions or other dietary changes. For some people, a set time in the day when they eat or don’t eat suits their lifestyle and what they need. And if this is you, no problem. But, if you don’t need to lose weight, studies do not show any extra or specific benefit to fasting over general healthy eating.

Myth: Experts keep changing their mind…it seems like there is something new every week.
Fact: Real Nutrition experts have been very clear for many years about what we need for a healthy diet. In fact, the only nutrition guideline that has changed in the last 30 years is about eggs. 30 years ago, it was recommended that you limit eggs to 4 per week. Today, that limit is 7 eggs per week.
Other than that, we still should eat lots of fruit and vegetables, a good amount of protein, sensible portions of carb foods and limit fat, sugar and salt. So, the next time you are confused about what to eat for a healthy diet, just remember the healthy eating guidelines. They may not be fashionable, there may not be an influencer with a ripped body promoting them, but they are still based in science, and they will still give you an excellent basis for a healthy way of eating.