6 Foods Wrongly Called Unhealthy!
|
|
Leesduur: 3 min
These days, it's very popular to adopt a healthy lifestyle. And for this, it's important to eat healthily. So-called nutrition experts are popping up everywhere, telling you exactly what you should and shouldn't eat.
Much of this advice is based on outdated research, leading some foods to be wrongly labeled unhealthy. In this article, I'll describe six different foods that are actually healthy!
Various “unhealthy” foods appear to contain important nutrients and thus contribute to a healthy lifestyle.
Frozen vegetables, salt, full-fat dairy, red meat, whole eggs, and dark chocolate can be safe and nutritious.
Research shows that these products provide valuable proteins, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals for your body
1 - Frozen vegetables
Many people think frozen vegetables are less healthy than fresh vegetables. It sounds logical, but frozen vegetables aren't unhealthy at all.
Most vegetables are healthiest when picked straight from the ground and then prepared. It's already several days before freshly picked vegetables appear in the supermarket.
Frozen vegetables are often frozen immediately after being picked. This makes them at least as healthy as fresh vegetables in the supermarket.
Research has shown that the vitamin C content of broccoli and peas that have been frozen for 12 months is comparable to peas and broccoli that have just been harvested.(1)
Other vitamins, minerals, and fiber are also preserved during freezing. This means these levels are virtually identical in frozen and fresh vegetables. In short, frozen vegetables are simply healthy!
2 - Salt
Everyone's heard it before: Too much salt is bad for your blood pressure. But what many people don't know is that salt is also an important electrolyte. This is a substance that helps maintain your fluid balance and also ensures that your nerves and muscles continue to function properly.
So, eating too little salt isn't good for you either. Yet, many people don't get enough salt because they think it's unhealthy. If you don't have high blood pressure, it's recommended to eat at least 1.5-2.5 grams of salt per day.(2)
3 - Full-fat dairy products
It's common knowledge that full-fat yogurt, cream, and butter are high in saturated fat and cholesterol. Because of this, people often opt for low-fat and fat-free varieties. Now it turns out that these "healthier" dairy products actually lack some of the benefits of full-fat dairy.
For example, only full-fat dairy products contain conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and vitamin K2.
CLA actually has a positive effect on weight loss and vitamin K2 helps protect your heart and bones by keeping calcium in your bones and out of your blood vessels.(3)
Please note that full-fat dairy products contain many calories and saturated fats, so you should consume them in moderation.
4 - Red meat
Red meat is often said to be unhealthy, but it's actually a very good source of high-quality protein. It's been a staple in our diets for thousands of years.
Research has shown that red meat has enabled us to develop larger, more complex brains when high-quality plant foods were not available.(4)
Animal proteins can improve your muscle function, and red meat is packed with them. Red meat is also a good source of heme iron, the form of iron your body absorbs best. Grass-fed red meat is the healthiest option because it contains more healthy fatty acids like CLA.
5 - Whole eggs
Eggs are generally among the healthiest foods available. For years, so-called nutrition experts advised against eating whole eggs. They argued that the yolk contains too much cholesterol.
It has even been said that eating egg yolk has a negative effect on your blood cholesterol levels, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Research has shown that foods high in cholesterol, like whole eggs, actually cause your liver to produce less cholesterol to compensate.(5)
So eating whole eggs isn't bad for you at all! They're packed with easily digestible, high-quality protein that will keep you going for hours.
Egg yolks also contain a lot of zeaxanthin and lutein. These substances are two very powerful antioxidants that help protect your body from free radicals.
6 - Chocolate
When you think of chocolate, you immediately think: unhealthy. This is generally true, as chocolate can be very high in sugar and calories. But this is the case with white and milk chocolate.
Dark chocolate (made with more than 85% cocoa), on the other hand, is healthy. It's made largely of cocoa, which has several health benefits. For example, cocoa contains many flavonoids, which have powerful antioxidant properties.
Research has shown that dark chocolate has a positive effect on insulin sensitivity, blood pressure and arterial function in overweight adults.(6)
In short, eating a piece of dark chocolate with at least 85% cocoa every day is very healthy!
In summary
In short, there's absolutely nothing wrong with eating frozen vegetables, salt, full-fat dairy products, whole eggs, and dark chocolate. Recent research has shown that these foods aren't as unhealthy as previously thought.
