What is a healthy diet ?: Myths and Truths – 26/04/2019

We like to eat as much as we talk about food. And with so much discussion, we make statements that are considered acquired without our knowing or refuting them with certainty.

These are the myths about what we eat and what we eat that motivated the biochemist and professor José Miguel Mulet to write a book called What's a healthy diet? (Editorial Destino) in which he dismantles 101 myths about food. When asked three strengths, "which ones I've heard most often," he says.

We are what we eat

"This sentence is given a mystical or esoteric sense that does not havebecause it makes no sense to think that people's character depends on what they eat. "

He explains that the origin of the myth lies in a misinterpretation of a phrase that the German philosopher Ludwig Feuerbach had formulated in 1850. "That meant that eating was such a fundamental need for the human being that he did not cover it impossible to develop as a person ".

Another phrase that gives a similar meaning is that of French gourmet Billat-Severin: "Tell me what you eat and I'll tell you who you are". According to Mulet, the only possible interpretation is that "the way we eat and what we eat is closely related to our culture".

Tomatoes have no tomato taste

He is second in the list of favorites of this professor of biotechnology at the Polytechnic University of Valencia. "If we insist on eating them when it is not the season or in places where they are not grown, it is quite possible that we find them lacking in flavor, but the reality is that there is now many more varieties than those of our grandparents and we are working a lot in recovering some that have disappeared. "

Mulet insists that in the blind tastings in which he has participated, new varieties are always chosen among the tastiest. "And they did not even exist a few years ago."

Our grandparents ate better

"They told me countless times, better? They ate what they could, if they had anything to eat." And of course, it was not the healthier from the point of view of food security. "Only a few decades ago in Spain, they still existed diseases, such as pellagra or goiter, related to poor nutrition. Our recent ancestors did not have access, he said, to the variety of existing foods and their diet was far from being as balanced as today. My grandmother had never seen a kiwi or a lawyer. "

The lawyer grows up

Many people avoid it, convinced that "because of the amount of calories and their fat content is not the best ally for losing weight, I tell them that it does not depend on calories either. must consider nutritional value and health benefits"

The lawyer, he says, is very rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (good fatty acids), antioxidants, potbadium, fiber and B vitamins.

The first impression may be that you should get fat if you have fat, the reality is that "when you regularly eat very nutritious foods, you end up eating less because they satisfy more and you are hungry later and the avocados are well known for increasing satiety. "

Do not eat more than two eggs a week

"In particular, yellow has been demonized for its cholesterol content," says nutritionist Mireia Cervera, "and is perceived as a threat to the heart." Many studies deny it. "The truth is that it provides high biological value protein, in addition to the vitamins of groups A and B, and emphasizes its iron content which is easily absorbed, making it a good nutrient."

The nutritionist also attaches great importance to the fact that yellow is a source of carotenoids, "important for the health of the eyes". And you must take into account, he thinks, that "in most people, cholesterol consumption has little impact on blood cholesterol".

The list of ideas implanted in society that lack foundation is very long. Then, others of those that Mulet proposes in his book.

Mixture of hydrates and protein in a fattening meal

At first, it is almost impossible to make a diet in which these two nutrients do not coincide because many contain both in a greater or lesser proportion. Bread, without going further, combines carbohydrates with between 9 and 13% protein and the meat contains a larger part, but also hydrates and fat.

Secondly, the order in which the foods are eaten does not influence the amount of energy provided, so it will get bigger if the proteins are eaten at a meal and the hydrates in another.

It is also said that it prevents digestion. If that were the case, we would not have had a good life and half of the world's population would be sick.

Drinking water in meals makes you fat

No matter when you drink, the calorie contribution is 0. It is essential to stay hydrated, says the author and relativize the recommendation to consume about two liters of water a day: "Everyone must drink water he needs and be guided by thirst more than anything else. "

Carrots feed more raw

On the contrary, because when they are subjected to heat, cell walls are broken and beta-carotene is released. It's not true either that eating them improves eyesight.

The chicken must be made without skin

The reason is that it contains fats and calories. It's true, but it's better remove it once cookedbecause it helps them retain their natural juices and turns out to be tastier.

Reduce hydrates improves health

This is not always the case, it depends on the quality of those who are consumed. If they come from whole grains, the opposite happens. It is considered that they reduce the risk of suffering from the heart.

Cranberry juice cures urinary tract infections

If it contracted, no matter how much cranberry was taken, the infection would still be present. It has preventive properties because it is taken regularly, it prevents bacteria from settling on the walls of the bladder.

Coffee is bad for your health

Maybe it is better to avoid it if one is very sensitive to caffeine. Otherwise, it turns out that it is a valuable source of antioxidants, rare when you follow a diet low in fruits and vegetables, something quite common in today's society.

If you want to want something, it's that the body needs its nutrients

If this were the case, many people would eat fruits and vegetables rich in vitamins and minerals essential for life. In reality, the desire to eat something determined, usually sweet, is motivated by various factors, some environmental, such as advertising bombardment, or hormonal in the case of women during pregnancy or menstruation. In any case, before any biological signal, you must be wondering why you are hungry and try to satisfy it with something healthy to see if it's really due to a lack of food.

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