Regardless of your diet or nutrition method, there are a couple of things you should never eat or drink. The big no-no’s of a healthy lifestyle that you need to avoid if you want to stay truly healthy.
Sugar
For many of us, sugar causes addiction and possibly some unwanted symptoms like:
- Weight gain
- Inflammation
- Headaches
- High blood sugar
- High blood pressure
- Fatty liver
- Destroys your teeth
Great article about the dangers of sugar from Harvard Health Publishing.
Grains
Grains are ok for some people but not for people who have celiac disease, IBS, or other related issue. In celiac disease, a person’s immune system starts to attack the body’s tissues when eating gluten. Read more about celiac disease from the Mayo Clinic article.
In IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) it’s not the gluten that triggers symptoms but the grains themselves. That’s why people with celiac disease can eat gluten-free grains, but people with IBS can’t. The FODMAP nutrition method is very effective to treat IBS. Healthlines article about IBS. Here you find Monash University’s FODMAP instructions, including a downloadable FODMAP food list.
Grains, like all carbohydrates, can promote unhealthy weight gain and diabetes. Grains also often contain traces of fertilizers and pesticides, so if you eat grains, you should choose organic products.
The worst thing ever made from grains is high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). If we could choose only one thing to avoid, HFCS would be it. It increases triglycerides, boosts fat-storing hormones, and drives people to overeat and gain weight.
Processed food
Processed food contains additives, preservatives, and chemicals. They can mess up your body’s ability to function correctly, cause chronic diseases, and promote weight gain. Mayo Clinic article you should read. Even if a TV dinner is vegetarian or vegan, it does not mean it’s healthy. The food industry commonly uses very cheap ingredients to maximize its profits. They don’t sell their products because they are good for you, but to make money. In processed food, there is no nutritional value for you.
Fast food
- High in sugar
- High in salt
- Saturated and trans fats
- Preservatives
- Poor quality meat
- High in carbs
Healthlines article about fast food you should read.
Artificial sweeteners /sugar substitutes
If you have quit the sugar and substituted that with artificial sweeteners, you are already on the right path. Now you need to tweak and change artificial sweeteners to natural sugar substitutes. Artificial sugar substitutes may raise the risk of heart disease, says a recently published study by BMJ.
Natural sweeteners and their GI (glycemic index):
- Stevia (GI 0)
- Monk fruit sweetener (GI 0)
- Erythritol (GI 1)
- Yacon syrup (GI 1)
- Xylitol (GI 12)
- Honey (GI 58)