Clean eating; what is it really?

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  • paleojoe
    paleojoe Posts: 442 Member
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    but eating healthier
    All well and good until I got here.

    Why is it 'healthier' food?

    Is there a universal definition of 'healthy'?

    What makes a food not 'healthy'?

    That again seems to be another phrase that far too often means "What I like to believe is good for me without researching it" :).

    Right... individual foods are not good or bad, healthy or unhealthy. It is in the context of the whole diet where all food must be judged. As constructed, does my diet as a whole provide me with the nutrients my body needs to thrive?
  • Phaedra2014
    Phaedra2014 Posts: 1,254 Member
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    Since I've joined MFP I've noticed a lot of people talking about clean eating. I'm curious about what it's all about. I' think it has to do with removing processed foods from your diet but I know it's more then that. If you've adopted the clean eating lifestyle can you educate me? I'd like to learn about it and see if it's a fit for me. :wink:

    What I eat because I like to eat this way: Quinoa, brown rice, yams, lean meat, fish, most vegetables, eggs, most fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes. I cook my meals from scratch with fresh herbs and no prepared condiments.

    What I don't eat: Pre-packaged foods, microwaveable meals, sugar, grains with gluten, dairy, soy, certain beans like kidney and lima beans, white potatoes and other very starchy foods, white rice.

    Is this clean eating> I don't know but it is what has worked for me in the last two years with reducing inflammation, gaining energy, sleeping better, having better skin and hair, eliminating a chronic cough, reducing intensity and frequency of migraines and headaches, and losing weight.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
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    still waiting on a definition . . .
  • tobybraxton
    tobybraxton Posts: 9 Member
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    Clean eating = eat all the food on the plate = no waste = think of the little children starving around the world = clean your plate ?!
  • Phaedra2014
    Phaedra2014 Posts: 1,254 Member
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    still waiting on a definition . . .

    Clean eating is an erroneous term, IMO. It implies there is a dirty eating. I doubt there is a universally appropriate definition we can all agree with, but there seem to be a few mainstream ones and those are usually up for discussion.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
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    I want a unicorn tart.

    Anyway, using the 80/20 rule, I've realised I'm ALMOST there for clean eating.
    Apparently clean eating is eating whole foods.

    Today I have:
    Whole pack of Caramel Mallows
    Whole pack of corned beef
    Whole Jar of pasta sauce
    Whole pack of lean mince
    3x Whole onions
    And I'm going to have a whole Toffee pavlova later.

    Unfortunately, I also had:
    75g of pasta (of 500g)
    300ml milk of 1lt.

    So 2/6 ratio not to far to the 2/8 ratio of 'whole foods' required :D.
    tumblr_my6byvaA9J1sj3oxho1_500.gif
  • rush_di
    rush_di Posts: 1
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    hey.. just a random question.. does anyone know if canned tuna alone is good weight loss? i do have a snack or two here n there.. and have alot of veges along with it and fruits yahh... alot ...but i survive... on just two can of tuna a day.. is that good?
  • SteveJWatson
    SteveJWatson Posts: 1,225 Member
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    "Clean eating" is the taking of a mostly sensible idea: Eat mostly home-cooked meals prepared with fresh produce where possible, and the pushing of it to the nth degree by internet obsessives to obtain a self-flaggelating, holier-than-thou approach to meals whereby you aren't 'doing it right' if you don't buy all your veg from a scruffy, pale person on some kind of farmers' market and organically weave yoghurt.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
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    hey.. just a random question.. does anyone know if canned tuna alone is good weight loss? i do have a snack or two here n there.. and have alot of veges along with it and fruits yahh... alot ...but i survive... on just two can of tuna a day.. is that good?


    No food in and of itself is good or bad.

    Canned tuna is high in protein and low in fat and calories (depending on if it's canned in water or oil). It can be good to use to boost your protein intake without adding tons of calories. It also tends to have sodium which is not an issue unless you have a medical condition.
    One issue with tuna is the amount of mercury. Two cans a day may be too much.
  • twixlepennie
    twixlepennie Posts: 1,074 Member
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    Since I've joined MFP I've noticed a lot of people talking about clean eating. I'm curious about what it's all about. I' think it has to do with removing processed foods from your diet but I know it's more then that. If you've adopted the clean eating lifestyle can you educate me? I'd like to learn about it and see if it's a fit for me. :wink:

    After losing weight successfully by eating as I liked and just cutting back on calories, I to became interested in 'clean' eating, after seeing it popping up here on MFP all the time. I watched the documentaries, read the books etc that are related to this way of thinking and was sold. I went into a three month experiment with it and this was outcome-

    -my period stopped
    -my hair started falling out
    -started feeling fatigued/sluggish
    -sleep got messed up

    I was following the plans laid out by such advocates such as doctors Fuhrman, Caldwell, Esselstyn etc. A focus on veggies, fruit, whole grains, small amounts of seeds and nuts, olives etc. Almost totally cutting out 'diry/processed' foods. And almost no animal products (dairy and meat I cut back to a couple times a week, because they weren't 'clean' enough/too processed).

    I got sucked in and then was spit out a mess. Throughout the experiment I didn't feel better or look better. Nothing magical happened. I finally had to listen to the cues my body was screaming at me and I ditched it. Now I'm back to eating how I like, with lots of foods I enjoy, including fast food and 'processed' foods, and everything is back to normal.

    Nothing wrong with giving it a try, but I'd highly recommend keeping your fat intake higher-a lot of the clean eating advocates push foods that are low fat and I think that was a big reason why I got so messed up.
  • sloth3toes
    sloth3toes Posts: 2,212 Member
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    hey.. just a random question.. does anyone know if canned tuna alone is good weight loss? i do have a snack or two here n there.. and have alot of veges along with it and fruits yahh... alot ...but i survive... on just two can of tuna a day.. is that good?

    I like this question. The clean eating thing has kind of run its course.

    Let's dwell on this one now.

    big-train-wreck.jpg
  • Phaedra2014
    Phaedra2014 Posts: 1,254 Member
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    Nothing wrong with giving it a try, but I'd highly recommend keeping your fat intake higher-a lot of the clean eating advocates push foods that are low fat and I think that was a big reason why I got so messed up.



    I believe it is the opposite. The focus is on eating a good amount of fats but not trans or sat fats that are found in pre-packaged foods with long shelf lives.

    The consumption of olive oil, avocados, nuts, seeds, coconut oil for baking and cooking, are highly encouraged. All this as well as fatty fish like salmon and having a good level of Omega 3.

    Fats are not bad; it is the type of fats we consume that could be a problem health-wise.
  • GingerLolita
    GingerLolita Posts: 738 Member
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    Well, considering I don't eat 100% clean, I don't really call myself a clean eater. I just strive towards clean eating and try to eat clean as much as possible. :) I don't want to some narrow lifestyle that I'll have to follow for the rest of my life, but I'd like to eat healthy and get healthy.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
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    Nothing wrong with giving it a try, but I'd highly recommend keeping your fat intake higher-a lot of the clean eating advocates push foods that are low fat and I think that was a big reason why I got so messed up.



    I believe it is the opposite. The focus is on eating a good amount of fats but not trans or sat fats that are found in pre-packaged foods with long shelf lives.

    The consumption of olive oil, avocados, nuts, seeds, coconut oil for baking and cooking, are highly encouraged. All this as well as fatty fish like salmon and having a good level of Omega 3.

    Fats are not bad; it is the type of fats we consume that could be a problem health-wise.


    What focus? There is no clean eating focus. It might be the focus of the plan that you are following but certainly not all that tout "clean eating". That is the point a ton of us have been making.

    That poster was talking about the Dr. Furhman et al type "clean eating" which does not focus on fats but does focus on grains and veggies, no animal products.
    Nor did the "clean eating" al la Tosca Reno. It focused on animal products, certain grains and fruits and veggies. But the emphasis was not on fats.
    Paleo/primal style "clean eating" does focus on a lot of fats but avoids grains.

    I believe this is a perfect example of the problem of the label of "clean eating".
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
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    In...

    ...because...

    ...well, honestly, no idea...just in.
  • BrainyBurro
    BrainyBurro Posts: 6,129 Member
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    still waiting on a definition . . .

    here's one:

    any dietary plan that excludes certain foods for arbitrary and non-scientific reasons, so that the dieter can feel smug and superior to those who refuse to exclude those foods.

    how's that?
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    still waiting on a definition . . .

    here's one:

    any dietary plan that excludes certain foods for arbitrary and non-scientific reasons, so that the dieter can feel smug and superior to those who refuse to exclude those foods.

    how's that?

    bahahahahahaha
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    hey.. just a random question.. does anyone know if canned tuna alone is good weight loss? i do have a snack or two here n there.. and have alot of veges along with it and fruits yahh... alot ...but i survive... on just two can of tuna a day.. is that good?

    besides the eventual mercury poisoning and starvation level calories this sounds like a legit plan for long term success...
  • pierrena
    pierrena Posts: 37
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    “Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.” ~John F. Kennedy




    Fitness And Nutrition For Health
    http://bit.ly/1a0qiog
    http://1topnew.blogspot.com/2013/11/fitness.html
  • Fishshtick
    Fishshtick Posts: 120 Member
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    It means you eat mostly soap and baking soda...

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