Misinformation.

princesspeach577

Thanks for posting this! I think it needed to be said

Articeluvsmemphis

nice rant well composed, how many calories did you burn ranting? make sure you log them and eat them back

DL121004

Well said, and agree in general (I was with you on the 3 meal v 6 meal issue).

OTOH, there are also oversimplifications (e.g., "calories in, calories out"), and areas that are still being explored and we're learning about -- the human body is a massively complex organism (e.g., potential issues regarding fructose).

RAFValentina

Well said!

So many people see one thing and misinterpret it ... mostly misinformation too and so you end up with total nonsense. It's like Chinese whispers sometimes!

SassyCalyGirl

I don't consider anything on these threads to be "advice" I consider the posts to be "opinions". Each individual needs to find what works for "THEM"....... What works for one doesn't work for all.

lizard053

Very nice. Misinformation is everywhere, including many diet/weight-loss websites! (Not JUST this one.) Even doctors and dieticians can give out false information, especially if they jump on every bandwagon that comes along. Everyone needs to decide for themselves what works for them. Too many are looking for an easy way out...

Laura_Ivy

This is why I have pretty much given up on reading about weight loss strategies..some say to eat more then eat less or up your protein and the list goes on and on until I want to bang my head against a damn wall! :grumble:

Katie1951

I see misinformation quite frequently and wonder how many people take it as gospel. I've lost 43 pounds to date, over a 29 month period and it all comes down to calories in - calories out.

Again, my mantra CALORIES IN vs CALORIES OUT. High fiber calories keep you fuller longer, but a calorie is a calorie.

AFitJamie

Another Excellent Post Sidesteal, thanks.

I absolutely agree that it is important to correct misinformation.

However, I also think it is important to recognize that for many people, part of the attraction of MFP is the ability to connect in community of individuals working through similar issues. Part of that community is not just learning from "experts", but also being able to provide support. It is clear that a number of people I've seen post want to be helpful to others (and not feel that all they can do is take support and advice.) It could quickly begin to feel one sided. Hard on personal morale if you don't think you can support the people who are supporting you.... So people share what they "know" - what has been told them and what seems to have worked for them. I think it is very important to recognize people's input and intended support while helping to correct information - otherwise I think it can be seen as negative.

As well, for this community to work, I think we need people to share - we can't have someone ask a questions and nobody answer - just waiting for an "expert" to answer.... That isn't going to make anyone feel supported... This community would evaporate quickly I think.

All that to suggest to some folks that it takes discernment to work out where people are coming from and provide correcting information gently. For some posts I have read, I'm of the opinion they were made not in a supportive, helpful, community response, but to promote an individual, or business the individual operates. I'm happy to see experts take these on and the manner in which it is approached can be far more direct. But, for those posts that are made with a helpful intent, I think a more gentle correction may be needed from some folks at some time. I've seen "That's just Broscience crap!" type posts - which I doubt are helpful to anyone reading.

This isn't, in any way, a personal criticism, In fact I have read a few of your posts where I believe you have shown great tact and discernment. Just a comment for the population in general. I know if I'm sharing and trying to be helpful and supportive, I want to be corrected if I have inadvertently spread an "urban legend". However, the manner in which that correction is done will say a lot about that community we are participating in here.

Jamie

Sidesteal

Another Excellent Post Sidesteal, thanks.

I absolutely agree that it is important to correct misinformation.

However, I also think it is important to recognize that for many people, part of the attraction of MFP is the ability to connect in community of individuals working through similar issues. Part of that community is not just learning from "experts", but also being able to provide support. It is clear that a number of people I've seen post want to be helpful to others (and not feel that all they can do is take support and advice.) It could quickly begin to feel one sided. Hard on personal morale if you don't think you can support the people who are supporting you.... So people share what they "know" - what has been told them and what seems to have worked for them. I think it is very important to recognize people's input and intended support while helping to correct information - otherwise I think it can be seen as negative.

As well, for this community to work, I think we need people to share - we can't have someone ask a questions and nobody answer - just waiting for an "expert" to answer.... That isn't going to make anyone feel supported... This community would evaporate quickly I think.

All that to suggest to some folks that it takes discernment to work out where people are coming from and provide correcting information gently. For some posts I have read, I'm of the opinion they were made not in a supportive, helpful, community response, but to promote an individual, or business the individual operates. I'm happy to see experts take these on and the manner in which it is approached can be far more direct. But, for those posts that are made with a helpful intent, I think a more gentle correction may be needed from some folks at some time. I've seen "That's just Broscience crap!" type posts - which I doubt are helpful to anyone reading.

This isn't, in any way, a personal criticism, In fact I have read a few of your posts where I believe you have shown great tact and discernment. Just a comment for the population in general. I know if I'm sharing and trying to be helpful and supportive, I want to be corrected if I have inadvertently spread an "urban legend". However, the manner in which that correction is done will say a lot about that community we are participating in here.

Jamie

Great reply.

Acg67

brock303030

In my weight loss journey, I have found that it is like religon and politics. People learn something or get taught something, or have success doing something. What they know and think is the only way or the right way. Some people believe the only way to get healthy is eating "healthy foods". Who is to say what is healthy. I have gone on diets where I have eaten healthy for months and have lost a lot of weight, yet I could not maintain it because I wanted the foods that I used to eat. I would gain all the weight back plus some each time. I know many people on here do not buy in to calories in calories out and that not all calories are created equal. I eat the same foods I always ate, I have fast food every day like I always did, I eat pizza, hot wings, chinese food, whatever I want to eat. I also walk 8-10 miles a day. I will begin lifting weights in a couple months. In 7 weeks i have lost 38 pounds. I never lost that much weight eating 100% clean and mixing that with weight and cardio training.

I had a friend that got a juicer and was miserble with what he was eating. He wasn't loosing as much weight because he wasn't satisfied and would cheat. Now he has bought in to calories in and calories out and he is seeing results and he enjoys life. In the end, TO EACH HIS OWN!

hirensthenameliftinsthegame

I'd like to talk about something.

Often times on the forums, we'll see someone post what looks like a helpful post full of dieting information. If the information is faulty, some people will reply with the intent to correct it in the hopes that too many people don't buy into the bad information.

Then a bunch of people will get upset with the guy or gal who is trying to correct the person, saying "Stop hating" or "Stop being so negative!". (Sometimes people do post rude replies but it seems like any disagreement is arbitrarily viewed as negative as of late).

Misinformation is bad.

I will give you a few examples to attempt to explain why:

Let's look at meal frequency, which would fall into the personal preference category. Does meal frequency matter?

It might matter for behavioral reasons and it might matter for performance reasons and if it leads to better gym performance it could minimally effect expenditure. But it DOES NOT effect metabolism and if someone says this gem:

"It's very important to eat every 3 hours so that your metabolism keeps burning. If you skip a meal your metabolism will slow down and your body will actually STORE FAT. So please make sure to eat every 3 hours". (<--- this claim is entirely false)

...this is problematic because people who DON'T currently eat frequently might think "Crap, I'm doing it wrong. I'm going to have to fix this". Now they're going to reschedule what could be an eating pattern that works very well for them based on the bad information that increasing their frequency will increase metabolic rate. Additionally, they'll have to eat smaller meals (because they would obviously keep kcals/macros constant) which would probably have a negative effect on adherence/satiety.

Is eating frequently arbitrarily bad? No. It's personal preference. But convincing someone that it's metabolically relevant is BAD, because this convinces them that they must follow this advice.

Lets look at a different example from a recent thread:

"You shouldn't combine carbs and fats in the same meal because it will cause your body to store fat!"

This was recently posted in a topic and not only is it completely bogus and not supported by anything, but the end result was (literally) that someone replied with:

"Thanks so much for this, I'm going to stop eating PB+J sandwiches".

So someone comes on here and posts something completely false and out of fear, another person eliminates something they enjoy from their diet. Now, for all we know someone else is reading that post and not replying, because they're in the kitchen stressed out over how they're going to re-arrange every meal in their day so that the carb sources aren't ever eaten with fat.


This is not a good thing.

There's a very small list of things that are necessary to lose weight.
There's a very large list of things that are personal preference for losing weight. (In this list I include medical reasons, moral reasons, individual intolerances).


Both of these are important, but focus on the necessities first and customize the personal preference aspects to give you the best adherence or most enjoyment possible out of your journey.


And don't confuse the two for yourself or others.

/end rant.

Regarding the fats and carbs reference, again it depends on context, if your eating post workout, sure fats/carbs are needed, but if your going to have 70g of fat and 200g of carbs, and depending on the kind of carbs too and how much fiber, some fat might or might not be stored.

There is things to take into account such as the insulin index, the amount of protein and the protein digestion rate that influence the total gi pass time of the foods you eat...

But yea, again everything you said has its own context where its positive and/or negative, meal frequency doesn't influence metabolism at all(completely agree, lol i only eat 2 meals a day).

Anyhow, congrats on posting this, lol i was thinking about doing it too, but didn't really have the time!

Seems like you know alot of good information!

ngr1973

Thank you so much for this post. As someone who has a considerable amount to lose, often the threads lead to more confusion than clarity and it gets even more overwhelming.

Again, thanks!

NewVonnie

Admittedly I am not a brilliant person in the area of diet and fitness. That being said I try to surround myself with people who are. People who consistently wade through all the BS and focus on facts and research. And of course common sense. There are a handful of people here who do just that. If you read and research and listen long enough, it is fairly easy to see who they are.

I have a short list of people who I listen to. I scroll through all the rest to find their advice...and it ALWAYS works. ALWAYS. You are one of them. THANK YOU!

It's not nearly as difficult to be successful at this than people imagine. There are simple basic things that matter, and the rest is preference. Why make it more difficult?

Sidesteal

Regarding the fats and carbs reference, again it depends on context, if your eating post workout, sure fats/carbs are needed, but if your going to have 70g of fat and 200g of carbs, and depending on the kind of carbs too and how much fiber, some fat might or might not be stored.

Can you please present any information that supports this idea? Clearly context would still matter so using your above example lets assume that the individual is not exceeding total daily intake in calories or macronutrients.

What is your take on this article:
http://alanaragon.com/bodybuilding-nutrition-roundtable-alan-aragon-will-brink-jamie-hale-layne-norton.html

There is things to take into account such as the insulin index, the amount of protein and the protein digestion rate that influence the total gi pass time of the foods you eat...

But yea, again everything you said has its own context where its positive and/or negative, meal frequency doesn't influence metabolism at all(completely agree, lol i only eat 2 meals a day).

Where does insulin come to play when looking at the long term effects and not focusing on the short term results of insulin raising and lowering? As you say, context is ABSOLUTELY relevant. Since most people are losing weight, lets assume that we are in a caloric deficit. Does insulin matter in this context?

EDIT: Let me be clear, I am asking you because if you can validate your claim, I can learn from it.

lisakyle_11

There's nothing more catastrophic than not eating PB&J anymore.


Just teasing. Thanks much for the post. I agree.

i know! i have been thinking about the pb&j thing... no way would or could i ever conform!

Acg67

Regarding the fats and carbs reference, again it depends on context, if your eating post workout, sure fats/carbs are needed, but if your going to have 70g of fat and 200g of carbs, and depending on the kind of carbs too and how much fiber, some fat might or might not be stored.

There is things to take into account such as the insulin index, the amount of protein and the protein digestion rate that influence the total gi pass time of the foods you eat...

Yes context matters, however most people who tell you avoid C + F in a meal is basing it on the notion of avoiding ingesting fat while spiking insulin levels, which leaves out the role ASP plays in fat storage and if you are in a hypocaloric state, it doesn't matter all that much

Benji49

Nice post, and it needed to be said. Thank you.

andygettinfitt

I gotta say mr. steel, if I may cal you that, you are always full of GOOD information and try your best to show others the way. Every time you commant I know it would be good information. Thank you, and you have a good monday mr.steel.