Healthy Foods that actualy aren't that healthy

chels0722

I use RAW agave NECTAR. not syrup. This is actually pretty good for you

This is what I use as well. Plus, I buy organic pressed nectar so it is not processed. The sugars in it come from the plant. I have never heard of syrup.

wikitbikit

Lest I sounded flippant with my Tubes of Turkey comment, I should note that I have also tried the stuff. It was on sale and I thought, How bad can it be?

Oh. Bad. It can be bad. Everything about it was bad (to me). It took me years to get over the trauma to be willing to even try a high quality ground turkey. The mere memory of it makes me feel faint now. Woe.

johnsher85

I've learned that just about anything and everything that is "processed" is a serious issue that may require avoidance when it comes to eating!! Crazy how much "junk" they put in food and then tout it as "healthy"!!

Check out the chemicals in your home cleaning products as well!! Full of carcinogens and other harmful stuff that cause respiratory and skin problems.

Crazy world we live in!!!

Phoenix_Rising

right on...people don't get that you need fat in your diet....just not the stuff that comes from processed foods!

^^ this

quirkytizzy

Granola bars. Granola cereal. (At least the prepackaged stuff.) I was shocked to find out the nutritional void (while being super high calorie) that those things have.

tjah32

Frickin' nutella! A friend and I were browsing recipes on pinterest not long ago, and she saw these nutella cookies. Just nutella, flour and baking soda I believe. My jaw dropped when she said, "We should try these, they're mostly nutella so at least they'll be healthy,"

Athena53

Vitamin Water

I once read a question to some nutritionist from a woman whose precious 3-year old was never given nasty things like sweetened juice or (heaven forbid) pop. He did, however, really like her vitamin water and she wanted to know if it was OK for him. She gave the brand name and of course it was jsut about as bad for the kid as Coke, but with more vitamins.

On the subject of ground meat: I'm wary of all of it. Skin is the least bad of the stuff they can throw into the grinder. What other parts that they otherwise could not sell go in? You'll never know.

yamsteroo

I don't think we have a product that equates to turkey in a tube here in the UK. Is it basically like a big sausage of turkey meat?

We have turkey or chicken mince which is quite chunky but the look of it has put me off trying it so far. But that doesn't come in a tube.

skm4jc

The reason agave is touted as a better sweetening alternative is because it's low glycemic impact. Instead of consuming something sweet like cane sugar and sending your blood glucose (BG) levels spiking and then crashing shortly after (your pancreas goes OMG SUGAR MUST BREAK DOWN NOW!!!!!!!! INSULININSULININSULININSULININSULININSULININSULIN!!!!!!!), your body processes it more slowly (pancreas says, oh hey, food . . . insulin . . . insulin . . . insulin . . . insulin . . .), minimizing BG spikes which allows your body to break down the food slower, which actually helps you lose weight.

Basically, EVERYONE, not just diabetics, want their BG patterns to look more like a gentle wave, not spiky.

*It should also be noted, agave is much sweeter than corn or cane sugar. Be sure to read labels; you only need something like 1/3 or 1/4 of the portion for the same amount of sweetness.*

bostonwolf

Agave Syrup- The agave tuber is processed in a chemical bath to break down the starches into a fructose syrup that contains MORE fructose than HFCS! Bleeeeeegh! When I found that out, I almost flipped. Agave syrup is touted as a healthy alternative to sugar in my recipes... I should have known better. Anything that says "syrup" in the title is NOT going to be healthy for you... well maybe real maple syrup, that has lots of natural iron.

On another note, my mom gave me some tubes of frozen ground turkey she wasn't going to use. I used one last night to make some "healthy" taco's.... I didn't think anything of it because ground turkey is "healthy" for you, right? Well, one tube contains 80g of fat! I watch my fat carefully, not to high, and not to low... but wow, 80g of fat! Not to mention, I am so used to "my" brand of ground turkey that, because of the extra fat, I blew my calories! I am sooooooooo mad at myself for not looking before I ate! However, your live you learn, and I take this as a reminder to LOOK carefully at the foods you are putting into your body!

Fat is not unhealthy. You need to eat fats in order to process fat-soluble vitamins. This is the biggest sin that corporate food marketers have perpetrated on the American public. The belief that eating fat somehow makes you fat.

Anything processed (bars, cereals, etc) that claim to be healthy or lean will generally not help you become either.

bostonwolf

I was talking to someone that works in the meat department at our grocery store and she told me that some of the ground turkey is so high in fat is because sometimes they add the skin in order to help keep it moist. :sick:

there is nothing wrong with fat

There is nothing inherently wrong with fat, but because it is so calorie dense, I moderate my fat intake; which in turn helps me keep calories under control.

But fat also keeps you hunger under control far better than carbs. I moderate my carbs (no grains, rice, corn, sugar) and consequently am almost never hungry and eat about 1900 calories a day or more (depending on exercise levels.)

thinking_thinly

I don't think we have a product that equates to turkey in a tube here in the UK. Is it basically like a big sausage of turkey meat?

We have turkey or chicken mince which is quite chunky but the look of it has put me off trying it so far. But that doesn't come in a tube.

Many ground meats in the US are packaged in tubes, which contains the ground meat on the inside and a plastic wrap that looks to be vacuum sealed around it to keep the meat fresh inside.

JustJennie1

I've never heard agave syrup touted as a healthy alternative. I've only heard it used as an ethical alternative for people who avoid honey and gmo corn.

I mean, as far as health goes, your body isn't going to notice a difference. Sugar is sugar.

I've never quite understood the reasoning behind people not eating honey. Bees make a lot more honey then they can actually consume.

blu_meanie_ca

Like organic macaroni and cheese?
Or "veggie" chips?
All natural bacon?
There is a concept that "healthy" = eat in abundance. The only thing that we can all eat with wild abandon is lettuce. Everything else needs to be eaten in moderation (unless you are a guinie pig or rabbit.. in which case too much lettuce will kill you too).

thinking_thinly

I was talking to someone that works in the meat department at our grocery store and she told me that some of the ground turkey is so high in fat is because sometimes they add the skin in order to help keep it moist. :sick:

there is nothing wrong with fat

There is nothing inherently wrong with fat, but because it is so calorie dense, I moderate my fat intake; which in turn helps me keep calories under control.

But fat also keeps you hunger under control far better than carbs. I moderate my carbs (no grains, rice, corn, sugar) and consequently am almost never hungry and eat about 1900 calories a day or more (depending on exercise levels.)

I think it goes to show every body is different. When I started this journey, I ate low carb. Yes, I lost weight, but I never felt good. Then I tried the "slow carb" diet. Felt better, but not great. Then I tried a low fat vegan diet... felt horrible. However, I kept some tenants of the vegan diet. I eat mostly vegan (around 75% of the time), with some meat thrown it every once in a while. I choose highly satiating carbs, mainly potatoes. On a satiety index white potatoes are the highest, and keep me full for hours. I also eat fat, but the majority comes from plant sources.

My personal philosophy is to choose nutrition over saiety. If I have to eat more, than so be it. I am just happy knowing I am giving my body the nutrition it needs.

Morgaath

Well, one tube contains 80g of fat!

When you say "Tube of turkey"...how much is that? 1lbs? 5lbs? 10lbs?
Without that info, we can't tell if you got a 10oz tube of mostly skin, or 5lbs of skinless breast meat.

3.5oz (100g) of:
Turkey breast with skin has 194 cals, 8 grams of fat, 29 grams of protein
Turkey breast with out skin has 161 cals, 4 grams of fat, 30 grams of protein
Dark meat with skin has 232 cals, 13 grams of fat, 27 grams of protein
Dark meat with out skin 192 cals, 8 grams of fat, 28 grams of protien
Skin only has 482 cals, 44 grams of fat, 19 grams of protein

chels0722

The reason agave is touted as a better sweetening alternative is because it's low glycemic impact. Instead of consuming something sweet like cane sugar and sending your blood glucose (BG) levels spiking and then crashing shortly after (your pancreas goes OMG SUGAR MUST BREAK DOWN NOW!!!!!!!! INSULININSULININSULININSULININSULININSULININSULIN!!!!!!!), your body processes it more slowly (pancreas says, oh hey, food . . . insulin . . . insulin . . . insulin . . . insulin . . .), minimizing BG spikes which allows your body to break down the food slower, which actually helps you lose weight.

Basically, EVERYONE, not just diabetics, want their BG patterns to look more like a gentle wave, not spiky.

*It should also be noted, agave is much sweeter than corn or cane sugar. Be sure to read labels; you only need something like 1/3 or 1/4 of the portion for the same amount of sweetness.*

^^That is an awesome way to put things into perspective for those who don't already know. Yes, it does have a low GI impact. It's sweetness is 1.4 times that of cane sugar, so it is considered a healthier option because of it's lesser caloric impact per serving of sweetness, in addition to its low GI impact. Basically, it is a less is more kind of food.

findingmyfit

Anything fat free, sugar free...blahblah oatmeal...haha

HMD7703

Fruit juice. I know it should be implied, but I have friends that drink juice instead of soda and think they are making great changes.

thinking_thinly

Fruit juice. I know it should be implied, but I have friends that drink juice instead of soda and think they are making great changes.

I think the best decision I ever made was to not drink my calories. Even "healthy" drinks like juice aren't so healthy when they are stripped of their nutrients, fortified, concentrated, ect.