1700 cals of Junk vs 1700cals of clean eating....

"Clean' or "Dirty" (whatever 'clean' means) does not mean that your diet has appropriate micronutrients or not. A point that seems to be being continually missed.

The point is you're a lot more likely to get things like micronutrients, anti-oxidants, and fiber from "clean" foods than "dirty" foods. As I mentioned earlier, not many people are going to hit the recommended daily intake of fiber if they build their diets around "dirty" foods.

That said, there probably isn't anything wrong with some junk food and some fast food (at least I hope not b/c I eat plenty of junk food), but you'll likely be healthier if you primarily eat "clean" foods.

I guess I would have thought if you consume more fat, it would be harder to lose fat.....am I wrong?

"Clean' or "Dirty" (whatever 'clean' means) does not mean that your diet has appropriate micronutrients or not. A point that seems to be being continually missed.

The point is you're a lot more likely to get things like micronutrients, anti-oxidants, and fiber from "clean" foods than "dirty" foods. As I mentioned earlier, not many people are going to hit the recommended daily intake of fiber if they build their diets around "dirty" foods.

That said, there probably isn't anything wrong with some junk food and some fast food (at least I hope not b/c I eat plenty of junk food), but you'll likely be healthier if you primarily eat "clean" foods.

The colon cancer/ fiber correlation is so weak. Why bother?

Again, the original post in the quotes stated that " As long as you get your required macronutrients and micronutrients, how "clean" your diet is makes no difference to your health"

The colon cancer/ fiber correlation is so weak. Why bother?

Fiber also affects your cholesterol. Also, foods high in fiber are usually more filling than lower fiber foods with similar amounts of calories and macro-nutrients.

I'm not saying that fiber is a pancea or anything. It's just one of the many benefits of eating clean over eating dirty.

I personally find clean eating easier when trying to lose weight. When I first started trying to lose weight, I just dropped my calories thinking that was all I had to do. I failed miserably. I was eating 1500-1700 calories a day but I was starving all the time because 1500-1700 calories of junk is not a lot of food. I would stay within range for a few days but then have a day where I completely binged because I was so hungry. When I eat clean, some days I have trouble eating even 1200 calories because I feel so stuffed. I think those adopting a clean eating lifestyle will have much better success in the long run because they won't feel they are constantly depriving themselves.

Okay, but you are diabetic, I am not. I do well with plenty of sugar and sodium in my diet, I try to exceed the limits set here. Clean? Unless I'm a farmer it's not happening....I don't care to raise cows and chickens and am fine eating tuna that comes in a can, I'm not fishing for it. If it's purchased in a grocery store it's most likely processed. So, your 1700 calories of "clean" does not equal my 1700 calories of "junk", I eat as much as I need to until I've hit my micros for the day or week... sometimes it's 1250 calories, often it's 3000. I'd prefer not to take supplements and don't care about calories, my body takes care of itself.

Okay, but you are diabetic, I am not. I do well with plenty of sugar and sodium in my diet, I try to exceed the limits set here. Clean? Unless I'm a farmer it's not happening....I don't care to raise cows and chickens and am fine eating tuna that comes in a can, I'm not fishing for it. If it's purchased in a grocery store it's most likely processed. So, your 1700 calories of "clean" does not equal my 1700 calories of "junk", I eat as much as I need to until I've hit my micros for the day or week... sometimes it's 1250 calories, often it's 3000. I'd prefer not to take supplements and don't care about calories, my body takes care of itself.

Wow you completely missed my point. I never said raise your own animals or grow your own garden. What I said was eat as close to the natural state as POSSIBLE. Butchering my own chicken is not possible for me either, but I don't buy the prepackaged processed lunch meat style stuff either. I get raw chicken breasts and cook them up myself. Takes 7 minutes on a Foreman Grill. That's about as clean as I can get living in a city.

You can eat what you want, I really don't care. It's your body, do whatever to it. Again I don't really care. But your dismissive tone and attitude just shows how closed off you are to someone else's opinion. In fact it's not only my opinion but the opinion of many others. If you don't care about calories or what you eat then why are you even here? Just to bash others for trying to be helpful?

You sound like a very angry person. Maybe it's all that sugar. ;-)

<troll defeated>

I suspect the junk food eaters (not the ones who go to the extreme) will probably have better results in the long term as it's easier to maintain in the long term.

For most of my weight loss, I had wine and chocolates throughout (only in the last few days I decided to calm it a bit as I'm upping my calories). It's what GOT me to this point. If I had to have only salads and super healthy food, I doubt that I would have endured...

Okay first lesson: "Eating Clean" means eating foods as close to their natural state as possible (of course meats have to be butchered and cooked because no one is going to eat a live cow or chicken). It basically contends that eating things as close to natural (not processed) is always better for your overall health than eating items full of chemicals and preservatives. If there are not chemicals or preservatives the food is "clean".

Next, the OP's question... YES you can lose "weight" no mater what you eat as long as you have a calorie deficit. More going out than going in. You can lose "weight" by eating Twinkies, chips, McD's, etc. but are you healthier? Most likely not.

The problem is most people are over-sugared and over-sodiumed (yeah yeah I know but the word works). The problem with 'junk' food and snack foods is they are mostly simple carbs. Simple carbs spike your sugar and burn off quickly leaving you crashed so your body then craves another fix so you eat more to quell the craving. It's a vicious cycle. Believe me I know about carbs and sugar as I am a Diabetic who must constantly monitor both. If you consume complex carbs (whole grains, oats, etc) with an equal amount of clean protein, the complex carbs do not spike your blood glucose and burn off over a longer period of time. This long burn off results in feeling full longer and no cravings because your blood glucose never spikes. This is the principle Type 2 Diabetics use to keep the disease in check via diet and exercise.

Sodium makes you retain water. It's that simple. Anyone who tells you otherwise is ignorant. Restaurant foods are notoriously overloaded with sodium as are processed lunch meats (anything in a plastic container or bag in the cooler sections). If you don;t believe me look at the label the next time you pick up some turkey lunch meat and see how much sodium is in it. Lower sodium = less water retention.

Now the OP asked about "weight" loss. Define "weight" please? Do you mean lose fat or weight? You can lose a lot of "weight" but not necessarily fat. Depending on your activity level you could be losing muscle. But fitness is another deeper topic.

Bottom line the body is an amazing machine that will use whatever you put into it as fuel to survive. How healthy you are however is directly related to WHAT you put in your body. You have to do what works for you. One man's weight loss is another man's weight gain. However I challenge you to eat clean for just 1 month and then tell us if you don't feel better, have more energy, etc. You will save money eating clean as well. But it does take planning to prepare meals. Hope this helps a bit.

Okay, but you are diabetic, I am not. I do well with plenty of sugar and sodium in my diet, I try to exceed the limits set here. Clean? Unless I'm a farmer it's not happening....I don't care to raise cows and chickens and am fine eating tuna that comes in a can, I'm not fishing for it. If it's purchased in a grocery store it's most likely processed. So, your 1700 calories of "clean" does not equal my 1700 calories of "junk", I eat as much as I need to until I've hit my micros for the day or week... sometimes it's 1250 calories, often it's 3000. I'd prefer not to take supplements and don't care about calories, my body takes care of itself.

Nutrition =/= weight loss.

The clean eater will probably have much better overall nutrition- as they are eating macronutrient-dense food. They'll probably feel better, have clearer skin, less illness, better sleep, better performance, etc.

That said, the clean eater would probably do even better with a treat once in a while. They're more likely to stick with their program long-term if they allow for the things they really like (occasionally) along the way. Deprivation is quite demotivating and tends to lead to eventually quitting altogether.

Eating clean has nothing to do with treats. To me it has to do with limiting the amount of processed food that is full of chemicals and other crap. I make a very good apple pie, completely from scratch. It is the most delicious treat I can think of. I don't have it very often because it is high in calories, but I know what went in it. It is very clean!

Okay first lesson: "Eating Clean" means eating foods as close to their natural state as possible (of course meats have to be butchered and cooked because no one is going to eat a live cow or chicken). It basically contends that eating things as close to natural (not processed) is always better for your overall health than eating items full of chemicals and preservatives. If there are not chemicals or preservatives the food is "clean".

Next, the OP's question... YES you can lose "weight" no mater what you eat as long as you have a calorie deficit. More going out than going in. You can lose "weight" by eating Twinkies, chips, McD's, etc. but are you healthier? Most likely not.

The problem is most people are over-sugared and over-sodiumed (yeah yeah I know but the word works). The problem with 'junk' food and snack foods is they are mostly simple carbs. Simple carbs spike your sugar and burn off quickly leaving you crashed so your body then craves another fix so you eat more to quell the craving. It's a vicious cycle. Believe me I know about carbs and sugar as I am a Diabetic who must constantly monitor both. If you consume complex carbs (whole grains, oats, etc) with an equal amount of clean protein, the complex carbs do not spike your blood glucose and burn off over a longer period of time. This long burn off results in feeling full longer and no cravings because your blood glucose never spikes. This is the principle Type 2 Diabetics use to keep the disease in check via diet and exercise.

Sodium makes you retain water. It's that simple. Anyone who tells you otherwise is ignorant. Restaurant foods are notoriously overloaded with sodium as are processed lunch meats (anything in a plastic container or bag in the cooler sections). If you don;t believe me look at the label the next time you pick up some turkey lunch meat and see how much sodium is in it. Lower sodium = less water retention.

Now the OP asked about "weight" loss. Define "weight" please? Do you mean lose fat or weight? You can lose a lot of "weight" but not necessarily fat. Depending on your activity level you could be losing muscle. But fitness is another deeper topic.

Bottom line the body is an amazing machine that will use whatever you put into it as fuel to survive. How healthy you are however is directly related to WHAT you put in your body. You have to do what works for you. One man's weight loss is another man's weight gain. However I challenge you to eat clean for just 1 month and then tell us if you don't feel better, have more energy, etc. You will save money eating clean as well. But it does take planning to prepare meals. Hope this helps a bit.

Okay, but you are diabetic, I am not. I do well with plenty of sugar and sodium in my diet, I try to exceed the limits set here. Clean? Unless I'm a farmer it's not happening....I don't care to raise cows and chickens and am fine eating tuna that comes in a can, I'm not fishing for it. If it's purchased in a grocery store it's most likely processed. So, your 1700 calories of "clean" does not equal my 1700 calories of "junk", I eat as much as I need to until I've hit my micros for the day or week... sometimes it's 1250 calories, often it's 3000. I'd prefer not to take supplements and don't care about calories, my body takes care of itself.

Maybe you do well with plenty of sugar and sodium now, but check back with us in 20 years.

Nutrition =/= weight loss.

The clean eater will probably have much better overall nutrition- as they are eating macronutrient-dense food. They'll probably feel better, have clearer skin, less illness, better sleep, better performance, etc.

That said, the clean eater would probably do even better with a treat once in a while. They're more likely to stick with their program long-term if they allow for the things they really like (occasionally) along the way. Deprivation is quite demotivating and tends to lead to eventually quitting altogether.

Eating clean has nothing to do with treats. To me it has to do with limiting the amount of processed food that is full of chemicals and other crap. I make a very good apple pie, completely from scratch. It is the most delicious treat I can think of. I don't have it very often because it is high in calories, but I know what went in it. It is very clean!