Ingredients to watch out for?

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dee_thurman
dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
in Food and Nutrition
On another thread there was a discussion of your definition of healthy. For example we were discussing healthy yogurts. Some different people brought up different ingredients that they didn't like in their yogurt or any of their foods that they are eating. I think most people have heard that excess high fructose syrup isn't good for you. I have heard aspartame in diet drinks isn't good for you. What ingredients should I be looking out for to limit or to totally stay away from. This is something I try to do now but I honestly don't know enough about it. Can you help?
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  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
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    Avoid anything you have allergies to or don't like the flavor of. Otherwise there is nothing you need to avoid (including aspartame, and HFCS).
  • Confuzzled4ever
    Confuzzled4ever Posts: 2,860 Member
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    earlnabby wrote: »
    Avoid anything you have allergies to or don't like the flavor of. Otherwise there is nothing you need to avoid (including aspartame, and HFCS).

    This is exactly what I was going to say...
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    kale...it's like the only vegetable i don't like unless it's baby kale...then it's ok.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    Nope - I can't help you.

    "Healthy" is very subjective and open to individual interpretation. I have 1 or 2 diet sodas everyday. No migraine headaches for me. I try to limit "added sugar" because I just don't need the calories.

    If you have medical issues then watch out for ingredients x, y, or z. Your doctor should have pointed you in that direction already. But be aware that those ingredients won't stop you from losing weight.

    For me it's lifestyle changes. Some people are trying to cut out 100% of added sugar. That's fine if you plan on doing that for the rest of your life. But a temporary change to lose weight doesn't help you keep the weight off in the future.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
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    earlnabby wrote: »
    Avoid anything you have allergies to or don't like the flavor of. Otherwise there is nothing you need to avoid (including aspartame, and HFCS).

    Yeah.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    kale...it's like the only vegetable i don't like unless it's baby kale...then it's ok.

    I am partial to Russian Red kale sprouts. Otherwise I don't touch the stuff either.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
    edited December 2015
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    I don't think this thread alone will give you enough information for you to determine what eating healthily means to you. Aspartame and HFCS are not on Abby's avoid list. They are on mine. What Michael Pollen says in The Omnivore's Dilemma makes a lot of sense to me. However, soon after I post this a number of people will post to say he is fear mongering and other negatives. Read his books and decide for yourself. They are available in my library system, so maybe yours as well.

    Another good read is Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us, which I also got from my library.

    ps - I love kale and grow it in my garden so it is available from my backyard 8-9 months out of the year.

  • plantedinpots
    plantedinpots Posts: 44 Member
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    the only ingredients i make sure not to eat are sugar alcohols like erythritol. they are not proven to be bad for you, they just personally freak me out so i've decided to not ingest them. i agree with what @TeaBea has said, healthy is very subjective.
  • adriennemarieb
    adriennemarieb Posts: 38 Member
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    There's no general consensus. I choose to eat "clean" and my personal definition of that is I buy one ingredient fresh foods (chicken, sweet potatoes, vegetables, etc.) and cook everything myself. That's my decision and it makes me feel good. If you're interested in doing something like that, you can look into something like Whole 30 or the paleo diet. I don't actually follow that intentionally, but I don't know all of the rules, so I might by happenstance.

    My 2 year old daughter is gluten free for health reasons and our entire family sticks to that for the most part just to avoid her accidentally eating something left on the table or sitting around with gluten, which has happened before and resulted in a very miserable couple of days.

    I have had artificial sweeteners before and they make me feel weird, which is why I don't like them. I avoid high sugar foods and high fructose corn syrup to avoid spiking my blood sugar, which is something I am sensitive to after having gestational diabetes while pregnant with my daughter.
  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
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    Following is a list of ingredients that ALL people need to immediately stop eating:





    / list

    Above and beyond that list, it's merely personal preference (or as some have pointed out, specific personal intolerance or allergies).
  • dee_thurman
    dee_thurman Posts: 240 Member
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    This thread isn't about losing weight. I realize that you can lose weight and eat about whatever you want as long as you eat in moderation, exercise etc.... I just know certain people try to watch out for different ingredients in their food. Maybe you are 100% healthy and eat whatever you want and that works for you. For my personal interest, I am interested in posts like kshama2001 to have an eye out for different ingredients of foods that we are eating. I would like to have the information about these ingredients and then make my own decisions on whether or not I would like to eat them.

    I know we should eat a variety of foods every day. Don't eat too much of one thing. For me, I get into a groove of trying to stay healthy and I like certain foods. I just want to make sure the majority of things I put in my body, in my mind, are healthy for me. This doesn't mean I will eliminate all types of different foods because of their ingredients. It might help me to make a decision to choose to eat a little more of a certain type of food over another.
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
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    earlnabby wrote: »
    Avoid anything you have allergies to or don't like the flavor of. Otherwise there is nothing you need to avoid (including aspartame, and HFCS).

    This




    End thread
  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
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    dee_thurman wrote: »
    This thread isn't about losing weight. I realize that you can lose weight and eat about whatever you want as long as you eat in moderation, exercise etc.... I just know certain people try to watch out for different ingredients in their food. Maybe you are 100% healthy and eat whatever you want and that works for you. For my personal interest, I am interested in posts like kshama2001 to have an eye out for different ingredients of foods that we are eating. I would like to have the information about these ingredients and then make my own decisions on whether or not I would like to eat them.

    I know we should eat a variety of foods every day. Don't eat too much of one thing. For me, I get into a groove of trying to stay healthy and I like certain foods. I just want to make sure the majority of things I put in my body, in my mind, are healthy for me. This doesn't mean I will eliminate all types of different foods because of their ingredients. It might help me to make a decision to choose to eat a little more of a certain type of food over another.

    Doesn't change my answer.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    edited December 2015
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    dee_thurman wrote: »
    This thread isn't about losing weight. I realize that you can lose weight and eat about whatever you want as long as you eat in moderation, exercise etc.... I just know certain people try to watch out for different ingredients in their food. Maybe you are 100% healthy and eat whatever you want and that works for you. For my personal interest, I am interested in posts like kshama2001 to have an eye out for different ingredients of foods that we are eating. I would like to have the information about these ingredients and then make my own decisions on whether or not I would like to eat them.

    The point that most of are trying to make is that there are NO ingredients that you need to avoid, unless you have an allergy or sensitivity to them. Aspartame is one of the most heavily studied additives and there is NO EVIDENCE that it is bad, except to the small percentage that have an allergy. Same thing with MSG. There is NO EVIDENCE that it adversely affects anyone, except a very small percentage who are allergic (small, like less than 5% of the population). It is actually a good additive for those who need to reduce sodium.

    Do your own research but make sure you read scientific, peer reviewed studies. Stay away from blogs, books, documentaries, etc. that are not actual research. Most of the "info" out there is anecdotal and speculation and really does nothing except disseminate misinformation.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    edited December 2015
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    As I said in the other thread...

    The only foods you need to stay away from are those which you have a medical reason to restrict, those which you are allergic to, those which are rotten, and those which you don't like. And cauliflower. ;)

    Here is a helpful thread about aspartame, since you brought that one up specifically.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308408/why-aspartame-isnt-scary/p1
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    @dee_thurman I think you'd like Michael Pollan's Food Rules: An Eater's Manual, which was also available from my library, and, at only 140 pages, is a really quick read. Try eating like that for a month and see how you feel. I feel better when I eat essentially like that. (I do eat more meat than he recommends, and I am by no means 100% compliant and don't stress about that, but it's influenced my philosophy on how I want to eat.)

    Don't be deterred by the inevitable upcoming arguments that since apples are comprised of chemicals, you shouldn't be concerned about the chemicals food manufacturers put in your foods.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
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    dee_thurman wrote: »
    ...For my personal interest, I am interested in posts like kshama2001 to have an eye out for different ingredients of foods that we are eating. I would like to have the information about these ingredients and then make my own decisions on whether or not I would like to eat them...

    Other than ingredients which are contraindicated by an allergy/medical condition, there's no scientific consensus that any food/ingredient needs to be "watched out for". You can find quacks/crackpots who tell you that fat is the devil, carbs/sugar/HFCS is the devil, protein is the devil, processed foods are the devil, etc. - and they'll back it up with pseudoscience and cherry-picked research. Most of them want to sell you a book, eating plan or supplements which coincide with their personal agenda.

    I agree with the others - consider everything with an eye to context and dosage. Is it good to shovel pure white sugar down your throat all day? Nope. Is it okay to ingest some sugar as part of an overall balanced diet? Absolutely.

    If you have difficulty moderating certain foods/ingredients (e.g., you can't eat one serving of potato chips, chocolate kisses or whatever without scarfing the whole bag), maybe they're worth avoiding if you can't find a way to moderate them. Other than that, my list of "ingredients to watch out for" matches that of several other posters above - it's blank.
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
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    What you choose to include in your diet is up to you. I try to minimize consumption of HFCS and artificial sweeteners, but that's about it.
  • adriennemarieb
    adriennemarieb Posts: 38 Member
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    I think this is a decent article if this is what you're looking for: http://www.webmd.com/diet/the-truth-about-seven-common-food-additives?page=1
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    I have my own ideas about what I want to eat and what I don't, but since that's largely personal preference I don't think that should matter for you. That said, if you want to think through the issues, a book I'd recommend is Marion Nestle's What to Eat.

    For me, I mostly eat whole foods (or buy lunch that is basically made from whole foods), and as a result I'm not overly worried about specific ingredients in packaged foods, since it's not like I eat that much of them. IMO, best not to make the perfect the enemy of the good (or good enough). I generally would read a label to understand what's in it, to avoid transfats, and on the whole I like to avoid HFCS -- not because of health concerns, as my reading of the evidence is that it's no worse than sugar, but because I don't really like how our ag subsidies work or that corn is in everything, so it's my personal (and rather silly, but works for me) way of boycotting it. I also try to avoid farmed fish without actually thinking they are bad for us (and without it being a 100% hard and fast rule, as in some cases convenience rules over all) and focus on how I source my meat and try to eat produce from local sources when possible (it isn't for good bits of the year and that's okay). I don't claim this is really health related, as opposed to how I enjoy eating and what keeps me excited about cooking and simply my own peculiarity. And on the other hand when I eat out I like plenty of restaurants that are all about the locally grown from named farm, blah, blah, but also various other local restaurants where I don't know a thing about the sourcing and don't sweat it. On the whole I think it's best to be somewhat relaxed about this stuff and do what makes sense to you and fits in your lifestyle comfortably.

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