Have you ever logged onto Instagram to see SO much nutrition information…to the point where you’re overwhelmed and don’t know what to believe? “Don’t eat after 6:00 pm. Fruit has too much sugar. Make sure you eat fruit! Bread will make you fat. Carbs give you energy. The less you eat, the better.” I mean…what should you believe?
As a nutrition student and future registered dietitian, I want to make it my mission to inform others on proper nutrition education and what to actually believe. I’m going to be covering common nutrition myths, and why they could not be further from the truth.
Diving into the Nutrition Myths
I want to preface this by saying that I am currently a senior in college studying nutrition and dietetics. All of the information I am providing I have learned in my classes, or have found in research journals.
1. Carbs will make you fat.
This nutrition myth probably drives me the craziest. Carbs DO NOT make you fat! They are the body’s main source of energy.
For some reason, carbs have gained a bad reputation over the years. A little background, carbohydrates are one of the three macronutrients that make up our diet, along with protein and fat.
Carbohydrates are VITAL to function properly and have energy. They are the macronutrient that converts the easiest to energy in the body. The brain actually prefers to use the sugar that comes from carbs to function. Your brain literally can’t work without carbs! I promise they won’t magically make you gain weight.
2. Fruit is too high in sugar.
This one goes along with how “carbs make you fat.” A lot of people are shocked when they find out that fruit is carbohydrates. Yup, fruit is sugar…so should we not eat it?
Yes, fruit contains sugar, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t eat it. Fruit also contains essential vitamins & minerals for proper health, as well as fiber (to keep you regular if you know what I mean).
I’ve seen people compare eating a banana to eating ice cream. I’m sorry…what? When you eat ice cream, of course, you’re going to have a sugar rush and ultimately a sugar crash. The banana will give you some sugar, but it will also give you potassium, B vitamins, vitamin C, and dietary fiber.
I’m not saying that you should always choose the banana over ice cream (huge ice cream lover over here), I’m just saying that they’re not the same.
3. The keto diet is sustainable and healthy.
Oof, the keto diet. Where do I even begin…
I’ll start off by saying that this diet was originally created for children with epilepsy. So how has it turned into the latest fad diet for weight loss?
Yes, when you begin the keto diet you will lose some weight. But it’s most likely water weight. This is because carbs are stored in the body as something call glycogen, which retains water. If you’re not eating carbs, you’re not storing glycogen, so the weight you’ll lose is mainly water.
People think that they’re going to begin burning body fat magically instead of glycogen (which is meant to be used for energy). Instead, your body is going to first start to use your built MUSCLE instead. Why do we want to lose the muscle we work so hard for??
Last part of my keto rant… If you’re on a strict keto diet, you can barely even eat fruit. WHAT!? When you’re not eating fruit, you’re missing out on all the health benefits they provide. I’m sorry, but it’s a lot healthier to be eating fruit than eating keto “chips” made of melted cheese.
4. 2,000 calories a day is too much.
I’ll start this off by saying that I don’t count calories, but 2,000 calories per day is the minimum you should be eating. The MINIMUM. Of course, this number may fluctuate based on age, height, and health status, but 2,000 calories is the best number to go off of.
Honestly, if you’re an active person and work out regularly, you’re going to be needing more than 2,000 calories. Probably upwards around 2,500, but again it depends on your height, weight, activity level, health status, gender, etc…
The amount of TikTok’s I’ve seen of college-aged girls eating 1,200 calories a day is terrifying (more on that, here). 1,200 calories a day is what a toddler needs. A toddler! Fewer calories do not equal better.
5. You shouldn’t eat late at night.
Have you ever seen people say how they don’t eat after 7:00 pm because it will make them gain weight? Yeah…not true.
Our bodies are not a clock. They don’t know if you’re having food at 10:00 am or 10:00 pm. If you’re hungry at night, EAT.
There has been some research to show that eating at night may cause sleep disturbances. Besides that, there aren’t too many reasons why you can’t have a snack at night if you’re hungry.
I think the issue comes in when you are so ravenously hungry at night because you don’t eat enough during the day. So many people will eat as healthy as possible during the day, then ultimately binge at night because they’re starving and deprived.
This can become an issue because it can cause disordered eating or poor eating patterns. If you’re eating a lot at night because you’re not eating enough during the day, that’s an issue. If you’re having a snack because you’re truly hungry, have a snack! It’s a lot better to eat a snack instead of going to bed hungry.
6. Nutritionists and dietitians are the same thing.
I had to throw this one into the list. The amount of times I’ve heard people call dietitians, nutritionists, and vice versa is extremely frustrating.
Registered dietitians (RD’s) are nutrition experts. In order to become an RD, you need to go through 4 years of undergraduate work at an accredited University and take classes in Biochemistry, Medical Nutrition Therapy, Chemistry, and more. Then, you need to obtain a Master’s degree, complete a 1-2 year internship, pass a national board exam, and THEN you are an RD.
A nutritionist does not need a degree in nutrition or science. The requirements vary, but most programs offer some courses to get a certificate. I’m not giving hate to nutritionists, I just want you to understand who you should be taking advice from.
7. White rice and white potatoes are bad for you.
Just because it’s “white” rice or a “regular” potato, doesn’t mean it’s unhealthy. In fact, they’re pretty equal to brown rice or sweet potatoes!
A little comparison for you (all according to the USDA): A serving of sweet potatoes has 337 mg of potassium, and a white potato has around 407 mg. The sweet potato has 4.18 grams of sugar, and the regular potato has 1.15 g.
Again, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t eat sweet potatoes anymore, I just don’t want regular potatoes to be thought of as “unhealthy.”
8. Eggs are too high in cholesterol.
Last but not least. I’m sure you’ve heard of people having high cholesterol and that the lower your cholesterol, the better. That is technically true.
Without getting too science-y, eggs will not cause your cholesterol to rise, even though they contain cholesterol. The way cholesterol in your body rises is from eating the “bad” fats such as red meats, baked goods, etc…(NOT saying you can’t eat them in moderation).
Your body cholesterol levels won’t rise when you eat food that contains cholesterol, such as eggs. Saturated fat or the “bad” fat is the main culprit in raising cholesterol levels, not eggs.
I hope that this was helpful and has given you some peace of mind! Take everything you see with a grain of salt, and whatever you do…don’t take nutrition advice from teenage girls on TikTok.
xoxo
LOVE THIS! Wish I knew these things earlier