Breakfast Food for Runners

cornstock‘Tis the time of year to eat. After this weekend of Thanksgiving and all the trimmings festering in my body, I need to get out and run–and watch what I eat.

One of my favorite breakfasts on race day or when I schedule an early-morning run is yogurt. I find it easy on my stomach and don’t experience any gastro intestinal problems when I eat it before working out. It’s light and tastes better than some of the standard go-to protein/carbohydrate bars. Not only is it one of my favorites, but researchers recently found out how beneficial it is to the body.

In the November 24, 2014 issue of BMC Medicine, researchers found yogurt can help reduce diabetes risk–up to 18 percent. Dr. Frank Hu, a professor of nutrition and epidemiology at Harvard School of Public Health, in Boston, and his team of researchers pooled the following histories of medical professionals:

1. The Health Professionals’ Follow-up Study, which included more than 51,000 male health professionals.

2. The Nurses’ Health Study, which included more than 121,000 women nurses.

3. The Nurses’ Health Study II, which followed nearly 117,000 women nurses.

In these studies, they discovered about 15,000 cases of type 2 diabetes–the type of adult onset diabetes stemming from diet and lifestyle choices. When they zeroed in on diary intake, one serving a day was linked to a 17 percent reduction in risk of diabetes.

They did not differentiate what type of yogurt is best, but Dr. Hu did state “yogurt seems to have a place in a healthy diet.”

Try adding yogurt in to your runner’s diet and find yourself reaping the benefits: the probiotics for your immune system, potentially lessening your chances of diabetes, and a better digestive system for running.

Sources:

http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/news/20141125/yogurt-every-day-may-help-keep-diabetes-away

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_149660.html

Home Cooking: A Key To Healthy Eating

Those warm, traditional, home cooked meals that have been romanticized by the media are – unfortunately – a dying art. Scenes of the entire family gathered around a warm meal, made from fresh ingredients have largely been relegated to the realm of fiction. In large part, people just don’t have time to cook anymore. For many, time is also a powerful barrier to home cooking.

But the value of these meals goes much further than nostalgia – they could have a large influence on the health of you and your family. The full impact of home cooking – and it’s increasing rarity – was highlighted by a new paper, published in the journal Public Health Nutrition.

 

The Value of Home Cooking

For the paper, entitled “Is Cooking At Home Associated With Better Diet Quality or Weight-loss Intention?” three years worth of dietary data from 9,000 people was processed. The survey asked questions about what the participants ate, their fast-food intake and their use of frozen or prepared meals. Based on this information, the subjects’ caloric intake was estimated, including their macronutrient profiles.

On average, the group of subjects that rarely cooked at home – once or less per week – ate more total calories than those that cooked more often. The “home cooking” group also ate less sugar and fat than their counterparts.

It’s also interesting to note that the subjects who cooked more often were more likely to make better choices in the ingredients they used, relying more on fresh foods. This group also tended to make better decisions on the rare occasions that they did eat out.

 

The Take-Away

Of course, the obvious lesson from this study is this: Home cooking is healthier than eating out. This likely isn’t a revelation for most people.

What is fairly surprising, though, is the way that home cooking can change your overall dietary habits. In essence, you can train both yourself and your family to eat better even when you are not in a situation to eat a homemade meal.

There’s also the factor of additives that was not included in the study, but still worth mentioning. Prepared foods, whether they are packaged or purchased at a restaurant, often have preservatives, sweeteners and other artificial ingredients that you may want to avoid. Many of those additives are still fairly controversial so it will be up to you to decide what you want to try to avoid or exclude.

 

What If You Can’t

But, honestly, it may just be unrealistic for you to try to cook as much as six nights a weeks. So, what can you do?

Learn how to read nutrition labels and understand what goes into the foods you get at restaurants that you frequent. This type of education will at least help you, and your family, to be well-educated when faced with a confusing assortment of food choices.

Some people who work busy schedules even dedicate an entire night to preparing all of their food for the week. While this technique does involved a fairly large investment of time, it will save you time and money throughout the week – while providing you will healthier food options.

 

 

Sources

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=9412616&fileId=S1368980014001943

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141117084711.htm

 

 

Diet and Exercise for Lasting Health Benefits

Whether you’re an athlete or a fitness enthusiast, you work hard for any improvements you see in your body – from losing weight to cutting time off of your mile. And, just like anything that takes a large investment of time and energy, you are likely concerned with maintaining any and all of those improvements. In fact, guilt after missing some gym-time or cheating on your diet is generally considered part of the price we pay for caring about our fitness.

In the past, however, we’ve talk a lot about the various benefits of the somewhat nebulous “Mediterranean diet” – focusing on fish, fresh vegetables, olive oil and nuts with very little red meat intake. A recent study shows that a combination of both exercise and the Mediterranean diet could have long-lasting health benefits.

 

The Secret Combination

Of course, we know that the Mediterranean diet and exercise are both very good for you. That much is extremely well-documented and fairly widely accepted. In this study, however, the subjects were split into two groups: one that ate a Mediterranean diet and exercised and one that only exercised.

It’s worth pausing to emphasize the fact that the control group was not made up of people who did not exercise at all, as would be common to this sort of study. Instead, the control group only exercised.

Essentially, then, the study was designed to see whether or not a Mediterranean diet added anything to the already well-known health benefits of exercise.

Both groups followed their routines for 8-weeks and then were simply monitored for another year. Of course, over the course of the study, both groups saw various improvements in their overall health. Of particular note to this study, however, was the oft overlooked factor of endothelial health. These endothelial cells line the inside of everything single blood vessel in your body and keeping them healthy translates to health benefits for your entire cardiovascular system.

A full year after stopping their 8-week long programs, the groups had their endothelial function checked. While both groups saw improvements at the end of the 8 weeks, only the group that followed the Mediterranean diet and exercised maintained those improvements.

 

Comments and Concerns

While this study does point out some interesting benefits of a health diet and exercise combination, it also raises some concerns. For one, isn’t it possible that these benefits could be seen from any health way of eating combined with regular exercise? More research is needed to answer that question properly.

Also, some might criticize this study since the long-lasting benefits were on a fairly small scale. After all, most people have never even heard of endothelial cells unless they have had related issues in the past. However, endothelial function has a large baring on blood flow which is a factor in just about everything you do. Blood is, you might remember, very important. Despite it’s somewhat modest reputation, the endothelial lining can effect everything from your risk of developing heart disease to your athletic performance.

 

 

Source

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141106082622.htm

Is Resveratrol Good For Exercise?

Resveratrol, an antioxidant found in the skins of grapes, has enjoyed a lot of popularity over the past few years. Not only did research into the so-called “French Paradox” suggest that resveratrol is responsible for protecting cardiovascular health even when people routinely indulge in fatty foods, studies also hinted to the idea that the substance could enhance the benefits of exercise. In fact, these metabolic and cardiovascular benefits of resveratrol were though to be so potent that the supplement has been marketed as an “exercise mimic.”

The problem is, though, that most of these claims have been debunked through more thorough human studies. In a past post, we’d discussed some of the new information we have regarding resveratrol and cardiovascular health.

New Findings

While that older study dealt with the effects of 250mg of resveratrol on men over 65 years old, this newer research broadened the scope by using active men aged about 22. It’s also important to note that this study used a dose of 150mg – much lower than that used in the past.

For four weeks, the subjects were asked to perform three HIIT-based workouts each week while taking either resveratrol or a placebo. Before and after the training program, all of the subjects were given a muscle biopsy, peak oxygen uptake test, Wingate test, and submaximal exercise test. Essentially, this battery of tests gave the researchers a baseline regarding the subjects muscle composition, oxygen use, power and endurance.

What’s really surprising is that at the end of the study, the placebo group saw a significant increase in power while the resveratrol group actually lost some power. In fact, the group taking the real supplement experienced a significant decrease in each measure that the researchers were watching.

This study stands in stark contrast to the fairly large body of evidence that led to resveratrol’s reputation as “exercise in a bottle.” The truth is, though, that many of the early studies that stirred up all that excitement were animal or test tube trials – which can produce very different results from experiments conducted within the human body. Large reviews of the previous research also suggests that the claims regarding resveratrol’s benefits were greatly exaggerated.

 

What About Wine?

This begs the question: Is wine bad for your exercise goals, then?

Well, let’s look at the numbers. Remember that the negative effects shown in the above-noted studies were observed in connection with fairly large doses of the antioxidant – 250mg and 150mg. To put that into perspective, an especially dark resveratrol-packed glass of wine could max out at about 2mg. So, with moderate drinking, you aren’t likely to reach the levels of resveratrol needed to really do some damage. These effects are only possible with supplementation.

 

 

Sources

http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/abs/10.1139/apnm-2014-0070#.VFgVlcn57D4

http://www.livescience.com/39125-foods-good-sources-resveratrol.html

Coconut Oil – The Honest Truth

According to supporters, it can help you lose weight, improve your cardiovascular health, boost your immune system, prevent Alzheimer’s and seizures, and kill off a variety of microorganisms – all while giving your skin and hair a healthy luster. But is coconut oil really this panacea that it’s proponents (and merchants) would have us believe?

The short answer: Maybe.

But let’s look at some of the research to expand on that conclusion.

 

What Makes It So Special?

In general, most of the proposed benefits of coconut oil come from a very unique type of fat that the fruit contains in unusually high doses called medium-chain triglycerides (MCT). While all fats are extremely calorie dense, MCTs  have a much simpler chemical structure than their long-chain counterparts. This allows your body to metabolize MCTs quickly and use them as an almost immediate source of fuel – similar to the way that it uses carbohydrates – instead of packing them away as body fat.

The key difference between using MCTs and carbs for fuel, though, is that the simple fats have a lot more too offer in the way of energy. Each gram of carbohydrates that you eat gives you about 4 calories. A single gram of MCTs, however, delivers a whopping 8 calories – double the amount of fuel packed into the same rapid-release dose. Based on these properties alone, it seems logical that MCT supplementation would be a great idea for athletes looking for a solid source of energy.

And some animal studies have shown promise in this respect. Unfortunately, the human trials have all been too small to be reliable and have produced frustratingly conflicting results.

Human studies have, on the other hand, suggested that MCTs have promise in improving body composition and increasing insulin sensitivity. The special fats could also be helpful in improving your overall cholesterol profile. Keep in mind, though, that we’re talking about complete coconut oil here – not just MCTs. There’s a lot more to consider.

 

The Flip Side

First of all, let’s talk about calories. Any excess calories, regardless of their source, will get stored as body fat. That means that if you take in any calories and don’t use them almost immediately, you’re going to gain weight – even if they’re of the medium-chain variety. So while this sort of rocket-fuel might be beneficial for athletes, it’s likely just extra calories to the average person.

And, the sad truth is that coconut oil isn’t actually all that great a source of MCTs. In fact, it has the same concentration as butter – about 15 percent. If you would like to give MCTs a try then, you’re better off getting a purified form than using plain old coconut oil.

Then there’s the fact that the vast majority, 90 percent, of the fat in coconut oil is saturated. And, while modern research has shown that saturated fat isn’t the dietary villain we once believed, it’s still not the greatest thing in the world. As mentioned, it is incredibly high in calories which can lead to weight gain – a precursor to diabetes, stroke and heart disease.

While we’re on the topic of heart disease, it’s worth briefly revisiting the topic of cholesterol. According to Dariush Mozaffarian, MD, DrPH, of Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health, the research into coconut oil’s effect on cholesterol is interesting – but not conclusive.

The bottom line, then, is this: Coconut oil does have some potential benefits when used in moderation. Despite having a very unique blend of fats, coconut oil is still extremely high in calories and should be treated just like any other calorie dense food. If you do decide to use it, make sure that you get a virgin coconut oil that has not been hydrogenated. Athletes looking to give MCT a go as an extra source of energy should consider purified MCT supplements rather than coconut oil

 

A Word On Brain Health

Apart from the proposed uses mentioned above, coconut oil has also been suggested as being useful in increasing mental clarity and preventing Alzheimer’s disease. While there has been some interesting laboratory results, no quality study has ever proven this theory in humans. Much of the evidence for this use is strictly anecdotal.

 

Topical Uses

But the claims about coconut oil go beyond it’s dietary function and extend to using it on the skin and hair. Happily, it seems to work well in this both these applications. Studies have shown that coconut oil can be helpful in treating a variety of skin conditions and helps to prevent hair damage caused by standard hair-related activities like combing.

 

 

Sources

http://www.med.nyu.edu/content?ChunkIID=21809

http://nutritionreview.org/2013/04/medium-chain-triglycerides-mcts/

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/coconut-oil-and-health?page=1

http://www.med.nyu.edu/content?ChunkIID=630167

 

More Benefits of a Healthy Breakfast

There are certain things that I expect to be controversial in the fitness world: alcohol, chocolate and supplements are all pretty predictable sources of contention. But breakfast? This unassuming meal has been the certain of a fairly heated dietary debate for some time now, both in the lab and the gym.

For years, breakfast was touted by moms and doctors alike as “the most important meal of the day.” Then intermittent fasting came along and turned on the concept, challenging it’s followers to do something that was previously considered an unforgivable dietary sin: skip breakfast. But studies continue to roll out that highlight various benefits of eating a healthy breakfast. The problem, though, is that most people don’t eat a healthy breakfast.

 

Controlling Cravings

One of the most popular reasons people give for supporting breaking the nightly fast is to stop you from eating poorly the rest of the day. And numerous studies have backed this up, showing that a healthy breakfast sets a dietary tone for the day and helps you to avoid needless snacking.

A recent study, published in the Nutrition Journal, people who eat breakfast have reduced cravings for sweets throughout the day. Specifically, the researchers working on this study looked at the effects of breakfast on dopamine levels – a “feel-good” chemical that your brain releases to reward you for doing something good. Generally speaking, dopamine is released in varying levels after every eating session throughout the day which certain foods having a greater impact then others.

The study found that the dopamine release in breakfasters helps them to avoid binging later on. This was not the case with those that skipped this all-important meal. In fact, the paper explains that overweight and obese individuals develop an insensitivity to dopamine which requires them to eat more food, releasing more dopamine, the feel the same effects. The situation was the essentially same in those that skipped breakfast; they developed a resistance to dopamine and, as a result, craved more food.

But, you may have noticed, up to this point I haven’t defined a “healthy” breakfast. Let’s get into that.

 

Doing It Right

All of these oft-cited studies, including the one mentioned above, do not use the traditional American breakfast. Pancakes, cereal and all of their sugary ilk are not what we’re talking about here. Instead, all of these benefits have been found with high-protein meals. To be fair, though, I have to say that this more recent study did find craving-reducing benefits with any breakfast. The longest-lasting and widest reaching effects, though, were seen with high-protein meals.

So, while having a healthy meal to start your day does appear to have some absolutely undeniable benefits, it’s important to do it right. Start off with high-protein foods, like eggs, yogurt and bacon – yes, bacon – that will leave you feeling full and satisfied throughout the day.

 

 

 

Sources

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/10/141015143247.htm

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110519113024.htm

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130326151127.htm

Is It True That Grapefruit Juice Helps Weight Loss?

In my years of writing on health and fitness topics, I’ve covered my fair share of fad diets and frankly ridiculous ideas that have permeated my realm. One that keeps coming back, however, is the thinking that grapefruit juice helps weight loss. And I will readily admit that I have been critical of this idea in the past. Thanks to some new research, though, it seems like I might have to be a little more open-minded.

First, though, I’m going to stubbornly defend my previous stance.

 

What Was Wrong

Over the past several years, grapefruit juice has been touted by a huge number of celebrity and fad diets as a weight loss miracle. And I have vehemently disagreed. My primary objection, though, has been directed at the way these diets were designed and how proponents claimed grapefruit juiced worked.

First, the diets were often extreme fasts or cleanses that required you to eat nothing but grapefruits for several days. Of course you’re going to lose weight, you’re at a massive caloric deficit. The infamous “Twinkie Diet” dramatically demonstrated that even if you were to eat nothing but junk food you would lose weight as long as you restricted your calorie intake.

Then there’s the issue of rebound. These grapefruit-centric crash diets were only designed to be followed for a few days and do not sustain lasting weight loss. Statistically, once you return to eating real food, you’re extremely likely to not only regain the weight you lost but also gain a few extra pounds as well.

My second cause for complaint is the supposed mechanism by which grapefruit was claimed to help with weight loss: Acid. In the past, supporters asserted that the high acid content of grapefruit literally burned your fat away. This is both impossible and wrong.

So, how does grapefruit help to reduce body weight according to this new body of research?

 

What’s Really Going On

For this study, conducted at the University of California – Berkeley, mice were divided into six different groups. The control group was given water that had been modified to have the same amount of calories and sugar as grapefruit juice. The juice used in the study was diluted and sweetened.

Other groups were given either an isolated form of naringin – a compound found in grapefruit juice – or a prescription glucose-lowering drug called metformin.

The mice were placed on either a high-fat (30 percent) or low-fat(10 percent) diet throughout the 100-day study. At the end of the study, two interesting findings surfaced. Most noticeably, the mice that were fed a high-fat diet and given grapefruit juice gained the least amount of weight when compared to the other groups.

Of course, it could also have been that the benefits were present in the low-fat group but simply more subtle. More research is needed to fully understand this connection.

The researchers also noticed that grapefruit juice had the same beneficial effects on blood sugar that the prescription drug.

It is very important to note, though, that grapefruit juice didn’t help the mice actually lose any weight; The juice simply stopped them from gaining as much. This means that grapefruit juice is not a magic bullet but could have it’s place in an otherwise healthy routine.

 

Cautions and Such

Although grapefruit juice showed a lot of potential when it comes to controlling blood sugar, you should never self-medicate if you have a condition. You also should not combine grapefruit juice with a prescription medication without talking to your doctor.

It is also worth mentioning that this study was funded by the California Grapefruit Growers Cooperative. Despite this, the researchers asserted that the backers had no influence on the design or outcome of the study.

 

 

Sources

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0108408

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/10/141008153626.htm

Foods to Add to Your Runner’s Diet

indexThis morning I headed out for an early morning run and finally felt a nip in the air. I must awake early enough to get it, as the daytime still lingers with an extra touch of heat. But I loved zipping up a running jacket and actually shedding it at some point on the run–usually I’m hot even starting the run. It’s the time of year when I also love to change up my diet with new flavors and foods. I found some good alternatives for runners this autumn season:

1. Parsnips
While you normally see pumpkin splashed across all the restaurant menus this time of year, aim to incorporate parsnips into your diet as an alternative vegetable to mix it up. Parsnips contain a healthy dosing of potassium–one of the most vital nutrients for runners. They help with cramping and add fiber into your diet, making your digestive organs work properly (and we all know the challenges when those organs don’t work).

2. Squash
If you have a sweet tooth, try switching out the standard pumpkin pie for squash pie. Squash is low in calorie and can be stored for a long time. If you want a healthy dessert, bake squash until its really tender and sprinkle some cinnamon on top.

3. Pumpkin
If you can’t ignore pumpkin and tried the previous two options, head right back to this fall staple. It’s also rich in potassium for runners. Even the seeds are good for roasting and could work as an alternative for nutrition when out on a trail run.

4. Dates
Sweet and juicy, these can be mixed with nuts to create your own running trail mix.

5. Kiwis
While the autumn typically focuses on vegetables, some fruits are harvested during this time. Kiwis are in abundance from September through March and can be used in your morning green juices for tartness.

Source:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/27/health/gallery/best-fall-superfoods/index.html?hpt=he_t4

High Protein Diets Lower Blood Pressure

High protein diets have been all the rage among athletes for several years now. Along with the muscle-building benefits of protein – which is obviously key to protein synthesis – a high protein diet has been linked with weight loss as well. One extremely fascinating study even found that subjects who were following a high protein diet (where 30 percent of their calories came from protein) with no restrictions to their calorie intake lost more weight than another group that was under caloric restriction. The prevailing theory, based on previous research, is that protein increases feelings of fullness so that the subjects self-limited and simply craved less food than they normal would.

But there have been concerns about the effect that this sort of diet might have on the human heart. New research not only answers these fears but even shows potential cardiac benefits connected high protein diets.

 

Protein and Blood Pressure

Using 11 years worth of information from the Framingham Offspring Study, researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine looked at the effects of protein intake on blood pressure. The researchers concluded that people who stuck to high protein diets had statistically lower blood pressures now, as well as a lower risks in the long-term.

It’s also interesting to note that the study found that these positive effects were increased when a high protein intake was combined with a high fiber diet.

Okay, so high protein diets have the potential to treat and prevent high blood pressure. But what exactly is a “high” protein intake and does it matter where the protein comes from?

 

Picking Your Sources

One of the primary reasons for the concerns regarding high protein diets and cardiovascular health is that many protein sources are also high in fat. Especially in the case of red meats, these fats are of the saturated nature. While saturated fats aren’t as bad as they’ve been made out to be, they should still be kept in moderation. For this reason, stick to lean protein sources – those that have low levels of unhealthy fats or high levels of healthy fats. Salmon and chicken as good examples of lean protein sources that also include healthy fat.

The study also found that the blood pressure related benefits of high protein diets occurred regardless of whether the protein came from plant or animal sources. When combined with the conclusion that high fiber intake increases these benefits, it makes sense to try to make are much of our protein come from plants are possible.

So how much is enough, then? While the exact definition of “high protein intake” has been heavily debated for a while now, the study saw these benefits in people who ate an average of 100g of protein every day.

Combined with the other emergent research on high protein diets, the evidence is mounting that this is an extremely beneficial way for everyone – especially athletes – to eat.

 

 

 

Sources

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140911125920.htm

http://ajh.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2014/09/12/ajh.hpu157

http://www.uhc.com/source4women/health_wellness_tools_resources/nutrition/high_protein_diets.htm

 

Unhealthy Health Foods

Last night, my wife and I had an interesting and unexpected nutritional experience. Craving something sweet, we dug through the cabinets and came up with a box of fat-free/sugar-free chocolate pudding. That seemed promising and, though we normally avoid artificially fat-free/sugar-free foods, desperate times call for desperate measures.

It was a disaster. Flavor-wise, the pudding was fine. But both our stomachs immediately protested. My wife couldn’t even finish her serving. And this got me thinking. I’ve written in the past about the lie that is fat-free food so I wasn’t totally surprised by these results. Still, the severity of it startled me. So, here’s the question: What did this do to us and when is it better to avoid these so-called “healthy” variations? Is there such a thing as unhealthy health foods?

 

The Truth About Sugar and Fat

Food manufacturers are very aware of buzzwords that sell their products and use them liberally. Among the most popular, and time-honored, of these are those featured on the aforementioned pudding box: Sugar-free and fat-free. But do these features automatically make a food more healthy? Should we always do what we can to avoid sugars and fat?

That all depends on you and your goals, especially when it comes to sugar. This oft-maligned ingredient comes in many forms but is always used as a sweetener (obviously) and is always a simple carbohydrate. It’s classification as “simple” means – among other things – that sugar has a large and rapid impact on your blood sugar levels. In the case of people with diabetes or at risk for the condition, it’s extremely important to keep your blood sugar at healthy levels.

For athletes, however, strategic use of these simple carbs can be a powerful weapon. Not only does sugar provide a boost of energy, insulin spikes – soon after exercise – encourage muscle growth. So, proper timing of simple carbs – in otherwise healthy people – can actually be a very good thing.

Likewise, fat has been seen as a dietary villain for several decades now. Recent research, though, has shattered these notions. Fat, like protein and carbs, is a nutrient that is vital to proper function of the human body. Despite its reputation, dietary fat does not automatically create body fat. It also does not immediately poison your heart or harden your arteries. In fact, certain types of fat have been associated with improved brain function, cardiovascular health and weight loss.

Clearly, then, sugars and fats do not totally deserve their bad reputations. When proper choices are made in the right context and in moderation, sugar and fat can have a place in the athlete’s diet.

But there’s also a darker side to artificially fat- and sugar-free food than just being unnecessary.

 

What’s Really Happening

Similar to their natural counterpart, artificial sweeteners have also come under fire in recent years. Various claims have been made about the effects of these substances, including an increased risk of cancer, with mixed results in the lab. One thing that is known about artificial sweeteners, though, is that they do not actually help you lose weight. Which is especially concerning because most artificial sweeteners are essentially calorie-free. Artificial sweeteners have been linked with obesity, diabetes and increased food cravings in high-quality studies.

Fat-free foods are also achieved through some odd means. When it occurs in foods, fat does several things. First, it makes food delicious. Second, fat acts as a thickener and gives food texture. When the fats are removed, a substance needs to be added that will replace flavor and give the resultant food a natural feel. Various additives are used to accomplish this, including fat substitutes. These chemicals are particularly strange because, although they chemically resemble fat, your body can’t actually digest them. Essentially, these fat-like additives pass through your body totally unharmed which can cause all sorts of digestive discomfort.

 

The Bottom Line

If you are trying to avoid sugars and fats, it’s best to do so by choosing foods that are naturally lacking. At the same time, both sugar and fat can have a place in a healthy diet when eaten in moderation.

 

 

Sources

http://blog.foodnetwork.com/healthyeats/2011/05/20/sugar-free-foods-good-or-bad/

http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/artificial-sweeteners-sugar-free-but-at-what-cost-201207165030

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/truth-about-low-fat-foods