10 Dangerous Diet Culture And Nutrition Myths Part 2
Hi Musers, welcome back to part 2 of my series designed to myth bust a lot of the bs out there in the world of nutrition. Unfortunately, most of it is perpetuated by the diet, fitness or “wellness” industries who have something to sell us. It’s frequently just plain wrong and makes knowing how to eat a healthy, balanced diet even more challenging. If you haven’t seen part 1 then diet culture and nutrition myths 1-5 are here for you. All done? Let’s take a look at diet culture and nutrition myths 6-10.
A Word Before We Start
In order for us to make informed decisions about our health, we need information on nutrition. However, there’s no getting away from the fact that for some, healthy eating is difficult. It’s substantially cheaper (here in the UK anyway) to live on a diet of fish fingers, burgers, oven chips and beans than it is to buy fresh meat, fruits and vegetables.
This post is not intended to shame anyone who struggles to afford a balanced diet. It’s not intended to shame someone who chooses not to. It’s your life, and I’m in no position to judge anyone. I am purely trying to give factual information to combat all the crap out there so you can make your decisions.
PS. If you do struggle to afford healthy food, check out My 10 Essentials For Affordable Healthy Eating
Myth 6 – Going Gluten-Free
Let me be clear. Regardless of the many celebrities, athletes and influencers who swear going gluten-free is responsible for everything from weight loss to curing depression, it is completely unnecessary.
The only people who need to go gluten-free are coeliacs or those with a medically diagnosed gluten intolerance. Note I said medically diagnosed, not celebrity diagnosed. The latest Instagram post is no substitute for medical advice, no matter how many followers the person has.
Companies frequently add more sugars, fats, and preservatives to make a gluten-free product seem the same as a glutened one. Gluten-free products also tend to be lower in fibre and minerals than ones containing gluten. Therefore it’s better to stick with gluten unless advised not to by your doctor.
If you think you may have coeliac disease or gluten intolerance, see your doctor for a formal diagnosis but do not stop eating it until you do. Many of the tests they run are dependent on you having gluten in your system. Unless you get a positive diagnosis it’s just another diet culture and nutrition myth.
Myth 7 – XXXX Promotes Or Glorifies “Obesity”
I won’t lie this one really makes me want to scream! Any time anyone wants to have a talk about making our society inclusive for all or suggests everyone should be treated with respect, this argument comes out.
None of these things “glorifies obesity”
- Shops being size inclusive to allow everyone to shop there
- Seats in classrooms, bars, restaurants, cinemas and transport being wide enough to be comfortable for everyone
- Doctors starting to take the ailments of fat people as seriously as they would a thin person. Yes, it might be caused by our weight, but you owe us the same tests you’d do on a thin person, just to be sure!
- Fatter mannequins in shops
- Asking for representation for larger bodies in magazines, modelling, tv and movies. Also, I do not mean only women with the same body shape as thin people, just a bit bigger. ALL shapes and colours
- Images on IG of women of all sizes, colours and shapes. These people exist, and acknowledging that fact makes no change to how the world feels about “obesity”, believe me! All we’re asking for is a place at the table, for representation, for respect, in this day and age that should not be groundbreaking
As far as I’m concerned, “obesity” is a word made up to shame fat people hence my putting in quote marks. I’m fine with fat because it’s what I am. “Obese” refers to BMI. As I explained in part one, it was never designed to be used as a health measure. It does not take into account a person with high muscle mass or shorter people and wrongly classifies them as obese.
Myth 8 – You Need Detoxes and Cleanses
No. Just NO! Unless you have had both your liver and kidneys removed (let me know how that turned out!), you have absolutely no need to detox or cleanse your body. Are there toxins in your body? Yes, absolutely. Does your body need help getting rid of them? Nope! Your liver, kidneys, digestive system and white cells do all of that for you all day long.
All you’re likely to achieve is being very hungry and mess up the flora in your gut in bad cases. After all, it’s not like your liver and kidneys know what you’re doing, is it? It doesn’t think, ooh good, it’s a detox weekend, so I can just take it easy! That would be ridiculous. Your body does fine on its own and does not need your help.
Myth 9 – White Sugar Is The Devil
There seems to be this bizarre perception that white sugar is evil and the sugar in fruit or honey is better. Let’s get this out of the way. Sugar is sugar. Period. No matter where it comes from, your body will convert it to glucose and either use it for energy or store it as fat. There is no difference whatsoever.
That said, eating a piece of fruit is better than a sugary snack food because it contains fibre, vitamins and minerals. That’s all though. Any other distinction brings us back to our title. Diet culture and nutrition myths. Fake news.
Myth 10 – Snacking Is Bad And Makes You Fat
No. Do you know what makes you fat? Dieting! Don’t believe me? A scientific study on 19,000 older men found the biggest predictor of weight gain was dieting. Think that through…the biggest! When we try to restrict food, our bodies panic, think we’re starving and do everything they can to make us eat.
So the answer to this is simple, eat. The best way to ensure your body runs at peak efficiency is to give it food when it tells you it needs it. Snacks, even healthy ones, have been demonised by the diet and food industries because they want to sell you their expensive diet snacks and make a fortune.
If you feel hungry eat something. It doesn’t matter if you only ate half an hour ago, or had a big breakfast, or are going out for dinner. LISTEN to your body. It knows what you need, so try to rebuild your trust in what it’s telling you.
What Have I Missed?
That brings us to the end of my ten dangerous diet culture and nutrition myths. Do you agree? Are there any I’ve missed? Let me know in the comments.
