The Top 5 myths about nutrition

Last week's Top 5 Success Tips for Sound Nutrition and Weight Loss wouldn't be complete without an accompanying set of diet myths and misconceptions. So...here they are.

1. Foods labeled "No Cholesterol!" are healthy.
   "That's the biggest misconception I hear all the time," said Linda Ber, RD at Libertyville's Condell Medical Center. "A food with no cholesterol could still be loaded with fat. Peanut butter is full of fat. French fries fried in cholesterol-free oil are loaded with fat. Potato chips are cholesterol free and loaded with fat."
   "Low cholesterol just means no animal fat," pointed out Pam Milan, RD at St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin. "People think eating no cholesterol foods will lower their cholesterol level. Lowering cholesterol involves weight control if you're over weight, eating a low fat diet and exercise."
2. Starchy foods are fattening.
   "Some people still think starches and carbohydrates are bad," said Laura Pleskunas, RD at Joliet's St. Joseph Medical Center. "Carbohydrates -- potatoes, grains, bread, cereal, pasta...these are considered the mainstay of any healthy diet -- they're at the base of the food pyramid and the foods we should eat the most."
3. All chicken and fish is good.
   If it's coated and fried, about 50 percent of the calories will be from fat, Ber said. So while a small order of McDonalds chicken nuggets is only about 270 calories, 50 percent of those calories are from fat. Ditto for Wendy's fish, which is a whopping 460 calories, 49 percent from fat.
4. Eating before bed will make you fat.
   The idea that everything you eat at night gets stored as fat because your metabolism is lower is "ridiculous and completely unfounded," said Richard Wolff, RD and director of the Center for Nutrition at Elgin Nautilus. "Timing has little to do with [fat storage] versus overall total calorie balance. I eat before I go to bed every night, but I'm not gaining weight because those calories are still leading up to my maintenance needs for the day."
   If you enjoy a bedtime snack, Wolff suggests looking for ways to trim calories earlier in the day -- substituting a couple pieces of fruit (200 calories) for a 600 calorie muffin, for example, so you can still have a little something before bed.
5. If you eat a low fat diet, you will lose weight.
   A low fat diet can reduce your risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and several types of cancer. But "People are still mystified why they're not losing weight if they're eating a low fat diet," Wolff said. "If a goal is to lose body fat over time, you have to have some awareness of calorie consequences of food." In other words, calories still count -- if you take in more calories than you burn, you'll still gain weight even if you're diligent about cutting fat intake.
   "Low or no fat foods still have calories," Milan added, "and many times the no fat deserts have higher sugar contents," so the calorie counts are just as high or higher than the full-fat versions.

© Copyright 1994 Paula Lauer