Does eating at night cause weight gain? Are fresh fruits and vegetables more nutritious than frozen ones? Do cravings for certain foods indicate that your body needs those nutrients? Can eating grapefruit, celery, or cabbage help you burn fat and lose weight? Should you only weigh yourself once a week? These pieces of common sense sound good, but upon closer inspection, they may not be entirely true.
Let's hear what American nutritionist Joy Bauer has to say about some "dietary facts" to correct some of our misconceptions about food.
Misconception 1: Eating at night causes weight gain
Relevant studies have confirmed that if you only consume an appropriate amount of calories daily, you won't gain weight from eating at night or snacking. It is recommended to reasonably distribute your daily eating times, eating every 4-5 hours to provide energy for your body and brain. What you eat for dinner should be adjusted based on what and how much you ate during the day. If you still want a snack at night, it's best to keep it under 250 calories, such as a small amount of popcorn, a handful of almonds, a frozen banana, or a low-fat ice cream. If you find yourself in a frenzy over food, gorging all day long without exception at night, you should consult a doctor. Misconception 2: Drinking juice can lead to rapid weight loss and cleanse the body
On one hand, your body doesn't need you to interfere with so-called "cleansing" work; your kidneys, liver, and bladder can handle the task perfectly well. On the other hand, rather than helping you lose weight quickly, juice will make you feel hungry sooner and eat more. The high sugar content in beverages aids digestion and can cause greater fluctuations in your blood sugar concentration, making you feel hungry easily. At the same time, most juices lack essential nutrients like protein, fat, minerals, and fiber, which are indispensable even during weight loss. For example, protein can increase muscle strength, promote metabolism, and stabilize blood sugar levels. Misconception 3: Cravings for certain foods indicate that the body needs those nutrients
To date, scientists do not have enough evidence to link cravings for certain foods with a deficiency of those micronutrients in the body. In fact, a psychologist once conducted an experiment on chocolate addicts. In the experiment, one group was given a cocktail containing chocolate ingredients, while the other group was given fake chocolate bars that looked, smelled, and tasted like chocolate but contained no actual chocolate. The result was that the group given the fake chocolate bars was more satisfied, because even though it wasn't real chocolate, its shape, aroma, and taste perfectly satisfied the needs of the chocolate addicts. People tend to crave foods they love and that are associated with happy times. For example, you crave a hamburger because you love its texture and enjoy eating it in a cozy tavern or at a family picnic, not because you are deficient in the minerals it contains. Misconception 4: Fresh fruits and vegetables are more nutritious than frozen ones
The so-called fresh produce you buy may not be as fresh as you think, unless you live in the countryside. Generally, after harvest, fruits and vegetables take several days to be sorted and packaged before being shipped everywhere. In this relatively "long" process, important nutrients like vitamin C and folic acid in fruits and vegetables can be lost due to changes in light and temperature, not to mention that they will sit in your refrigerator for a few days after you buy them!
Canned or frozen fruits and vegetables sometimes retain more nutrients because they are processed more quickly after being harvested from the farm, so they are "fresher" when they appear on your table. Sometimes, the processing process can increase the nutritional value of some agricultural products. Take tomatoes, for example. They are heated before canning, which helps release the lycopene in them, and lycopene has been proven to be a natural antioxidant that can effectively prevent many types of cancer. Of course, frozen fruits and vegetables also have problems such as poor texture and additives. Canned or frozen fruits and vegetables generally don't taste as good as fresh ones, and food manufacturers often add salt, sugar, or fat to their fruit and vegetable products. However, you can choose "low-sodium" or "no salt added" products and try to avoid canned or frozen fruits and vegetables with multiple additives. It is recommended to buy some fresh and some frozen fruits and vegetables to take home. Misconception 5: Eating grapefruit, celery, or cabbage helps burn fat and lose weight
These are indeed vegetables that are high in nutritional value and low in calories, but they cannot help you burn fat. If you ate grapefruit, celery, or cabbage as part of your diet plan and achieved weight loss results, it was likely because you used them to replace high-calorie foods. Misconception 6: You should only weigh yourself once a week
Seeing the scale show that your weight has decreased is undoubtedly exciting. Two studies published in American magazines in recent years have shown that people trying to lose weight or avoid gaining weight are more likely to succeed if they weigh themselves daily. If you have obsessive-compulsive disorder or are overly engrossed in it, then weighing yourself daily may not be suitable for you. It is recommended that you use other effective methods to measure your weight loss process, such as measuring body temperature, testing body fat percentage, comparing personal photos, and feeling how well your clothes fit.