Junk Food For Weight loss? Is Junk Food Really Harmful
Suppose you go on a diet and drop pounds by cutting junk food out of your diet completely. But did you know that junk food may not be as bad as we think? Junk food, while most certainly unhealthy, may not be as harmful to our bodies as we make it out to be. Find out more about the truth behind junk food when you read this article on what is more harmful to us – junk food or fast eating?
False promises
Unfortunately, many of us believe that if we cut out junk from our diet—which usually means fast and processed foods—we can lose weight quickly. In reality, all that skipping your favorite foods does is make you feel deprived, which will hurt your relationship with eating. Instead of denying yourself comfort foods and avoiding threats, learn to choose healthier options that won’t weigh you down. A perfect example: switching from french fries to sweet potato fries. These have more fiber, vitamins, and nutrients than their white-potato counterparts. And bonus: They taste great!
The Role of Nutrients
It’s been long believed that eating healthily is synonymous with eating less, but what if it doesn’t have to be so hard? We spoke to researchers who study weight loss and sat down with clinical dietitian Alice Living, to get to grips with whether or not ‘healthy junk food’ really exists.
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Their consensus: If you replace processed snacks and foods high in saturated fat and sugar with ‘healthy junk food’ alternatives such as nuts, seeds, whole grains and yogurt (as these are all relatively low in fat, and contain protein and fiber) you can limit your intake of calories and consume just enough healthy nutrients. Better yet – you’ll feel fuller for longer too!
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Bad science behind the myths
That’s why when you see people making claims about how eating junk food helps them lose weight, you should automatically be wary. It’s not necessarily that those claims are wrong—but they’re often overstated or based on poor science. If someone claims that eating junk food helps them lose weight, they probably just want to sell their diet book—or at least gain fame and notoriety in their chosen field.
Lebron James recently posted an Instagram photo of himself dunking on some unfortunate soul while holding a bag of McDonald’s french fries. While many found his post amusing, others were quick to point out that there was no way he could eat fast food and still maintain his fitness level.
Will junk food make you fat?
Some people argue that Lebron James himself is proof that junk food won’t make you fat. After all, Lebron James has been eating McDonald’s and KFC just about every day and he still maintains an athletic physique. However, most of us aren’t genetically gifted with LeBron’s body type (and even if we were, it wouldn’t be healthy to eat like him). For most of us, eating fast food regularly will eventually lead to weight gain. The reason why isn’t because of calories or carbs but rather because of how processed foods affect our hormones and gut bacteria.
Will fast food make you fat?
One of weight loss’s biggest myths. Remember back in elementary school when you were taught that all fat is bad fat and that eating fast food causes obesity and heart disease? If you fell into that camp, let’s clear things up: All carbs—not just fast food, but any type of complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, fruit, bread, and starchy vegetables—are converted to glucose by your body. Glucose triggers insulin production, which tells your cells to store excess energy (calories) as fat.
It’s true that some types of carbohydrates are worse than others; processed foods like white bread are digested quickly and cause spikes in blood sugar levels, while fiber-rich fruits and veggies have a low glycemic index and help keep blood sugar levels steady.
