As a nutrition professor, I am constantly asked why nutrition advice seems to change so much and why experts so often disagree. Whose information, people ask, can we trust? I’m tempted to say, “Mine, of course,” but I understand the problem. Yes, nutrition advice seems endlessly mired in scientific argument, the self-interest of food companies and compromises by government regulators. Nevertheless, basic dietary principles are not in dispute: eat less; move more; eat fruits, vegetables and whole grains; and avoid too much junk food.

“Eat less” means consume fewer calories, which translates into eating smaller portions and steering clear of frequent between-meal snacks. “Move more” refers to the need to balance calorie intake with physical activity. Eating fruits, vegetables and whole grains provides nutrients unavailable from other foods. Avoiding junk food means to shun “foods of minimal nutritional value”—highly processed sweets and snacks laden with salt, sugars and artificial additives. Soft drinks are the prototypical junk food; they contain sweeteners but few or no nutrients.

This article was originally published with the title Eating Made Simple.

6 Comments

1. 1. Marc B. Francis MD 08:48 PM 11/15/07

   One of the best discussions - especially debunking the food pyramids and a fad infested subject.

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2. 2. bfreewithrp 08:07 PM 7/24/08

   Today, the word is out. MSRA is the disease to watch for. When one gets the identifier symptoms, you visit your doctor or ER for an antibiotic, which, you hope will return you back to a normal human being.
   http://www.healthmad.com/Alternative/Staph-Infection-Protection-with-Simple-Herbs-and-Spices.67997
   Staph Infection Protection with Simple Herbs and Spices
   

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3. 3. getreal 08:55 PM 1/5/09

   Wouldn't it be more logical to attribute another side effect of the 'shareholder value movement' to at least some of the weight gains and cases of metabolic syndrome all over the industrialized world, namely the financial insecurity, social dislocation, stress, ever increasing work hours and lack of sleep? Every physiology text book illustrates the consequence of chronically elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Craving for carbohydrates, localized fat accumulation in the abdomen and general weight gain only some of them. Since only a minority of the adult population thrives on ever increasing and faster changes in their lives, we might very well be in an epidemic of stress related health problems. Emphasizing weight reducing diets that limit one or another nutrient might create even more stress by inducing a physiological state of starvation that leads inevitably to binge eating among dieters. Stressed people frequently do not have the energy to cook meals from scratch and will be too tired to get enough exercise. I think,the greatest danger to the American public's health is the proliferation of nutritionists profiting from the above mentioned social changes and the irrational believe in the creation of the perfect human body. Nobody assumes that people should have the same hair color and height, but the guardians of our health never entertain the idea that there might be differences in human metabolism and body shapes which are not amenable to their ministrations Doctors, who tell their patients to loose weight contribute to the yo-yo effect of binging and dieting. Instead they should warn of the dire health consequences of such behavior like osteoporosis and gallbladder disease. Every statistic worth its grain shows the greater live expectancy of people who are overweight (BMI 25 to 30) without being obese. The cases of severe obesity should be properly diagnosed and investigated, since they might be caused by serious disturbances in appetite regulation and nutrient processing.
   Finally I wish to quote the German food scientist Udo Pollmer:
   Never eat any food that a producer stripped of some supposedly unhealthy ingredient and laced with another supposedly incredibly healthy ingredient!
   And never eat really healthy food that makes you feel lousy!
   Amen
   

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4. 4. ocicat 06:32 AM 1/6/09

   Health and nutrition, as with many areas of science, are subject to fads, trends, and misinterpretation (deliberate or unintentional). I'm sick of consumers blindly jumping on one fad after another on the endless search for (instant) weight loss and health. These days we are only interested in quick results without consideration for long-term effects or that many of our health problems are due to lifestyle factors, and thus require lifestyle changes to improve - not a pill, meal replacement shakes, or the latest exercise equipment.
   People are not interested in applying common sense to health, diet and exercise. They want a short cut, an instant solution. This article highlights what we've known all along- healthy eating in moderation and exercise. But, that doesn't sell, so it's back to attention-grabbing headlines....

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5. 5. Bops 12:56 PM 6/1/10

   Eating healthy only take a small amount of common sense.
   
   Eating foods that make you feel lousy....lots of people do it all the time because it TASTES good.
   
   Why do it?
   
   
   
   
   
   

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6. 6. Bops 01:36 PM 6/1/10

   Other countries don't have the same laws for toxins, pesticides and general food safety that we have here in the U.S.
   I don't even feel safe eating some foods, coffee beans and odd spice mixes from who where.
   
   We had five of our large goldfish die because of some shrimp we purchased from China. If fish don't eat the food within a few minutes...we fish net it out out if the tank right away. This was the first time we had fish die the next day like that. We've had our tank for 30 years.

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