Just eat real food.

Many years ago I heard someone say “If your Granny wouldn’t recognise it, don’t eat it”. This resonated with me, sparked my passion for food and led me to train in Holistic Nutrition. The right food can literally change people’s lives.

But these days, it doesn’t matter where you look, there is someone proclaiming ‘this’ or ‘that’ to be the new miracle-food; some would literally need to have come from Unicorns to deliver the results their marketing teams have dreamed up!

Here are a few of the latest fads you’ll be seeing everywhere, along with my take on them.

CUTTING OUT FOOD GROUPS

This isn’t new, you will probably know someone who has done Atkins, or cut out sugar for instance.

Cutting carbs (sugar is a carb) is seriously ‘old hat’ now and you will already know that your body needs good carbs because they’re the primary foods for energy!

Where do you get ‘good’ carbs? 

• Fruit (natural sugars) and vegetables are my best-friend carbs.
• Whole-grain bread, oatmeal, and brown rice are high in fibre and rich in B vitamins like folic acid, which are nutritional essentials.

COCONUT OIL

Coconut Oil has been heralded as the miracle cure of all miracle cures – no strand of hair, salad or stir-fry has been safe!

There is very little scientific evidence to back up any claims, so here are the facts:

• 92% saturated fat (that’s the bad stuff)
• the highest saturated fat content of any plant
• acts like animal fat
• Saturated fat raises LDL the bad cholesterol

 You wouldn’t put a big scoop of hard lard in your stir-fry right?
Consider this next time you reach for the coconut oil.

FERMENTED FOODS

As the world becomes smaller place, fermented probiotic foods from many different nations line our supermarket and health food shelves – all in the name of ‘gut-health’.  If you have gut-health issues, these foods are laden with good bacteria which create a protective lining in the intestines. Many have been used for centuries and have recently come back into fashion.

• Probiotic yoghurt
• Sauerkraut – even Granny would recognise this!
• Pickles – pickled vegetables
• Miso – fermented soybean
• Kimchi – Korean pickled cabbage

All good food but for most of us, spending more on these is also an unnecessary fad.

CLEAN EATING – My favourite fad!

Clean eating is my favourite because it avoids junk food, processed and refined foods.

It’s about eating whole ‘real’ foods which haven’t been messed around with and are as close to their natural form as possible.

Clean eating’ can be deceptive, though.

• Just because it’s ‘clean’ doesn’t mean it’s lean or good for heart health
• Many ‘clean’ recipes call for excessive natural sugar alternatives which are still pure sugar, coconut oil instead of butter (still saturated fat) – you get my drift with this one?

Balance is the key.

Food should be enjoyed, and if you manage the 80-20 ratio of eating wholesome healthy food most of the time (the stuff Granny would recognise) with the odd special treat thrown in, then you’re sure to be glowing with optimum health!

Iona is a weight-loss and style coach. If you have questions for her, leave a comment below or let us know and she will answer them in her column.

Iona Eadie-Askew
Evolve Life Coaching | Weight Loss and Wardrobe
Iona, trained in London, now lives in Auckland and has many more tips to share.
www.evolvelifecoaching.co.nz