When it comes to eating healthy, one of the biggest barriers is a flood of unreliable information. Conflicting headlines, fad diets and misinformation make it difficult to sort out what’s really good for you and what’s harmful. Creating more uncertainty: manufacturers that slap misleading food labels on their products, and social media influencers with no nutrition expertise who tout specific eating habits or diets. Here are 10 of the most common nutrition myths and the truth about each. 1. Myth: All fat is bad Fat got a bad rap in the ’90s, when low-fat diets were all the rage, and many Americans are still confused about the role of fat in a healthy diet. We now know that all fats aren’t created equal, says Teresa Fung, a nutritional epidemiologist and professor of nutrition at Simmons University in Boston. Animal fats, which are more saturated, are linked to cardiovascular disease. But the healthier monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats found in fish, avocados, olives and olive oil, eggs, nuts and seeds can lower your risk of cardiovascular disease and death. Although all types of fats are high in calories, fats “stay in the stomach longer,” Fung says, “so you are satisfied for longer and you don’t reach for a snack as quickly.” 2. Myth: The best way to cut sodium is to put aside the salt shaker The vast majority of Americans consume too much salt, and if you have high blood pressure, slashing your sodium intake could be a matter of life and death. But because most of our sodium in the United States comes from prepared foods, just avoiding the salt shaker at dinner isn’t going to make a big difference, Fung says. Breads, salad dressings, pasta sauces, canned beans, cheese, and many processed foods and packaged snacks are loaded with sodium, she says. Even boneless, skinless chicken breasts can be injected with a brine that raises sodium levels. Restaurant food is also filled with salt, with some packing the amount of sodium you should have in a day into just one meal, according to a study in the Canadian Journal of Public Health. Fung recommends cooking at home as often as possible, comparing labels and choosing low-sodium versions of packaged and prepared foods. 3. Myth: Foods with “whole grain” or “multigrain” on the label are always healthy You know that foods made with whole grains are healthier than those with refined flour, but labels can be misleading. “Made with whole grains” and “multigrain” may sound healthy, Fung says, but often they mean a product contains only a small amount of whole grains, while the rest is refined.
Fung recommends looking for products labeled “whole grain” or “whole wheat,” which means they’re made with at least 51 percent whole-grain ingredients. Even better, choose one that says “100% whole grain.” You can also look at the ingredient list to make sure a whole grain is listed first. 4. Myth: All sugar and carbs are bad — even in fruit Sugar-free and low-carb diets like keto and paleo are popular, which might lead you to believe that anything with carbs or sugar is bad for your health. However, there’s a big difference between the natural sugars in fruits and vegetables and the added sugars and refined starches in processed foods, says Dariush Mozaffarian, M.D., a cardiologist, public health scientist and director of the Food is Medicine Institute at Tufts University. Cutting out added sugars and refined carbs is probably the best thing you can do for weight control, Mozaffarian says. But don’t stop munching on fruits and vegetables. Not only do they contain vitamins, minerals, fiber and other healthy micronutrients, but studies show that eating more of them is tied to a longer life span and reduces your risk of death from all causes. 5. Myth: Fresh produce is healthier than frozen Nothing beats picking up fresh raspberries or peas at the farmers market. But if it’s the dead of winter, with no local produce to be found, rest assured that you won’t be missing out on any nutrients if you shop the frozen foods aisle, says Valter Longo, a gerontologist, cell biologist and director of the Longevity Institute at the University of Southern California. Frozen produce tends to be picked at the peak of ripeness, and studies show that frozen foods have as many vitamins and antioxidants as fresh ones, and in some cases even more. What’s more, the longer you store fresh produce, the more of its nutritional value it loses, research shows. “Food can oxidize and get contaminated over time,” Longo says. “If you pick berries and freeze some and leave some out, the ones that were frozen might be fresher than the ones that sat around on a bench or in a crate.” 6. Myth: Canola oil is toxic You might have seen social media posts that claim canola oil, sunflower oil and other seed oils are toxic, but science doesn’t back that up, Mozaffarian says. “There is very clear evidence for them being beneficial,” he says. Canola oil is very low in saturated fat and is high in healthy monounsaturated fats, omega-3s and phytosterols, which are known to reduce the absorption of cholesterol in the body. A 2020 review published in the journal Nutrition, Metabolism & Cardiovascular Diseases found that canola oil lowered cholesterol and improved cardiovascular risk factors. Other seed oils, including soybean oil and sunflower oil, are also healthy options, Mozaffarian says. Of course olive oil is known for having heart benefits and may even lower risk of early death. 7. Myth: Gluten-free foods are healthier Gluten is a protein found in grains including wheat, barley and rye. People with celiac disease must eliminate gluten from their diets to prevent damage to their intestinal tracts and other parts of their bodies. And for those with gluten sensitivity, eliminating gluten can help with symptoms of bloating, diarrhea or abdominal pain, according to Harvard Medical School. For the rest of us, however, gluten-free does not necessarily mean healthier, Mozaffarian says.
He said he would like to put to rest the idea that any single word or characteristic can define healthier food, whether it’s organic, local, natural, vegetarian or gluten-free. “All of those are terms that have some relevance, but you can’t really define a healthy diet by a lack of something,” he says. “You can have natural, gluten-free, organic food that is still terrible for you.” 8. Myth: Eat six small meals a day instead of three large ones The idea behind this myth is that eating small, frequent meals could boost your metabolism so you burn more calories. However, studies show that splitting the same number of calories into six meals rather than three does not help with daily energy expenditure, weight loss or fat loss, Longo says. In addition, University of Colorado researchers found that those who ate smaller, more frequent meals ended up feeling hungrier than their counterparts who ate less often. A third problem, Longo says, is that “in the real world, if people are told to eat five or six small meals, they are just going to eat more, or eat more of the wrong things.” Longo recommends eating breakfast and then eating one other big meal and a third smaller meal or snack each day. 9. Myth: It’s a good idea to do a detox or cleanse Different detox diets and juice cleanses are popular on social media, but studies show few benefits and a risk of harm. A 2014 review study, for example, found no evidence that detox diets eliminate toxins from the body or help with long-term weight loss. Even if you lose weight during a cleanse, a 2017 study in the journal Nutrition and Obesity found that most people actually gain weight when they resume eating normally. Perhaps more concerning, cleanses can cause serious side effects including gastrointestinal problems, protein and vitamin deficiencies, dehydration, and electrolyte imbalances, according to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. 10. Myth: “Calories in, calories out” is all that matters It’s true that if you burn more energy than you consume, you will probably lose weight, at least in the short term. But for your overall health, “calories in, calories out” is an oversimplified notion that doesn’t account for the influence different types of foods have on your overall health, Mozaffarian says. Two foods with the same number of calories can have different effects on your hormones, gut microbiome and metabolism, he says. A handful of nuts, for instance, will take longer to digest compared to a bag of Cheetos. And newer research shows starchy and sugary foods tend to contribute to visceral fat, which has been linked to heart disease and other conditions, while fatty foods tend to contribute to subcutaneous fat, which is less harmful. For overall health and weight loss, Mozaffarian recommends choosing nutrient-dense whole foods over processed foods with added sugar and refined carbohydrates. 8 Reasons You’re Always Cold Do you routinely crank up the heat in your home, much to the dismay of your family? Maybe you’re the one always reaching for a sweater when others around you are roasting? There’s no denying that people run at different temperatures. But if you find that you are constantly chilly, even in warmer environments, a medical condition may be to blame. Keep reading to learn about eight health issues that can cause you to feel cold — plus, how aging can contribute to your feeling frosty. 1. Anemia According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), almost 3 million people in the United States have anemia, a condition that occurs when you don’t have enough healthy red blood cells to deliver oxygen to the body’s tissues. As a result, it’s common to feel cold (especially in the hands and feet), tired and weak. Other warning signs of anemia include shortness of breath, pale or yellowish skin, an irregular heartbeat and headaches. Older adults — especially those over 65 — are among the populations more likely to develop a common type of anemia known as iron-deficiency anemia, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Various factors — from diet to ulcers to blood disorders to cancer — can lead to anemia. A low-dose aspirin regimen may even play a role, according to a 2023 study published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine. Researchers found that daily low-dose aspirin increases the risk of anemia in people 65 and older by approximately 20 percent. 2. Type 2 diabetes Diabetes, a chronic disease that affects how your body can turn food into energy, may cause you to feel cold, since it can affect blood flow and circulation. Diabetes can also lead to a condition known as peripheral neuropathy, which can cause a tingling feeling in your hands and feet. Up to half of people with diabetes have peripheral neuropathy, according to the NIH — that’s about 18.5 million Americans. Risk factors for diabetes include being overweight, being 45 or older, lack of exercise and genetics. 3. Chronic kidney disease Chronic kidney disease (CKD), which can be a complication of diabetes, occurs when the kidneys are damaged and cannot filter blood as well as they should. Feeling cold is an early sign of the condition, which affects some 37 million U.S. adults. According to the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the symptom is a result of your kidneys failing to produce a hormone called erythropoietin, which regulates the production of red blood cells, leading to anemia. 4. Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) The main role of your thyroid — a small, butterfly-shaped gland at the base of your neck — is to control the speed of your metabolism, the process of how your body transforms the food you eat into energy your body needs to function. Hypothyroidism occurs when your thyroid doesn’t produce and release enough hormones, causing aspects of your metabolism to slow down. One of the more common symptoms of this condition, which affects nearly 5 percent of Americans age 12 and up, is a sudden sensitivity to cold. Other warning signs include fatigue, weight gain, joint and muscle pain and a slowed heart rate. 5. Heart failure Congestive heart failure — or simply heart failure — is when the heart isn’t pumping blood as efficiently as it should. The condition can cause shortness of breath and a feeling of fatigue and weakness. It can also cause a person to feel cold. “If [the heart is] not pumping out as much blood flow with each heartbeat, the body starts to compensate by kind of clamping down on the blood vessels in our extremities to try to help keep a good blood pressure throughout the body,” says Amy Pollak, M.D., a cardiologist at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida. “Anything that drives the blood pressure to be really low” can cause someone to feel cold, she explains. More than 6 million people in the United States have congestive heart failure, which is the leading cause of hospitalization in people older than 65. Symptoms include chest pain, waking up short of breath at night, heart palpitations and swelling in the ankles, legs and abdomen. 6. Peripheral artery disease (PAD) Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a common circulatory problem in which narrowed arteries reduce blood flow to your limbs, typically the legs. Plaque buildup (fatty deposits and cholesterol) on the walls of the arteries restricts blood flow. If plaque breaks off and enters the bloodstream, clots can form, causing other problems, such as heart attack and stroke A common symptom of PAD is muscle pain or weakness that begins with physical activity, such as walking, and stops within minutes after resting. Another warning sign is that one foot may feel colder than the other, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. The legs, feet and toes may appear pale, discolored or blueish. “The most common area of peripheral arterial disease is in the legs, but it can happen anywhere — cerebrovascular, carotid, arms, kidneys, abdomen — you name it,” says Jay Varma, M.D., a vascular and interventional radiology specialist at Fairfax Vascular Center in Fairfax, Virginia. The condition — which can be treated with lifestyle changes, medication and surgery, depending on the patient’s symptoms — is especially common among adults 50 and older. 7. Raynaud’s disease Raynaud’s disease is a disorder that causes the blood vessels in the extremities to narrow in response to coldness or stress. These narrowing “attacks” most often affect the fingers and the toes, causing them to feel icy and appear pale. When you warm up, the vessels expand again. According to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, scientists don’t know exactly what causes Raynaud’s. They do know that more women than men are affected by the phenomenon; genes may play a role, the institute says. 8. Medication complications Some drugs may make you feel colder as a side effect, including beta-blockers used for heart disease. These blockers help the heart relax but may cause you to feel dizzy, tired, nauseous and colder in your hands and feet. Some ADHD (attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder) medications can cause you to feel cold and may lead to Raynaud’s, according to Mayo Clinic. Talk to your doctor if you suspect medication side effects are causing you to feel cold. He or she may be able to lower your dose or find an alternative medication. Age-related changes can make you more prone to being cold A few age-related changes can cause your internal thermostat to dip. • Thinning of the skin. As we get older, the multilayered fat pads under the skin — the body’s insulation — get thinner, explains Sharon Brangman, M.D., a professor of medicine at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse and a past president of the American Geriatrics Society. “That’s why some people can see their veins and blood vessels so easily under the skin because that cushion thins out,” she says. “That insulation is gone, and your blood vessels are closer to your skin where they are more exposed to changes in temperature.” • Brain changes. In the brain, the center that regulates body temperature — the hypothalamus, commonly called the natural thermostat — becomes less sensitive as we get older. The result: Your body may be slower at adjusting to changes in temperature. • A slowing metabolism. “When you have a high metabolism, you’re often creating more energy, and that might also give you some background warmth,” Brangman says. “But as your metabolism slows down, there’s less energy being created, so you might feel cold. “These are all a part of the normal changes that happen as we get older. It’s important to remember that aging is not a disease, it’s a natural state that everybody goes through,” Brangman says.