If you’re watching your waistline or looking to lose weight, be sure you don’t turn to some typical diet foods that aren't so diet-friendly after all. Throughout the last thirty years, there have been so many changes to what being healthy means- such as low-fat trends in the '80s, low-carb trends in the '90s, and a raw food and vegan diet beginning in the early 2000s. With all of these changing trends it can be confusing to know what to eat, especially if you’re on a diet. Some typical diet-foods that aren't so diet-friendly are often hard to spot, but they’ll undo your dieting efforts in no time. To prevent that from happening to you, avoid buying these foods and consider the alternatives suggested instead. Remember that just because a food is low in calories, raw, organic, or even gluten-free, that doesn't mean it’s necessarily the most diet-friendly option.
1 Coconut Oil
Yes, coconut oil is a wonderful food, but it’s also one of the top typical diet foods that aren’t so diet-friendly. Despite the myth, coconut oil is not going to make the scale drop. It might actually make you gain weight! Instead of coconut oil, opt for a tiny bit of coconut butter, which contains plenty of fiber and less fat per serving. Then, keep it to one tablespoon per serving for the best portion control.
Frequently asked questions
2 Organic Cereal
This might seem like a healthy choice, but organic cereal isn’t going to help you lose weight any more than a box of Frosted Flakes would. Choose whole grain oats or quinoa instead of processed cereals whether you're on a diet or not.
3 Gluten-free Bread
Just because a food is gluten-free doesn't make it diet-friendly. That's especially true of bread, which is just processed carbohydrates. Gluten-free bread is often very low in fiber and contains quick-digesting grains that spike your blood sugar faster than whole grains, which are always the best option.
4 Low-fat Peanut Butter
Low-fat peanut butter may be low in calories, but it often contains excess sugar and lots of artificial ingredients. Choose regular unsalted peanut butter or raw almond butter instead. Then be sure to only have one tablespoon a day if you're on a diet.
5 Frozen Veggie Pizza
These may be better than ordering Domino’s, but they aren’t going to reduce your waistline any faster. Instead of processed frozen pizzas, make your own! You can even base the crust off portobello mushrooms to lower the calorie content even further, and use nutritional yeast instead of dairy cheese.
6 Coconut Sugar
Coconut sugar is much less processed than regular cane sugar and even low-glycemic, but guess what? It’s still a source of excess sugar to your body, which means your liver stores it as excess fat. Avoid all excess sugars- natural or not. Opt for stevia or have a nice piece of fruit instead!
7 Granola Bars
Don’t waste your calories on granola bars, which are really just sugary snacks. Even the healthy options out there have processed and added sugars, along with excess fats. Opt for some raw trail mix or have a handful of raw almonds with some carrots instead.
Remember that the best diet-friendly foods are the ones that don’t need a label to tell you so. Vegetables, fruits, legumes, lean protein, nuts, seeds, nonfat plain yogurt, and whole grains are the best diet-friendly foods out there, no matter what. Can you think of any more typical diet foods that aren’t so diet-friendly?
