Dieticians themselves have shunned the thought process behind ‘good’ and ‘bad’ foods, so why are we still so adamant about this food categorisation? Should we trust the Instagram posts and fitspo’s telling us what we can and can’t eat? Mainstream dieting is placing a really negative view on certain foods, and calorie shaming is steadily becoming more popular.
Weight loss programmes such as Weight Watchers encourage the idea that some foods are ‘bad’ to eat, and go as far as calling them a ‘syn’. Point counting these syns create guilt associated with food, making it impossible to enjoy a meal. Food is needed to nourish our bodies and point/ calorie counting can drive us to eat too little.
Countless diets nowadays label carbohydrates as the devil, preaching to their followers to avoid them at all costs. Carbohydrates are your body’s main source of energy when consumed within a balanced diet, so cutting the food group will lead to chronic fatigue. What’s healthy about cutting pasta, potatoes and fruit out of your diet? Surely we know the dieting fads have gone too far when people start to avoid eating bananas? It’s true that carbs can cause problems in our bodies. They can elevate your blood sugar rapidly, but if eaten with fat and protein, the sugar spike can be avoided, and carbs can be enjoyed.
Many of us have labelled foods as being ‘bad’, however the only bad thing is depriving yourself of the foods you love and crave. Treating yourself occasionally to your favourite snacks encourages a balanced diet and a positive relationship with food. Moderation is the key to avoiding unhealthy consequences of the not-so-nutritious food we know and love.
“Pizza is often demonized as ‘bad’ because it is high in fat, high in refined carbohydrates and easy to overindulge,” wrote Chris Mohr, co-founder of the nutrition consultation company, Mohr Results. “But if that pizza isn’t an everyday occurrence and it brought friends together, encouraged conversation, laughing and connection, the otherwise ‘bad’ food becomes nurturing for your soul. Food inherently is not good or bad.” (Krieger, 2019)
Food is not only meant to provide nutrients to fuel your body, but you are also meant to enjoy it. Too many dieters cut all of the foods that they deem to be ‘bad’, which just leaves them feeling deprived and eventually can lead to overeating or binge eating. We need to leave behind the idea of good or bad foods. As Cheryl Cole once said, “Too much of anything can make you sick”.