3 of the Most Toxic 'Health' Foods

Let's face it, most of us have probably eaten something we thought was healthy due to savvy marketing tactics, only to find out later that it really wasn't what it was hyped up to be. 

Many so-called healthy foods have little nutritional value and some even contain harmful chemicals, despite that bright and shiny advertising that leads us to believe otherwise.

Advertising is definitely tricky. It can make some of the unhealthiest foods look healthy - even if they're anything but. These three foods are some of the most toxic of purported "healthy foods" that should be avoided at all costs, that is, if you're interested in achieving optimal health, of course!

#1 Heart Healthy Vegetable Oil

Have you ever reached for that bottle of vegetable oil on the grocery store shelf because the label read "heart healthy?"
Industrial vegetable oils found in the supermarket typically contain .56 to 4.2% of their fatty acid as trans fats, which are highly toxic. Trans fats are actually "fake" fats. They're known to clog arteries, increase levels of LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, and lower HDL, or "good" cholesterol. Eating too many trans fats causes an overload of inflammation, a main factor in many chronic diseases, as well as weight gain.
The heat and harsh chemicals used to extract oil from vegetables, including bleaching and the toxic solvent hexane, actually destroys some of its vitamins and antioxidants. In later stages of processing, even more chemicals are injected in to "improve" the color and odor. Not only that, but overheating vegetable oils - which is typically what's done when cooking with them, releases compounds that can damage lungs and potentially cause cancer.
Not only that, but almost all vegetable oils are damaged and rancid from their processing and also contain high amounts of inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids, both of which cause massive inflammation throughout your body that can possibly lead to heart disease, cancer, digestive disorders, and joint problems.
Remember that inflammatory vegetable oils are used in almost every type of fried food at most restaurants, and any type of processed food that contains vegetable oils such as potato chips and many snack foods.
Despite the healthy sounding name of "vegetable oil", the fact is that vegetable oils do NOT come from vegetables... This is a generic term that usually means any combination of soybean oil, corn oil, canola oil, cottonseed oil, or other heavily refined processed omega-6 based oils that are all bad for you.
So what should you use instead?
For high heat cooking, use organic extra virgin coconut oil which contains medium chain fatty acids that are resistant to high heat. They also turn into ketone bodies in the liver which provide energy to the brain and are known to help improve all types of health problems.

#2 Energy/Protein/Breakfast Bars

Those prettily packaged bars advertised to boost energy, provide protein or as a "healthy" substitute for breakfast are another one of the worst offenders. Most are highly processed products - really just a candy bar in disguise - filled with sugar, high fructose corn syrup and even trans fats as well as artificial sweeteners.
If you read the label of a Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Strawberry Yogurt Bar, for example, you'll see that it has just 130 calories and 3.5 grams of fat. Sounds good, right? Unfortunately not. Many of its ingredients aren't technically food - it packs a ton of sugar and even contains Red Dye #40. While it's a pretty color, its effects are anything but, with just a few of the reported symptoms including migraines, inability to concentrate, nervousness and upset stomach. Children have been found to be especially sensitive to Red 40, exhibiting symptoms like temper tantrums and aggressive behavior.
If you need a boost of energy or are looking to meet your body's protein needs after a workout, grab a small handful of raw, organic almonds instead! They make the perfect convenient snack that you can take with you wherever you go.

#3 "Healthy" Breakfast Cereals

You probably know to avoid sugary cereals like Lucky Charms or Cocoa Pebbles, but most breakfast cereals, even those with health claims like "whole grain," are often loaded with refined blood sugar spiking carbs and sugars. Manufacturers fortify them with a few synthetic vitamins, a small amount of whole grains, and then market the product as "healthy."
Some cereals even contain preservatives like BHA and BHT which are linked to an increase risk of cancer. Not only that, but you may be getting a dose of unhealthy trans fats disguised under a new name: "monoglycerides."
But the WORST thing about most cereals, even so-called "whole grain" cereals is that they ALL cause a significant spike in your blood sugar which results in a cascade of fat storing hormones to be released in your body, and causes more carb cravings later in the day. This is NOT the way to start your day if you care about your waistline!
Not only that, but any cereals with wheat ingredients in them can possibly cause gut inflammation and long term gut damage from too much gluten. Think those corn-based cereals are better than wheat? Think again! Corn-based cereals are almost always made with GMO corn, which has many scientists very concerned about long term health threats. And rice-based cereals (krispies, etc) aren't much better, as they cause just as high of a blood sugar spike as pure table sugar... Ouch!

Instead of cereal in the morning, try a bowl of plain greek yogurt (which is loaded with healthy gut probiotics AND protein) and add in fresh, organic berries, nuts, and a little stevia or vanilla protein for a little added sweetness. This breakfast will leave you leaner, keep your blood sugar and hormones balanced, and give your body much less toxic load than cereals.
Unfortunately, this is just 3 examples we gave you in today's article, and deadly toxins are lurking EVERYWHERE these days in hundreds of foods, in your lotions and shampoos, plastics, air pollution, water pollution and more...
For that reason, you absolutely MUST detox at least occasionally to keep your hormones normalized, keep your energy levels high, and to keep your metabolism from shutting down.
The problem is that MOST "cleanses" or celebrity detox fads out there are actually dangerous to your health and can HARM your hormones making fat loss impossible in the long term and even causing rebound weight gain that's worse than where you started.

If you liked today's article please feel free to share with friends and family.

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These 4 Sinister Ingredients are Lurking in YOUR Foods

by Catherine Ebeling - RN, BSN & Mike Geary - Certified Nutrition Specialist
co-authors - The Fat Burning Kitchen

Unless you eat a 100% organic diet, it's pretty much a guarantee that you eat genetically modified foods almost every day.  Most people don't think about the potential long term consequences of eating GM foods and how this could harm your health now or in the future, your kids, or even your future children.
First, watch this MUST-SEE video below to see some vitally important information about GM foods that you need to know.  Then read the article below the video and we'll discuss more issues with GM food.

http://tiny.cc/GeneticEngineering

4 Dangerously Doctored Foods You MUST Avoid to Stay Healthy and Lean
While it seems we don’t hear a lot about them, genetically modified foods have quietly made their way into our food supply in a big way.
So far, there have been no official scientific studies done on GMO’s and humans, but some reports about negative effects these foods have had on animals is downright scary.
One type of genetically modified corn brought onto the market in the late 1990's has had a gene inserted into it which produces a toxin called Bt toxin. This toxin actually causes the stomachs of certain insects to break open when it is ingested, and the insect then dies.
The biotech firm that produces this genetically modified product insists that Bt toxin does not harm the digestive system in mammals.  However, according to Dr. Joseph Mercola, there are peer reviewed studies showing that Bt-toxin does bind with mouse small intestines and with intestinal tissue from rhesus monkeys.  What about humans?  Nobody knows.
Hmm, maybe you should think twice about that next drink sweetened with corn syrup, or that next basket of tortilla chips made with corn.
According to Dr. Mercola, it was reported that doctors in a hospital in Quebec (Canada) actually found Bt toxin in the blood of 93% of pregnant women tested, 80% of their babies, and almost 70% of non-pregnant women.
If this toxin can cause the stomachs of insects to rupture, what does it do to humans? At the very least, it seems it could cause more digestive problems, allergies, autoimmune reactions, and other health issues.
And the American Academy of Environmental Medicine states that several animal studies showed serious health risks from eating genetically modified foods including:
“…infertility, immune dysfunction, accelerated aging, irregular DNA, insulin instability, and changes in liver, kidney, spleen and the gastrointestinal system.”
And the AAEM also goes on to state that there is a definite association between genetically modified foods and disease confirmed by several animal studies.
The recommendation of the AAEM is that physicians advise patients to avoid all GM foods, and to consider that GM foods could potentially be connected to certain health issues in patients and that GM foods need further testing to be considered safe for human consumption.
Genetically modified foods now contain new and unknown toxic substances that have NEVER been present in nature before.
We have no way of knowing what kinds of long term effects they will produce in humans, but they certainly seem to have negative effects on animals based on some studies.
And because genetically modified foods contain some scientifically modified proteins, they tend to cause more allergies in people. When GM soy was introduced in the UK, allergic reactions to soy reportedly increased 50% or more. And food allergies seem to be increasing in the US as well. Could this be from GM foods?
Do you want to eat dangerously doctored food? I sure don’t! There is no way of knowing for sure what kinds of health issues genetically modified foods can produce because no long-term studies have ever been done.
This means we need to protect our own health and avoid becoming a biological experiment ourselves.
The most common genetically modified foods are:

• Soy
• Corn
• Cottonseed Oil
• Canola Oil

According to Natural News, 90 percent of all canola, 88 percent of all corn, 90 percent of all cotton, and 94 percent of all soy grown in the U.S. today are of genetically-modified origin.
Just keep in mind that you very well might be eating GM foods the next time you're chowing down some corn chips, corn flakes or other corn cereals, soy milk or any soy products like tofu, soy protein, anything sweetened with high fructose corn syrup (which is almost ALL processed foods) or any foods fried in soybean oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, or canola oil, which is virtually anything that's fried at a typical restaurant.
Nutritionally, there's no valid reason to eat these foods anyway, as they offer nothing nutritionally, while only causing health problems.
The list of genetically modified foods can also include:
Sugar from sugar beets, Hawaiian papaya, some types of zucchini, and crookneck squash... but these are very minimal compared to the massive amounts of soy, corn, cottonseed or canola that are in our food supply.
Conventionally raised meat, dairy products, farmed fish and commercial eggs are also fed with GM feed frequently, mostly from corn and soy.  Scientists are still uncertain whether eating animals that fed on GM crops can have health consequences for humans.   I'd rather not be part of the experiment.
Always buy organic meats, wild caught fish, or 100% grass-fed meat (and grass-finished) to avoid this.
Aspartame, or NutraSweet have also been created with GMO’s. Artificial sweeteners are extremely unhealthy anyway, but here is just one more reason to avoid them!
Besides the health issues that have surfaced so far, genetically modified foods are a big unknown. These new forms of food could potentially lead to serious health issues, cancer or even some new diseases that modern medicine has never seen before.
As one biotech scientist in an article published in the International Journal of Biological Science said, “For the first time in the world, we’ve proven that GMO’s are neither sufficiently healthy nor proper to be commercialized.”
How do we avoid the potential negative health issues from GM foods?
It’s very easy if you eat a natural, healthy diet of real, whole, organic foods.
Avoid eating packaged, processed foods, especially those containing soy, corn, and vegetable oils or corn syrup sweeteners. The chances that you are eating genetically modified foods are very high if it contains any of these foods as ingredients.  And remember that canola oil is likely to be genetically modified too, and despite heavy marketing claiming that canola oil is healthy, there is nothing even remotely healthy about canola oil as that article shows.
It’s estimated that there are approximately 30,000 products on grocery store shelves that may be genetically modified.
Remember these three things to avoid eating GM foods:
1. Eat organic--any food labeled “Organic” or “Certified Organic” cannot be genetically modified in any way.
2. Look for “Non-GMO” on the label, or “Made without genetically modified ingredients.” Although it is not required yet by law in the US, many companies voluntarily label their foods as non-GMO.  We need to fight to force the government to mandate labeling of GM foods!
3. Especially avoid any food or food additives that contain: soy, corn, cottonseed oil, or canola oil... even if these ingredients are organic, there's really nothing healthy about eating these foods anyway.  Corn, soy, cottonseed, and canola were never a big part of the ancestral human diet. Also beware of commercially raised meat, fish, eggs or dairy that have been fed these GM foods as long term health effects to humans are not yet known.
Genetically modified foods look exactly like any other foods, so you cannot tell by just by looking at them.
Please note:  Many people have confused this topic, but new types of produce such as tangelos, seedless watermelons, seedless cucumbers and other new varieties of fruit and vegetables are created by natural breeding, not genetic modification, so these foods are fine to eat.
The bottom line is that genetically modified foods have not been tested enough in humans and scientists don’t really know whether these foods are safe or not.
Avoiding unnatural genetically modified foods is just one more reason why paying close attention to the foods you eat, and eating a diet of real, whole, organic foods is so extremely important.  Don't be like so many people out there that just mindlessly eat foods without thinking about what they are putting in their body.  Obviously, we are at an important time in history where diabetes, cancer, heart disease and obesity are at all time highs (to the point of a crisis), so it is time that people take responsibility for their health.
Don't let yourself be a guinea pig as part of a giant uncontrolled experiment on GM "frankenfoods"... only you can control what you choose to eat and to avoid GM foods fully.  Please share this article with all of your friends and family to protect their health.
Mike Geary - Certified Nutrition Specialist & Cat Ebeling - RN, BSN
co-authors - The Fat Burning Kitchen

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The Top 20 Food Rules You NEED to Know to be Truly Lean & Healthy

Everything you wanted to know about protein, carbs, calories, probiotics, vitamin D, cooking oils, foods that burn fat, foods that make you fat, foods that can kill you slowly, and much more.
by Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Author of best-sellers: The Truth About Six Pack Abs & The Top 101 Foods that FIGHT Aging
This article is one that you're going to want to bookmark to come back and reference at any time.  And you'll also want to share this page with all your friends and family to help spread what true healthy nutrition is all about.  Seriously, there's more great information about nutrition on this page than a lot of entire books.
I'm going to rattle off a bunch of random important facts (in no particular order) about food and eating healthy that you need to know.  I'll also refer to any of my previously published articles where appropriate, and where a more full explanation might be needed if you want more details on that topic.  All references to other articles will open in a new window so that you can stay on this page when you're done any of the other reference articles.
Before we start this list, let's establish a big picture view first, before we dive into various smaller topics like specific foods...
The Big Picture View (most people have never thought of food in this way)
Let me give you something to think about, and this is VERY big picture and VERY important... if we took away modern society and plopped you on a deserted island, what is the #1 most important thing in your life at that point?   That's right... FOOD!  What will I eat to survive and thrive.  At that point, you can forget about careers, technology, video games, television, nightlife, cell phones, and just about every other aspect of modern life... the single most important thing you need to focus on at that point is what to eat.
However, in our modern day, most of us don't have to think about what to eat at all, and in fact, most people NEVER think about what they put in their mouths... they just eat whatever they see in front of them that they know tastes good, without any thought about whether it's an appropriate food for humans to eat.
You can call that the "See-Food Diet"... you "see" the food and you eat it.
Isn't that a major disconnect?  Food is quite literally one of the most important things in our daily lives, yet barely anybody thinks about the ramifications of what they eat and how it will affect their health and the quality of their life (until, of course, they lose their health).
Since food is one of the most important things in our lives for our quality of life, don't you think that it should be a priority as one of the fundamental topics that children learn about throughout school?  It should be a priority, but it isn't.  Kids get a thorough education on topics such as Math, History, Science, Languages, etc, but never get more than a couple hours in their entire 12 years in school about the most important thing in our lives...what to eat.
If you think about it, that's absolutely insane...  One of THE single most important aspects of our lives is never really taught to children in school.  And parents don't generally pick up the slack and teach kids nutrition because they were never taught about it either.  This is a modern day phenomenon because the abundance of food all around us in modern day life means that we don't have to think about what's appropriate to eat.
If you want to be lean and truly healthy, obviously you NEED to think differently than the average person who eats the "SEE-food diet" where they eat without thinking.
There needs to be some simple rules to follow if you want to successfully navigate the current food landscape out there where so many foods are making you fat and sick.
And THAT's why I wrote this page for you... to simplify and give you some simple food rules to be lean and healthy, yet still ENJOY food.
Food Rules Simplified
Okay, so let's simplify nutrition a bit here... everyone out there seems confused about what is the best "diet" to be on.  People seem to love to always jump from fad diet to fad diet such as low-fat diets, atkins diets, south beach diets, grapefruit diets, detox diets, vegetarian diets, and other sometimes ridiculous diets that most times are based on one person's opinion or marketing scheme (or personal agenda) rather than based on actual science.
The only "diet" that's actually based on real science is the study of paleolithic nutrition (aka - paleo diet).  But I hate to call it "paleo diet", because it's not like any other fad diet, since it's based on real archaeological nutritional science about what our ancestors ate before the agricultural revolution came around.  The idea is simply that for the first 99.5% of our existence (ancestors back as far as 1.9 Million years ago, homo erectus), we only ate wild plants and animals, while for the last 0.5% of our existence (since the agricultural revolution in the last 5,000-10,000 years), humans now almost entirely eat farmed plants and animals.  The biggest change this represents is the massive inclusion of grains in our current diet (and what our animals are fed) now compared to our Paleolithic ancestors.
There are lots of other changes this represents too, such as the presence of chemicals in our food supply (pesticides, herbicides, xenoestrogens, etc) that didn't exist in the ancient diet, as well as the dramatic changes caused by hybridization of many of our foods, which creates versions of fruits and vegetables bred more for size, sweetness, and appearance as opposed to natural nutrition... this aspect has decreased micronutrient content in the modern day food supply (just look at wild blueberries vs cultivated blueberries as an example of that with wild berries coming in at more than DOUBLE the antioxidants from ORAC testing).
Many people think that we don't know what ancient humans ate... but this is false. 
Nutritional archaeologists know pretty convincingly what ancient humans ate as they study a lot of evidence such as ancient fossilized feces remains as well as studying isotope ratios in ancient human bone samples from all over the world through every time period in history to determine ratios of animals vs plants that ancient humans ate -- which by the way, was always an omnivorous mixture of plants and animals, and a fairly high protein intake...there was no such thing as ancient paleolithic vegans...any Nutritional Archaelogist can confirm that ancient vegans simply didn't exist.  We were all omnivores that ate different ratios of plants and animals based on what part of the world, what latitude we lived, and the time of the year.
So what exactly did our Paleolithic ancestors eat for the first 99.5% of our existence, representing what we are still programmed to eat?  Simple:

• Wild meat, fish, and seafood  (animals that ate the right foods, unlike most of our current factory-farmed meats and farmed fish)
• fruits
• veggies
• eggs (various types)
• nuts
• roots (sweet potatoes, carrots, beets, etc)
• seeds

Grains were only a very TINY fraction of the ancient Paleolithic diet (and only in certain parts of the world) as there was no way to process large amounts of grain back in that day into flour, so amounts of wild grain would have been small such as a handful or two of gathered grains added to a meal of meat and veggies.  As you can see, this is vastly different from the modern human diet that includes grain at almost every meal and in very large quantities in cereals, breads, pasta, muffins, bagels, etc.
One other note... I mention "wild meats" above, and for most people, that's not realistic since you might not hunt. However, as you'll see below in my 20 rules, grass-fed free-range meats can have the same health benefits as wild meats, while avoiding the harmful nutritional components that come with factory-farmed grain-fed meats.

So with that big picture explained...let's get into the details of my top 20 food rules:

Food Rule #1.  Not all carbs are bad, but...
Carbohydrates don't need to be eliminated... they are not inherently "bad" in reasonable quantities.  But grains and processed sugars in particular should be minimized.  So to make things simple, you will be leaner and healthier if you get most of your carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables instead of grains and processed sugar.
The biggest problem with grains (breads, cereals, pasta, bagels, etc), aside from the abuse to your blood sugar regulation system (pancreas and insulin sensitivity), is that grains typically contain a lot of anti-nutrients which prevent your body from absorbing some minerals, as well as gluten and other substances that cause chronic gut inflammation and even possibly digestive system damage in some cases of severe gluten intolerance.
Please note that potatoes, sweet potatoes, and other tubers have less problems in terms of digestive system inflammation than grains do. Tubers were a more common part of the ancient human diet as a source of carbohydrates than grains ever were.  Potatoes and sweet potatoes can be much better tolerated by very active people that have no problem burning off the extra carbohydrates.
What do I personally do?  Well, I avoid grains as much as possible, except on 1 cheat day per week.  That will always be a meal dining out, so that we're never tempted with breads and cereals in our house.  I eat whole fruits (never juice) and veggies daily, and might have an occasional potato or sweet potato once or twice a week.
Food Rule #2.  Healthy vs deadly protein sources
Focus on quality protein sources such as wild game, wish fish and seafood, grass-fed meats, and free-roaming organically fed eggs, while trying to avoid most farmed meats and farmed fish that were fed mostly grains and kept in unhealthy "factory farm" environments. 
Food Rule #3.  Your "Omegas" are out of whack
Most people need to be more aware of the omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acid ratio of the food they eat.
The ancestral human diet of the Paleolithic era appears that it had a ratio of approximately 1:1 to 2:1 omega-6 fats to omega-3 fats.  The current average western diet contains anywhere from 20:1 to 30:1 ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats due to the high consumption of grain and soy-based foods and derivatives like soybean oil and corn oil that is pervasive in the food supply (and don't forget the corn and soy that's used as the main animal feed component instead of natural forage).  This is a major problem causing massive inflammation in most people, and one of the causes of many degenerative diseases.
In order to balance this out better, you need to AVOID corn oils, soybean oils, cottonseed oils (or anything cooked in these oils), and minimize grain-fed meats and farmed fish that were fed grains.  Instead, focus on wild fish, grass-fed meats, grass-fed dairy, free-range eggs, as well as other foods that can help you get more omega-3's like chia seeds, walnuts, hemp seeds, and fish oil and/or krill oil, which are vitally important sources of DHA and EPA.  I personally take both fish oil and krill oil, as the fish oil has a larger quantity of DHA and EPA (and more omega-3 volume overall), while the krill oil has more antioxidant benefits from the astaxanthin and a higher absorption rate than the fish oil.
Take note that animal sources of omega-3 fats are MUCH more powerful to your health than plant sources of omega-3's like walnuts, chia, and flax.  This is because animal sources of omega-3's already contain DHA and EPA already converted whereas plant sources don't, and your body is very ineffecient at converting plant sources of omega-3 fats to DHA and EPA.

Food Rule #4.  80,000 species of plants, animals, and fungi?
Aside from processed sugar, if I had to pick 3 of the WORST foods in the average western diet that would be most important to start avoiding, it would be corn, soy, and wheat, and their derivatives such as corn syrup, corn oil, soybean oil, soy protein, etc. Do you want to hear an appalling statistic about what the average person eats... Currently, the average adult eating a typical modern western diet in countries such as the US, Canada, Australia, etc consumes approximately 67% of their total caloric intake from only 3 foods -- CORN, SOY, AND WHEAT (and their derivatives).
Keep in mind that ancestral humans have historically eaten over 80,000 species of plants, animals, and fungi throughout human history, yet modern humans are getting 67% of their calories from only 3 foods. That's a problem! 
Food Rule #5.  Beware of hidden sugars
Beware of hidden calories and inflammation-causing ingredients in condiments and dressings.  You can read my article here on my vote for the top 5 picks for healthiest condiments as well as the worst.
Most people don't realize just how many calories and metabolism damaging high fructose corn syrup they are ingesting in things like ketchup, salad dressings, cocktail sauce, marinades, etc.  For example, 1 Tbsp of ketchup has 5 grams of sugar (usually from HFCS), but the average person uses 2-4 Tbsp of ketchup with a typical burger and fries meal.  That's anywhere from 10-20 grams of EXTRA sugar just from the ketchup alone, and not even counting the sweetened drink that most people have with the meal too.
Be a label reader and avoid HFCS!  And despite deceptive advertisements out there from the corn refining industry that claim "HFCS is no worse than sugar and is natural", this is far from the truth as you can read in this article on my blog that shows why HFCS is indeed worse than plain sugar, despite them both being terrible for you.

Food Rule #6.  Sugar is TOXIC in your body
Speaking of sugar, most people don't realize that they are addicted to sugar, and just how bad sugar is for your body internally.  I hear people say things all the time when eating candy or drinking a sweetened drink that "oh, it's just sugar, I can burn it off easy".  Oh, if it were only that simple. 
That's right... not only does sugar make you fat, it's one of the direct causes of diabetes, heart disease, as well as feeding cancer cells.  Avoid sugar as much as possible with the exception of a small amount of natural sugars in a piece of daily fruit.

Food Rule #7.  Do NOT eat these oils or foods with these added

AVOID soybean oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, and other cheap "vegetable oils" as much as possible.  These oils are highly inflammatory in your body, disrupt your omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acid balance in your body, and also are typically made of genetically modified crops, of which the long term health consequences are not yet fully understood by scientists.
I have an article on my blog saying what oils to have and ones to avoid.  You might be surprised to see why fats you falsely thought were unhealthy such as butter, lard, and coconut oil are actually the healthiest fats/oils to cook with.

Food Rule #8.  Canola oil is terrible for you
Avoid canola oil as much as possible... despite the false marketing claims that canola oil is "healthy" and contains lots of monounsaturated fats just like olive oil, canola oil is NOTHING like olive oil from a biochemical standpoint and how it reacts internally in your body. Note that most canola oil is genetically modified too, so yet another reason to avoid it.

Food Rule #9.  Why you should LOVE butter & cream!
Butter vs margarine?  I have no idea why anybody is still debating this... I use grass-fed butter on a daily basis, but I would NEVER even touch margarine... not even the so-called "healthy" margarines, which usually still contain inflammatory soybean or corn oils.  REAL butter is the only answer in this case.
Also, it's not just butter that's good for you... dairy fat in the form of grass-fed cream, aged cheeses, full-fat yogurts and other dairy fat has even been shown in some studies to PROTECT your arteries from clogging!  Don't believe me?  Read this article for the full story:
Food Rule #10.  STOP avoiding egg yolks -- eat whole eggs
Egg whites vs whole eggs?  Once again, I have no idea why anyone is still debating this.  Most of the general population has still not gotten the memo that egg yolks are actually the healthiest part of the egg, with over 90% of the micronutrients and antioxidants, and 100% of the fat soluble vitamins that are so important for our health.  Why anybody would only eat egg whites and avoid yolks is beyond comprehension.  And no, the dietary cholesterol in eggs is not bad for your heart... in fact, it increases your good HDL cholesterol.  I have a full article on my blog why whole eggs are much healthier than egg whites, help increase your fat burning hormones, and why I personally eat 3-4 whole eggs per day and how this helps to stay in single digit body fat range.

Food Rule #11.  Beware of chemicals in your foods
Let's start with this one to avoid:  This additive makes you 3x more likely to be overweight.
Also, beware of the carcinogenic and estrogenic chemical BPA that is commonly found in some canned foods and bottled drinks. BPA has been linked to increased abdominal fat, birth defects, cancer, and more.  Remember that canned tomatoes are one of the worst offenders with highest concentrations of harmful BPA because of the acidic leaching effect of the tomatoes.
Food Rule #12.  Why I haven't used a microwave in 10 years
In my opinion, it's best to AVOID microwaved foods.  Some scientists believe that microwaving food changes the the biochemistry of the food in ways that cause negative effects in the body compared to raw or conventionally cooked food.  Think of this from a logical perspective... the human digestive system evolved over a period of approximately 1.9 million years (our ancesters homo erectus & neanderthal, as well as current homo sapiens) eating a combination of raw and cooked food that was cooked with either fire or hot water, not microwaves.
Microwaves are a new invention which cooks food in an entirely different way than hot water or fire, creating damaged molecules in food that were not found in nature previously, and that our body does not know how to deal with.  Logically, it's easy to understand how this could have health consequences.  Read this article on my blog here for a full description of why I never eat microwaved foods anymore and have not for at least the last 10 years.  We also show you how easy it is to live without a microwave and heat up your foods in healthier ways.

Food Rule #13.  Add herbs and spices to everything (your body will thank you)
One of the healthiest things to include in your daily diet are herbs and spices.  In fact, herbs and spices typically contain LOADS more antioxidants than most fruits and vegetables.  Spices are extremely powerful, and almost medicinal for your body.  Turmeric has been shown to have protective effects against cancer.  Cinnamon has powerful blood sugar controlling effects.  Many spices boost your immune system.  Read this article on my blog to see our top 10 votes for the most powerful spices that boost your metabolism and protect your body from degenerative disease.
Bottom line...spices rule!  Use them generously in all of your cooking for the best health benefits.

Food Rule #14.  Saturated fats have been falsely accused
Remember that despite all of the bad nutrition information you hear from the government and the media, saturated fats have been falsely villified in the past, and are much healthier for you than most people realize.  In fact, in recent years, scientists have become a lot more clear that saturated fats are actually important for health and hormone balance, your cell membranes, and many other vital functions in your body.  You can read my article here on my blog about why saturated fats aren't so bad after all, and can even be healthy sometimes depending on source.
If you're interested in more of the actual science about why saturated fat can be healthy for you, I have an article below written by a PhD in Nutritional Biochemistry called The Truth about Saturated Fat - it's a must read if you want to understand the science about why saturated fats have been falsely villified and how to enjoy these foods that have always been part of the ancestral human diet.

Food Rule #15.  Artificial sweeteners make you fatter (and damage your gut too?)
Always avoid artificial sweeteners!   Just because they don't contain calories doesn't mean they don't harm your body.  In fact, many studies link artificial sweetener use to weight gain.  New research is also showing that artificial sweeteners can "trick" your body into releasing insulin due to cells in your mouth and stomach that sense the sweetness and are expecting sugar.  Remember that high insulin levels can cause body fat deposition. Also, triggering insulin in this way can cause more cravings for carbohydrates and sugar in the hours after eating or drinking the artificially sweetened product.
You can read my article here on my blog with more details about why artificial sweeteners are terrible for your health, including possible long term health consequences such as cancer.
Also, did you know that Splenda can DAMAGE your gut health.

Food Rule #16.  Vitamin D controls your immune system, hormone balance, and makes you younger
Pay attention to your Vitamin D levels.
Vitamin D is one of the most important substances in your body.  It's one of the single most important things in your body that control your hormones as well as your immune system.  If you get sick often or have hormone imbalances, it's quite likely that the cause is linked to low vitamin D levels.
Unfortunately, it's estimated that almost 90% of Americans are deficient in vitamin D.  Get your blood levels of vitamin D tested.  Your goal should be blood levels between 50-70 ng/ml, where hormonal balance and immune function seems to be maximized.  Sadly, most people typically clock in with levels in the 20's or 30's or lower, and these sub par levels can cause a lot of health problems.
Mid day sunshine is the most important source of vitamin D as your body produces vitamin D from a reaction with oils in your skin and UVB rays from the sun.  Fatty fish, egg yolks, and organ meats are the best sources of dietary vitamin D, but it is hard to get enough vitamin D from diet alone, so small doses of daily mid-day sun is also important for your health (without burning).
For lots more great info on vitamin D, and it's powerful benefits to your body, you can also read a really interesting article here on my blog that shows why vitamin D can even make you the equivalent of 5 years YOUNGER!

Food Rule #17.  Pay attention to your gut flora
Probiotics rock!  And most people have a harmful imbalance between good and bad bacteria in their guts.  This is made worse by things you consume that damange your gut flora such as chlorinated drinking water, artificial sweeteners, pesticides, and the worst of them all -- antibiotics.  One round of antiobiotics can permanently disrupt the balance of your gut flora and leave you susceptible to other infections and diseases.  Antibiotics have their place for life-threatening injuries and medical situations, but are overused in western medicine to the detriment of our health.
Along with vitamin D levels, probiotics are one of the single most important things you can do for your health.  Probiotics are equally important to your immune system as your vitamin D levels.  Probiotics are your first line of defense in keeping pathogens at bay and preventing sickness.  They're extremely important for your digestion too.
Your "microbiome" in your gut is made up of TRILLIONS of microbes in total and hundreds of types of these friendly probiotics.  These serve so many more vitally important functions in your body than most people realize, and imbalance of good to bad bacteria in your gut can cause over 170 diseases and conditions.
Food Rule #18.  Counteract or minimize carcinogens
Beware of carcinogenic acrylamides in browned carb-based foods.  This is yet another reason to minimize grains as much as possible as breads and cereals are some of the worst offenders with acrylamides.
Food Rule #19.  Why I avoid GM foods
Avoid the unknown health consequences of eating genetically modified foods.  Again, going back to the principle that we are most adapted to eating what our ancesters ate for almost 2 million years, that list of foods obviously did NOT include genetically modified foods, since these "frankenfoods" weren't included in the human food supply until the 1990's.
There are still no long term health studies proving that GM foods are safe to eat.
Food Rule #20.  Beware of "healthy whole wheat"
In a groundbreaking new best-selling book called Wheat Belly, Dr William Davis, a well respected cardiologist has intensely researched the effects of wheat-based foods (cereal, breads, pasta, baked goods, etc) and what this so-called "healthy whole wheat" actually does to your body from a biochemical standpoint internally.
His findings are not pleasant... some of the problems that whole wheat or any wheat foods can cause for your health are summarized in this article:
11 Ways that "whole wheat" can HARM your body (including abdominal fat, acne, joint problems and arthritis, IBS and acid reflux, cravings, addictive behaviors, increased overall calorie consumption, diabetes, heart disease, accelerated aging, and autoimmune diseases)

Food Rule #21.  Enjoy your food, eat slowly, savor each bite
Lastly, enjoy your food!  And enjoy good company with food.  Don't just mindlessly eat food in front of the TV.  Studies show that people unknowingly eat more calories and gain more weight when they mindlessly eat in front of the TV.  Instead, focus on your meal instead of a distraction...savor each bite you have.  Pay attention and enjoy the subtle flavors and aroma of each bite.  This makes you enjoy your food more, while eating less calories.
One last thing... Make sure to read this page below if you don't already have my Fat-Burning Kitchen book:
Does your kitchen contain fat-burning foods or 
hidden fat-storing foods?
Please share this "20 food rules" article with all of your friends and family!  They will thank you for helping them to think about food differently now and enjoy better health.

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