Men's Health Philippines

Health

Tales from the fridge

You've been fed bizarre diet stories since you were a kid. We separate the hoaxes from the truth

By Mindy Hermann, RD; Photography by Adam Weiss

As a registered dietitian, I'm asked at least once a week whether eating carrots can really improve your eyesight. Sorry. You'd do just as well buying a pair of x-ray-vision goggles from the back of a comic book.But how about some of the other nutrition stories you've been hearing all your life? To help you improve your diet—and to reduce the number of questions I have to answer—I did some digging and discovered the truth behind 18 commonly told tales about food. Now you'll know the real story on what's fact and what's myth.

Bottled springwater is pure and unprocessed.
MYTH A bottle of springwater always tastes better than the stuff from your faucet, but not because it came gurgling out of some hidden spring in some virgin forest. The real reason is that all bottled waters are regularly tested for chemical and radiological contaminants, microorganisms, and inorganic compounds such as lead. Any contaminants that are found are removed, and the water is disinfected.

Tequila makes you act crazier than any other type of alcohol.
MYTH Not even if you eat the worm. According to James L. York, PhD, at the Research Institute on Addiction in New York, there is no evidence that the cogeners (the nonalcohol constituents) in tequila affect behavior differently from the cogeners in vodka or other alcoholic beverages. "We fed rats cognac, Scotch, vodka, tequila, and straight alcohol, then measured their motor impairment. No single alcohol had a greater effect than another," says York.

Chinese food leaves you hungry an hour after you've finished.
FACT That quart of fried rice doesn't fill you up because it's light on one ingredient: protein. According to Richard Mattes, PhD, RD, of Purdue University in Indiana, protein is actually more filling than carbohydrates or fat, and many Chinese dishes are notoriously light on protein-rich foods. To stay full longer and keep the calories low, order a dish that contains chicken, fish, or tofu and that has been steamed (not flied).

Drinking coffee, caffeinated drinks, or alcohol in hot weather causes you to lose extra fluid.
MYTH People buy into this one because caffeine-spiked drinks are diuretics—they tend to make you urinate. But drinking a cold Coke or an iced cappuccino won't cause you to pee out much more than drinking the same amount of water would. Just go easy on the frosty six-packs; alcohol has a much stronger diuretic effect than coffee or cola. Sports drinks and beverages that contain sodium are your best bets for hydration on a hot day. Sodium helps your body retain fluid, says Robert Murray, PhD, director of the Gatorade Exercise Physiology Laboratory.

Eating certain foods makes your body burn extra calories and helps you lose weight.
MYTH This is the hook that the perpetrators of the "grapefruit diet" used to reel in the public. "While it's true that you burn calories digesting your food, the amount is just a small percentage of the calories you've eaten, so it won't affect your weight," says James O. Hill, PhD, of the University of Colorado health-sciences center.

Beans give you the worst gas.
FACT Here's why: Beans contain by far the most raffinose, a sugar that our bodies are unable to digest. "The bacteria in your large intestine feed on this undigested carbohydrate and produce gas as a result," says Frank Jackson, MD, a gastroenterologist. The cruciferous vegetables—cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli, and cauliflower—also contain raffinose, but in less explosive quantities. To enjoy your legumes minus the gas, you can try presoaking the beans to remove some of the raffinose.

You should order steak well-done to avoid food poisoning.
MYTH If you cook your Porterhouse until it's cadaver gray, you're merely killing every ounce of flavor long after the bacteria are dead. "Bacteria aren't present inside the steak because it's a whole cut of meat that hasn't been punctured. And any bacteria on the surface are killed during cooking," says James Reagan, PhD, of the US National Cattlemen's Beef Association. However, Reagan cautions that burgers and meat loaf must be cooked to an internal temperature of 160°F to destroy any bacteria that might be present (including that stubborn E. coli bug). And forget the steak tartare; by any other name it's raw hamburger.

Swallowing your chewing gum can cause stomach problems.
FACT There's a reason this is considered a bad habit. "Chewing and swallowing sugarless gum can contribute to abdominal pain, gas, and diarrhea," says Joel M. Andres, MD, a gastroenterologist. If you experience any of these symptoms, you're probably chewing gum that contains sorbitol, an artificial sweetener that's notorious for causing intestinal distress.

Eating a high-cholesterol meal raises your cholesterol level.
MYTH Most people's blood-cholesterol level won't budge after eating one high-cholesterol meal. But it may go up if you put away a cholesterol-laden dinner every day. "It's more important to look at your cholesterol intake over an entire week than to look at a single day," says Penny Kris-Etherton, PhD, RD, professor of nutrition at Penn State University. If you have high blood cholesterol and high triglycerides, however, be careful about eating cholesterol-rich foods, such as eggs, shrimp, and liver; your blood cholesterol is likely to go up after dining on these foods.

Red wine gives you a headache.
FACT For some people, one glass of merlot is all it takes to produce a pounding headache. If you're one of these unlucky few, your body is missing the enzymes that neutralize headache-causing amines—natural chemicals found in fermented or aged foods such as sourdough bread, cheese, and red wine, explains Mark Daeschel, PhD, professor of food science and technology at Oregon State University.

Pork is the other white meat.
MYTH In a pig's eye. "Anatomically, a pig is more like a cow than like a chicken. Although pork isn't really white meat, it's not red meat, either. It's pink meat," says Patricia Hart, RD, a cooking instructor. It's true that judged on leanness alone, some cuts of pork are a lot like chicken. A three-ounce portion of grilled pork tenderloin has about 160 calories and five grams of fat, compared with about 140 calories and three grams of fat for the same amount of roasted skinless chicken breast. Tenderloin and loin are the leanest cuts of pork you can buy.

Cravings are your body's way of telling you that it needs something.
MYTH If this were true, it would mean that every guy with a yen for rib eye is suffering from a serious shortage of iron, zinc, and protein. "What you're probably craving is the relaxation and pleasure you feel when you eat certain foods, like steak or fries; you're probably not craving a specific nutrient in those foods," says Adam Drewnowski, PhD, of the University of Washington. "Also, men in particular tend to crave foods that combine fat and salt, and there's no way that they need more of either one."

Drinking lots of water can curb your appetite.
MYTH The only way chugging water can keep you from bingeing is by keeping you in the bathroom and out of the kitchen. "Your body processes food and water differently, so drinking water won't suppress your appetite," says Barbara Rolls, PhD, professor of nutrition at Penn State University. Adding water to food, however, can help reduce the amount you eat. Rolls found that study subjects who ate soup composed of chicken, rice, vegetables, and water ate less afterward than those who dined on a chicken, rice, and vegetable casserole and a glass of water. "Our theory is that soup makes you feel fuller because you respond to visual volume cues," says Rolls. "The soup looked like much more food than the casserole did."

Eating candy gives you cavities.
MYTH The longer food stays in your mouth, the more time bacteria have to break it down and create the acid that causes tooth decay. But many candies, such as jelly beans, gummy candies, and plain chocolate, are broken down and cleared out pretty quickly. Blame starchy snacks instead. "Starches such as chips, pretzels, crackers, and cookies, along with bananas, dried fruit, and other fruits that are low in water, hang out in the spaces between and on top of teeth for a long time," says Riva Touger-Decker, PhD, RD, of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. When you can't brush, chew a piece of sugarless gum for at least 10 minutes to help speed the removal of food particles from your teeth.

Extra-virgin olive oil is less Fattening than other oils
MYTH All oils have about the same number of calories: 120 per tablespoon. That includes "light" olive oil, which is lighter in color and flavor but not in calories. However, because all types of olive oil (and canola oil) are high in monounsaturated fat, they're still healthier picks than butter or other saturated fats. "Substituting monounsaturated fat for saturated fat can help lower your bad (LDL) cholesterol," says Kris-Etherton. Eating more monos and fewer carbohydrates will also help control your triglyceride levels. High blood triglycerides put you at greater risk for heart disease.