Myths and truths about food

There are many common myths about foods that are often pronounced while you just sit to enjoy your food. Whether at your home or while eating out, either it is your parents, friends and or sometimes it is you only who often keep those food myths in mind while ordering for your food. Although some of the food myths may be facts as well, but some are utterly baseless and in fact, has the total opposite qualities. Some foods, said as bad for health, are actually pretty nutritious and healthy. So, let’s today check out some common myths and truths about food.  

1.  Myth: Eggs are bad for health

A very commonly heard myth about food is for eggs. It is said that eggs are unhealthy and are considered as the richest sources of cholesterol in the human diet. This is why, eggs are said to possess the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Well, this is absolutely wrong and large studies suggest that there is no connection between high cholesterol and eating eggs. It is found that only 25 percent of the cholesterol in the blood comes from food and the other 75 percent is manufactured by the liver. Eggs are also rich in useful nutrients that may even balance any damage done by the cholesterol contents. There are unsaturated fat, folate and other B vitamins, and minerals in eggs.

2. Myth: Coffee causes cancer

Coffee is often being linked to cancer. However, the scientists who looked for links between coffee and cancers, using superior research methods and studying larger groups of people, found that there is no connection between coffee and cancer.

So, the truth is that Coffee is not bad for you and in fact, through new study is it found that it reduces risk of colon cancer among people who regularly sipped coffee and tea.

3.  Myth: Drink red wine as much as you can for protecting your heart

It is believed that red wine protects the heart from the heart diseases and as an example, the French people's love of wine is being stated who are regarded as people superior cardiovascular health. It is true that the alcohol in red wine and white wine and beer has heart-related benefits and alcohol raises HDL (“good”) cholesterol and seems to make blood less likely to clot.

But drinking too much of red wine is not good for health and one should limit it to no more than a drink or two per day. As too much of alcohol will only harm the body.

4. Myth: Raw fruits and vegetables are more nutritious than cooked ones

It is a common myth that fruits and vegetables, if taken raw then more health benefits are derived from it. Some also believe in keeping food half-baked. It is believed that the heat destroys enzymes in foods and this leads to slow digestion of the food in the stomach.

But, in the contrary, cooking breaks down fibre, making it easier for your body to process. Subsisting primarily on raw fruit and vegetables could even backfire if your goal is to get healthier. It is found in studies that eating raw foods lead to cholesterol and triglyceride levels drop and the levels of homocysteine (an amino acid linked to heart attacks and strokes) rose. So, basically, it means, eating raw food is good, but too much of it should be avoided and cooked food is equally good for the health.

5.  Nuts are too fattening—eat them sparingly

People believe that nuts are too fatty to be consumed daily and that its consumption may lead to obesity.  But the truth is that the dry nuts like the dry-roasted peanuts, almonds, pistachio etc are three to four times more heart-healthy monounsaturated fat than saturated fat. The researchers have come to this conclusion that eating nuts regularly may even help in losing weight.