What NOT to Eat
- Anything with ingredients that are difficult to pronounce. These products surely contain substances that belong in a chemistry set, not in your body. Try saying stearoyl lactylate or butylated hydroxytoluene with ease. Not so easy. Skip those questionable ingredients.
- Anything that didn’t exist in your grandmother’s day—maybe even your great-grandmother’s day, depending on how old you are. I know this is kind of a trendy approach to eating right now, but it completely makes sense. One hundred years ago we didn’t need a label to tell us that our food was local, organic, and grass-fed; all food was whole, real, unadulterated, traditional food. Fortunately, there is a desire to get back to this way of eating.
- Anything containing soybean oil. Americans now get almost 10 percent of their calories from refined soybean oil, which is one of the most abundant sources of omega-6 fatty acids. Plus, it often contains high levels of glyphosate, or Roundup, the toxic herbicide used by Monsanto. It’s not that Americans are drinking soybean oil by the cup; most people aren’t even aware they’re eating it. But it’s lurking everywhere. If you eat fast food, grains, desserts, packaged snacks, potato chips, muffins, or conventionally raised meat, or buy almost anything cooked in oil at a cafeteria, diner, or restaurant, then you’re almost certainly consuming lots of soybean oil and other oils rich in omega-6 fatty acids without even knowing it. This stuff is toxic and inflammatory. Stay away.
- Anything containing high-fructose corn syrup. When used in moderation, it is a major cause of heart disease, obesity, cancer, dementia, liver failure, tooth decay, and more.
- Anything with the word “hydrogenated” in its name. Since most people don’t know that hydrogenated fat and trans fat are the same thing, food makers have been able to hide the trans fat content in plain sight using this little trick.
- Anything advertised on TV. Have you seen a commercial for broccoli or sardines during the Super Bowl? The worst foods get the most airtime on television.
- Anything with a cute name. Froot Loops are not a good source of fruit.
- Anything you can buy at a drive-through window. This one is a no-brainer.
- Anything with monosodium glutamate (otherwise known as MSG), even though the FDA says it is safe. It’s an excitotoxin—a neurotransmitter that is known to kill brain cells. We associate it with Chinese cuisine, but food companies use it in many items without our knowledge. They even try to hide its presence, calling it “hydrolyzed vegetable protein,” “vegetable protein,” “natural flavorings,” and even simply “spices.” Spices? Tricky, right? And the worst news—it induces hunger and carb cravings, so you’ll eat more of it. It’s what they give to lab rats in experiments to fatten them up
- Any food in an aerosol can.
- Anything called “cheese food” (which is neither cheese nor food).
- Anything with artificial sweeteners. The evidence is catching up. Recent studies have not been kind to artificial sweeteners, claiming among other problems they adversely affect gut health and glucose tolerance. I recommend giving up aspartame, sucralose, sugar alcohols such as maltitol, and all of the other heavily used and marketed sweeteners unless you want to slow down your metabolism, gain weight, and become an addict. Use a little stevia if you must, but skip out on the others.
- Anything with any type of additives, preservatives, or dyes (of which we eat about 2 1⁄2 pounds per person per year).
- Any food with more than five ingredients on the label, unless they are all things you recognize, such as tomatoes, water, basil, oregano, salt.
Related Longevity Articles
-
6 min read
Peptides 101: How These “Mini Proteins” Are Redefining Medicine.
Chronic Disease Longevity Metabolic Health -
-
-
-
7 min read
Is Rapamycin the Key to a Longer, Healthier Life? Here’s What You Need to Know.
Longevity -
6min read
The Protein Leverage Hypothesis: Is This Why So Many People Are Overeating?
Longevity Metabolic Health -
Your weekly
wellness newsletters
wellness newsletters
Join my weekly newsletter channels to level up your health with a comprehensive weekly schedule packed with longevity insights, expert interviews, personal picks, and cooking in my kitchen.
Login
- Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh.
- Opens in a new window.