What is the healthiest diet to lose weight?

This is the perfect diet to lose weight and get healthy.

A lot of people have asked me about the healthiest diet to lose weight. There are so many different options out there and you never know about the effects of each diet on your health.

The biggest problem with many of these diets is the fact that they don't address the actual problem. Because of this, most people regain the weight as soon as they stop following the diet.

The healthiest way to lose weight is to focus on eliminating the causes of your weight gain and implement the things that will induce natural weight loss.

What is the healthiest diet to lose weight?

Eliminate unhealthy foods that cause weight gain. Give your body everything that it needs to burn fat for energy. This is the healthiest diet to lose weight because you get all the nutrients you need. Address insulin imbalances, hormone fluctuations, cholesterol and metabolism.

How much weight can I lose on a healthy diet?

The amount of weight that you can lose on a healthy diet depends on factors like your current weight and whether the diet actually addresses the root cause of weight gain. That being said, you can lose up to 2 pounds, or 1 kilogram, per week on a healthy diet.

This is what a healthy diet should do.

What imbalances does this healthy eating plan help with?

• Unstable insulin levels
• High blood sugar and low blood sugar
• Raised blood pressure
• A buildup of toxins
• Bad gut bacteria
• Low energy levels and a slow metabolism
• Uncontrollable hunger
• Hormone imbalances
• Nutrient deficiencies
• Unhealthy cravings
• Digestive problems

How do you eat healthy and lose weight at the same time?

This eating plan is the healthiest way to lose weight.

1. Train your body to burn fat by eliminating unhealthy food

Your body will only use its fat stores for energy when it isn't loaded with sugar from your diet. It takes 18-24 hours for your body to eliminate sugar before it starts burning fat.

Excess sugar is stored as fat. If you eat unhealthy sugar, your body never has the opportunity to burn it up. This causes a variety of health conditions that will make it even harder for you to lose weight in the future.

Cut out the foods that cause weight gain.

The first step to eat healthy is to cut out the following foods from your diet:

• Added sugars (sugar in tea or coffee, sweets and candy, beverages with sugar)
• Artificial sweeteners (cause weight gain and health complications - read more below)
• Refined carbohydrates (bread, cereals, pastries, cookies, rice, potatoes, pasta)
• Processed foods (canned food, sauces, processed meat)
• Fast food (pizza, fried food, any restaurant with a drive through)

These types of food cause weight gain and are dangerous to your health in the many ways.

Unhealthy foods flood your body with sugar

These foods are loaded with sugar. An adult naturally has less than a teaspoon (4 grams) of sugar in the blood at any given time. A 12 ounce cup of soda (child size) has 23 grams of sugar. That's more than 5 times the sugar that should be in your blood!

Ketchup (tomato sauce) floods your body with 2-4 teaspoons of sugar per average serving. That is around 10-20 grams of sugar, or more than 2-5 times all of the sugar in your blood stream!

Fun fact: Sugar is almost always the most abundant ingredient in ketchup or tomato sauce.

All of this sugar pours into your body when you eat unhealthy food. It rapidly spikes your blood sugar levels. Spiked blood sugar levels lead to many health problems.

Why is spiked (or high) blood sugar so bad for you?

High blood sugar causes the following health problems:

1. Weight gain
2. Sharp energy drops
3. Fatigue, lack of energy and slow metabolism
4. Fatty liver
5. Muscle weakness
6. Headaches
7. Lower insulin sensitivity
8. Metabolic syndrome (High blood pressure, excessive fat storage, high cholesterol and other diseases like heart attacks and stroke risk)
9. Diabetes
10. Organ failure
11. Nerve damage and neuropathy
12. Blood vessel damage
13. Heart disease
14. Blindness
15. Kidney failure
16. Blurred vision
17. Keto acidosis (Blood acidity that is life threatening)

Don't flood your body with sugar.

Too much sugar causes many health complications on its own. Reduce your sugar intake to minimize the damage (or prevent future occurrence) of these diseases.

Artificial sweeteners

Many people use artificial sweeteners to reduce their sugar intake. Artificial sweeteners cause weight gain and lead to many of the same diseases that sugar does.

One study (mentioned in the link above) showed that artificial sweeteners can be more addictive than cocaine. They ruin our taste for natural food flavors and increase our cravings for sweet things.

Your cravings for sugar increase with every dose of artificial sweetener that you have.

Diseases caused by artificial sweeteners

A study has shown that artificial sweeteners are linked to the following diseases:

1. Obesity
2. Diabetes
3. High blood pressure
4. Heart disease

Artificial sweeteners are not healthy.

A lot of processed foods (including those that are labelled as 'sugar free' or 'low in sugar') are full of addictive artificial sweeteners.

Artificial sweeteners do not help you to overcome a sugar addiction. You need to address the problem head on by learning to appreciate the natural flavors of food.

Artificial sweeteners mask the problem and increase your desire for sweet things. Your taste buds will become more sensitive to the natural sugars in food when you don't eat added sugar or artificial sweetness.

Preservatives

Processed foods make up 89.7% of the added sugar we eat and 57.9% of the total calories we consume in a typical, Western diet. Almost 60% of the food that we eat is full of preservatives that slowly kill us.

The healthiest diet to lose weight should not have any preservatives. Processed food is full of them because they prolong shelf life. Preservatives are poisons that stop bacteria from spoiling food.

The problem is that the same preservative will kill us as well - just at a much slower rate because we are so much larger than bacteria.

Diseases caused by preservatives

Preservatives are linked to the following diseases:

1. Weight gain
2. Allergies
3. Headaches
4. Nausea
5. Diarrhea
6. Hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder (ADD and ADHD)
7. Asthma
8. Resistance to antibiotics
9. Preterm delivery
10. Cancer
11. Heart disease
12. Brain, spine and nerve disease

Choose whole foods.

Avoid the above problem foods and heal your body. You will lose weight more efficiently when the harmful things that damage your health are gone. This should become a part of your everyday lifestyle - no matter what diet you follow. 

Your taste buds will adapt quickly

A lot of people can't stick to a healthy diet because they fear that they won't enjoy their lives anymore. They are scared to eliminate the food that they enjoy.

Many people fail because of the fear of a sense of loss. They feel a sense of deprivation before they even begin.

You might feel like you won't enjoy your life because you don't get to enjoy food anymore.

The good news is that it takes only 14 days for your taste buds to adapt. It takes just two weeks for your tongue to forget the enjoyment of some foods and learn to appreciate the tastes of others.

You aren't losing anything. You're simply changing your tastes. Food without sugar will start to taste sweeter on its own and you will enjoy the things that you didn't like before. All you need to do is stick it out for the first two weeks.

Your associations with food will also change. 

Take coffee, for example. At first, coffee will taste bland without cream or sugar. When your taste buds adapt, you will enjoy coffee without sugar just as much as you did with sugar. You won't crave sweet coffee anymore. Plain coffee will give you the same boost that it usually does.

Your body craves sweetness, in the same way, because it has adapted to the amount of sugar or sweeteners that you eat. After a short period of time your body will forget to crave sweetness because it learns to function without it.

How great would it be to crave and enjoy the foods that are actually good for you? It is awesome to know that this happens naturally when you eat healthy.

Focus on how much better you are going to feel.

2. Eat whole foods exclusively

Your body will heal itself and lose weight naturally when you avoid unhealthy food.

A lot of the imbalances that cause weight gain will start to resolve because you stop them at their source: by eliminating the foods that cause them.

The next step is to nourish yourself with the nutrients you that you do need to get healthy and function at your best.

This eating plan will help you to lose weight. It will increase your natural energy and improve your body's ability to do all of its functions.

Antioxidants, for example, help to clean out the whole body. This is includes the liver, which is responsible for converting fat into energy. Iron helps with the transportation of oxygen, and oxygen is combined with fat to oxidize it into energy. B vitamins are heavily involved in the process of turning nutrients into energy. Nutrients are essential for weight loss.

Focus on whole, natural, single-ingredient food. You can eat dairy, fruit, vegetables, leafy greens, meat (red and white), eggs, fish, nuts, beans and seeds.

Variety is important

Your body needs a whole array of nutrients.

Your body depends on micro nutrients like antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, trace elements, plant compounds and polyphenols. Macro nutrients include proteins (which break down into different amino acids), fat (which includes different essential fatty acids) and carbohydrates (which break down into sugars). Natural fiber is also important.

You do not need to remember this list. Just make sure that you get enough of these different foods:

Important food groups for healthy weight loss

1. Fruit and vegetables
2. Meat (white meat and red meat) and fish
3. Legumes (nuts, beans and seeds)
4. Eggs and dairy (Milk, yogurt, cheese)

Include these foods in your daily diet.

How much should I eat of each food group to lose weight?

1. Have at least 5 portions of 5 different fruit and vegetables every day
2. Eat at least two portions of meat or fish
3. Have at least 1 portion of nuts and seeds
4. Eat at least one diary product and one egg portion every day

In addition to the minimum portions listed above, you can have extra portions of any of the food groups. Make sure to have a variety of different food instead of eating one thing exclusively - you can't eat nothing but chicken for all of your meat portions.

Is it healthy to eat 5 fruit and vegetables a day?

This study saw a significant weight reduction for everyone who ate nothing but fruit and nuts. 82% of their calories came from fruit. There were no calorie or portion restrictions. Overall health improved for all participants.

Here are a list of studies that prove that fruit lead to weight reduction and improved health.

The benefits of eating fruit and vegetables

You can find clinical evidence to these benefits in the studies listed in the link above.

1. Incredibly filling
2. Fruit make you eat less food overall
3. Increased satiety
4. Full of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and other important nutrients
5. Reduces cholesterol
6. Slow the absorption of carbohydrates
7. Significant weight loss
8. High in beneficial fiber
9. Reduced risk of heart disease and stroke
10. Lower risk of diabetes
11. Reduced risk of cancer
12. Lower blood pressure
13. Reduces oxidative stress
14. Improved glycemic control (the way your body handles sugar)

Fruit is healthy and helps you to lose weight.

Will I spike my blood sugar if I eat 5 fruit and vegetables a day?

Your body needs sugar to survive. If you remove all the sugar in your body, you would die. Cells need sugar. They die without it.

There is a reason why your body is made to crave foods high in sugar. The problem with sugars in processed food is that we get too much of it. Low blood sugar (known as hypoglycemia) is a life-threatening condition.

Symptoms of blood sugar that is too low (hypoglycemia) include:

1. Fatigue
2. Headaches
3. Extreme hunger
4. Changes in mood
5. Nervousness
6. Shaking or dizziness
7. Pale skin
8. Excessive sweating
9. Trouble sleeping
10. Tingling sensations on the skin
11. Blurry vision
12. A rapid heartbeat
13. Rapid mental decline
14. Loss of consciousness
15. Seizures
16. Coma 
17. Death

Signs of low blood sugar

Sugar from fruit and vegetables is healthier than sugar from processed food 

The added sugar in processed foods absorb straight into your blood stream. Processed foods are designed to have rapidly absorbing forms of sugar so that they become more enjoyable and more addictive. This drives sales and encourages the creation of products with fast acting sugar in higher amounts.

The sugar in fruit and vegetables isn't dumped into your blood stream because they are hidden in fibers that are hard to digest. Your digestive system works hard to absorb the nutrients from plant foods.

It takes longer for the sugar in fruit and vegetables to enter the blood stream. The slower release of sugars over a longer period of time prevent the sugar in fruit and vegetables from spiking your blood sugar in the same way as processed food with added sugar.

The sugar in fruit and vegetables are accompanied by an array of vital nutrients

Fruit and vegetables contain important nutrients that improve your health and aid weight loss.

Blueberries, for example, are high in sugar but support health and weight loss. They contain almost all of the vitamins that our bodies need.

Blueberries have powerful antioxidants that support liver function - and the liver needs to work properly if it is going to turn fat cells into usable energy. They also contain a small amount of your daily Vitamin B requirement. Vitamin B is essential to weight loss because it helps the body to turn calories into energy. They are also up to 88% water (see the water content of other fruits). The water content will make you feel satisfied with your healthy food.

If we stick with the example of blueberries, they also contain fibers that prolong the time it takes before you feel hungry again. They support the strains of gut bacteria that help you to lose weight.

Learn about how gut bacteria determine your health.

As you can see, the health and weight loss benefits of blueberries far outweigh the sugar content.

What fruit and vegetables must I eat for weight loss?

This is up to you. All fruit and vegetables have health and weight loss benefits. Just make sure that you eat at least 5 different types of fruit or veg every day. Try to mix it up between different days. If you had a carrot, an apple, two leaves of lettuce, a banana and a tomato yesterday, opt for spinach, a peach and a handful of grapes, an avocado and blueberries on the next day.

Fruit are an excellent source of sweetness for people who struggle with a sugar or sweetener addiction

Fruit are a great way to satisfy your cravings for something sweet if you struggle to let go of added sugar or sweeteners. You should notice that people aren't ever as addicted to fruit like they are to added sugars or sweeteners. This is because of the fact that the sugars aren't as potent and take longer to digest. The sooner a substance enters into the bloodstream, the more addictive it will be.

Choose healthy. Choose happy.

You can combine separate potions of healthy food into quick and easy meals. Take this healthy avocado chicken salad, for example. It combines chicken, avocado, spinach and lettuce into a delicious meal that is quick to put together.

Add other foods like tomatoes, cucumber, beef, salmon, onions, cheese or yogurt to mix it up and increase the variety of the foods you eat.

Add exercise to your weight loss strategy

An effective weight loss plan is incomplete without a good exercise plan. One of the best benefits of exercise is its ability to reduce fat and tone up your whole body.

Try this muscle building program if you want to build muscle while you embark on your weight loss journey.

This program will reboot your fitness in 30 days. It takes only one exercise a day and doesn't require any equipment.

The weight loss exercise plan is perfect for people who want to exercise for maximum fat burning potential. It doesn't require any equipment either.

If you struggle to get into exercise and stick with it, this is the easiest way to get into exercise for weight loss. It starts with a single squat on day 1 so that you don't get overwhelmed with too much exercise. It is better to do something extremely small than nothing at all.

I hope that you learnt something new today. Stay Strong!

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Artificial sweeteners lead to weight gain

Artificial sweeteners are worse than you think.

Artificial sweeteners might seem like a great way to enjoy the foods that you like without the added calories of sugar, but they do more harm than good.

How artificial sweeteners can lead to weight gain

1. Sweeteners cause you to eat more sugar throughout the day
2. They train your palate to crave sweeter foods
3. Artificial sweeteners decrease the desirability of healthy foods that aren't as sweet
4. Sweeteners teach us to eat for the sake of sweetness instead of the need for nutrients
5. Studies show that they can be more addictive than cocaine
6. Diet sodas increase the risk of diseases like metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, obesity, abnormal cholesterol, unbalanced triglycerides, heart disease, stroke, insulin resistance and diabetes

Sugar-free sweeteners may lead to weight gain. Here's how:

1. Artificial sweeteners cause you to eat more sugar

We tend to reward our positive behaviors with negative ones. You think that since you've chosen a sugar-free option, it is okay to eat something with sugar in it later on. People who use artificial sweeteners are still more likely to follow a diet that is high in sugar, compared to those who don't use artificial sweeteners at all. "I haven't had anything with sugar all day, so this cake shouldn't be that bad for me."

A study cited by Harvard Medical School (linked above) showed that people who drank diet sodas were two times more likely to be overweight than those who didn't.

2. Sweeteners train your palate to crave sweeter foods than usual

Everything comes at a cost. Artificial sweeteners are no different. When you satisfy your cravings for something sweet during a meal with a sweetener, you aren't addressing the problem. You're masking it.

You increase your tolerance to sweetness when you use an artificial sweetener. You use a sweetener instead of losing your interest in foods with sugar - which would happen naturally when you avoid sugar. You could retrain your brain to associate non-sweet foods with actual food instead.

This, in turn, will decrease your desire for foods that aren't as sweet as those have artificial sweeteners. Fruits taste less sweet on their own and non-sweet foods like vegetables become less desirable to palates that grow accustomed to tasting sweetness at every meal.

Sweetness is dangerously addictive.

3. Artificial sweeteners reduce our association with caloric intake

The overuse of sweeteners can cause you to crave something sweet - even when your body doesn't need any more calories. You end up eating more food to satisfy your taste buds than you what would to satisfy hunger. 

This leads to a cycle of eating for enjoyment over eating to nourish your body. People who don't use artificial sweeteners at all are more likely to eat solely out of hunger and lose interest in the idea of food when they don't have a need for more calories.

4. Artificial sweeteners are highly addictive

This study found that artificial sweeteners can be more addictive than cocaine. Rodents were given cocaine to make them addicted to the substance. They were then given the choice between an artificial sweetener and cocaine. Most of them chose to satisfy their craving for sweetness via the artificial sweetener instead of cocaine.

Sweeteners can be more addictive than cocaine.

5. Diet Sodas are linked to a greater risk for metabolic syndrome and diabetes

Artificial sweeteners may cause the very diseases that they were meant to prevent. This study found that daily diet soda consumption increased the risk of metabolic syndrome (increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat, abnormal cholesterol, unbalanced triglyceride levels, increased heart disease and stroke risk) and Type 2 Diabetes (severe insulin resistance).

Artificial sweeteners may do more harm than we realize.

Is sugar better than artificial sweeteners?

Does this mean that we should ditch artificial sweeteners and go back to sugar? Absolutely not! The solution lies in addressing the cause. This is how you can learn to enjoy eating foods that are good for you instead of the foods that are high in sugars or sweeteners.

How to decrease your taste for sugar and artificial sweeteners

Sugar and sweeteners desensitize your taste for sweetness. In the long-run, you will require more sweetness to get the same amount of satisfaction in a meal. The opposite is also true. You can teach your taste buds to become more sensitive to sweetness so that you enjoy the natural flavors of food. With the right diet you will learn to enjoy the foods that nourish you and improve your overall health.

1. Train your palate to enjoy foods that aren't so sweet

The first step to decreasing your taste for sweetness is to realize that you have grown accustomed to foods that are too sweet. The next step is to start eating foods without sugar and sweeteners. At first, they will taste bland. Your taste buds regenerate completely every 10 days to 2 weeks. If you can stick it out for this amount of time, foods will start tasting sweeter on their own.

Drink your coffee or tea without sugar or sweeteners. It will taste bland for the first few days, but you will learn to enjoy the taste of these beverages without the need for sugar. You will soon associate these drinks with the natural taste - instead their sweetened versions.

2. Learn to enjoy foods without added sugar and sweeteners

Sweet is not the only pleasurable taste. Sour, salty and bitter can also be enjoyable. Try out a variety of different foods (without added sugar or sweeteners) and you will be pleasantly surprised that you can enjoy foods without the need for sweetness.

Non-sweet foods that you might enjoy:

1. Greek yogurt
2. Pineapples and other whole fruits (natural sugar is not as harmful as added sugar)
3. Pickled foods (which can be good for your gut bacteria)
4. Proteins
5. Unsweetened, herbal teas
6. Sushi
7. Vegetables

3. Cut out foods that have hidden added sugar

Sugar is addictive. The more sugar you consume, the harder it will be to cut it out of your life. A great way to reduce your sugar intake (and therefore reduce its addictive effects on your body) is to avoid the foods that have too much added sugar.

When you eat fewer foods that have added sugar, your body will learn to operate without the need for sugar and sweetness. The best way to do this is to cut out as many processed foods as possible because most processed foods contain sugar.

Replace salad dressings with lemon juice or vinegar. Buy raw vegetables instead of warming them up from a can. Avoid baked goods and pastries as much as possible. Choose real meat instead of processed meat.

4. Recognize what your cravings are telling you

Your desire for something sweet could indicate a sharp drop in your blood sugar levels. If this is the case, you might want to try intermittent fasting to reduce your drops in blood sugar.

Sugar cravings may also indicate low energy. In this case, try adding exercise to your daily routine so that your body learns to make more energy on its own.

5. Find another kind of enjoyable activity

Many people struggle to let go of unhealthy foods because they feel that food is the only thing that they can enjoy. Boredom is a big cause of unhealthy eating. Find other activities that you can enjoy instead. This may include starting a hobby like reading a book or dancing. 

Doing other activities that you enjoy will help you to find pleasure in things that don't involve food. These activities will distract you from your desire for sweetness and may even add to your life in other ways. Your hobby might turn into another form of income, help you to shed some extra pounds or benefit the community around you.

End the endless craving for sweetness.

Conclusion

Artificial sweeteners will not help you to stay healthy because they don't address the cause. Train your taste buds to appreciate the natural flavors of healthy food and try to determine whether your cravings for sweet things are the symptoms of something else like depression, stress or a lack of energy. Stay Strong!

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Disadvantages of a keto diet

The ketogenic diet

A ketogenic diet (or keto diet) is a diet with very low or no carbohydrates that keeps your body in a state of ketosis. Ketosis is a state where the body converts fats into energy instead of sugar. Nowadays, everyone wants to lose weight. Many people are promoting and using the keto diet for rapid weight loss - especially in the United States. The reason it has become so popular is because the keto diet helps you to lose quite a lot of weight in a minimum amount of time. The keto diet, though, might be an unhealthy way to lose weight. Let's look into how keto diet could be unsafe for us.

Types of keto diets

There are several types of a keto diets. Some of those are as follows:

High-protein keto diet

It is rich in proteins. It contains 60% fats, 5% carbs, and 35% proteins.

Standard keto diet

This one is low in carbs and high in fats. It contains 75% fats, 5% carbs, and 20% proteins.

Targeted keto diet

This one allows you to add carbs in workouts.

Disadvantages of a keto diet

Negative impact on the heart

Many people are happily adopting a keto diet because it allows foods like burgers, pizzas, and meat. The meat-heavy nature of this diet increases cholesterol levels in the body. It is also high in fats, so it harms your blood cholesterol level.

When the amount of LDL (low-density lipoprotein) increases in the body, it causes slow blood flow to the heart muscles. Arteries become narrow, and this condition can lead to heart disease.

Deficiency of essential nutrients

Our body needs many essential nutrients to work properly. These nutrients include proteins, minerals, fats, vitamins, and carbohydrates. To remain healthy, we need a healthy diet that contains all these nutrients. Keto diets don’t allow whole grains and fruits. The keto diet can therefore lead to a shortage of essential nutrients. You lose weight through this diet, but your body loses nutrients that are needed to perform important cellular tasks. So if you are planning to follow a keto diet, always consult a registered dietitian first.

Keto flu

The deficiency of carbs in the body causes keto flu during a keto diet. Keto flu is a condition where you feel

• Headache

• Nausea

• Fatigue

• Hunger

• Irritability

• Constipation

Sleep and hydration will help but you will still feel weak throughout the day. It is because our body gets most of our energy from carbohydrates. With a low intake of carbohydrates, your body doesn’t get much power and you can feel sick as a result.

Can make you feel thirsty

Your body converts carbohydrates into glucose, and glucose stimulates the pancreas to produce insulin. Insulin carries glucose to cells of the body for energy and saves the rest of glucose as glycogen. Between meals, our body takes energy from these glycogen stores.

During a keto diet, there is a deficiency of carbohydrates in the body and it doesn’t produce sufficient amounts of insulin. Instead, ketones interrupt overall electrolyte levels. This causes the kidney to release water. It leads to frequent urination. Your mouth remains dry throughout the day and you feel thirsty.

Causes bad breath

You may have lousy breath if you have recently started a keto diet. Our liver uses fat cells to produce organic compounds called ketones during a keto diet. It includes acetoacetic acid and acetone. These byproducts show up in your breath. When your body starts to break down fats for energy, gases are produced. These gases are released through urination and exhalation. So people often complain about bad breath during a keto diet. Bad breath is actually a good sign too that your body has started burning fats for fuel.

Sugar deficiency

We know that too much sugar can damage the body, but our body needs enough sugar to work optimally. Sugars travel through the bloodstream to the cells. There, they provide energy for the cells. Carbohydrates and sugar break down into glucose. The brain cells and red blood cells use glucose for energy.

During a keto diet, our body doesn’t get enough carbs and sugars. Glucose doesn’t travel through the bloodstream, and you feel low in energy.

Regaining the weight

You may lose weight in a short period of time through a keto diet, but as soon as you introduce carbs again, your body starts to gain the weight back.  It is because keto diet relies on ketosis for a particular process and once the body is no longer in that state, you begin to gain the weight back. If you want to avoid this situation, consult a dietitian so he/she can guide you through a balanced diet.

Causes diarrhea

If you are going to the bathroom again and again during the keto diet, you are not alone. Many people face this problem during a keto diet. It can be due to a lack of fiber. When you cut off carbohydrate-rich foods like vegetables and whole grains, diarrhea can occur. This is common when you switch to a low carbohydrate and high-fat diet. Diarrhea can also happen due to an increase in dairy and artificial sweeteners.

Conclusion

The keto diet is missing some essential nutrients and some primary food groups. Keto diet can be beneficial for some people for a short period. But people who have a higher risk of heart disease should avoid a keto diet. If you want to lose weight, shift to a healthy diet. It will help you to lose weight and support a healthy lifestyle. But if you're going to use a keto diet, it is better to consult your dietitian for the right food choices.

Saad Shah

My name is Saad Shah. I am an avid food lover and food nutrition blogger. I'm a firm believer in the transforming powers of food. I run a nutrition blog on my website nutrition to encourage conscious food choices, with knowledge of their nutritional value.

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Stop giving children sugar

There has been a culture in society that dictates that it is okay to give children sugar, because they like it. Is it really all in the name of innocent fun or are we actually causing more harm than good?

Sugar addiction

Sugar addiction is a worldwide epidemic that affects every country in the world. It has been called the world's deadliest addiction, killing more people than illegal drugs and other diseases. Some believe that more than half of the western world's population may have an unhealthy addiction to sugar. By allowing children to eat sugar-filled sweets; laden with other harmful colorants, artificial flavors and toxins, are we subconsciously teaching them how to become sugar addicts?

Some people probably think that I am going too far in this post. If we lived in a world where unhealthy foods were not the norm for those who can't even make decisions for themselves yet; would obesity, diabetes, heart failure and other related diseases are as prevalent as they are in adults?

Imagine two children who were born exactly the same: identical genetics, lifestyles, social groups and disciplines. Now imagine that one of them follows the same typical diet as what is considered normal. Imagine that the other child is raised on a diet that consists of nothing but healthy, wholesome food 99% of the time like fruit, vegetables, diary, meats and grains in balanced proportions. Which child do you think would get the best marks in school? Which one would be the healthiest and get sick less often? Which one would do better at whatever hobbies and sports they chose? Which one would get the least pimples in puberty and which one would turn out to be the best looking? Ultimately, which one is most likely to make the healthiest life choices in adulthood and which one would be the happiest in life? Which one of these two children got the best chance at the best possible life?

I'm not saying that parents don't care for their children. I'm saying that they don't know how badly a sugar filled diet will actually affect them. The problem is that we raise our children according to the way everybody else does. It has become the norm to have cake and sweets at birthday parties and other events, for children to be rewarded with sugar and for children to drink carbonated drinks when they are thirsty. I can remember all the different kinds of sweets I used to have regularly at school and at home. Whenever I visited my grandparents' house, I got to choose 3 sweets out of the 'sweetie bowl'. I remember all the sweets we used to buy from the shop at my school, and my sports teams were given nice sugary treats every time we played against other schools. It was the norm.

Perhaps now would be a good time for you to pause for a moment and do a quick search on the negative effects of sugar and the other additives commonly found in sweets on childhood development. 

Health has become a choice

Here is one of the biggest problems in the world: health has become a choice, not the norm. Those who follow healthy diets have chosen to do so. Eating healthy is not a standard. You either eat a healthy diet, or eat like a 'normal' person. Has this got anything to do with the way we were raised? If eating healthy was the standard, wouldn't everybody be doing it because that is what they know, instead of mainly for other reasons like weight loss or disease control? Then again, is eating healthy was the standard; would anyone need to 'diet' for weight loss? And how much disease would actually trouble the western world?

Spotting the 'crazy' in the 'normal'

• Ask a parent what their child's favorite sweet is, then ask what their child's favorite vegetable is. 
• Vegetables are the things we need to finish quickly on the plate, but sweets are the things we can have fun with.
• Have you ever seen a parent say 'hmm, yummy!' when giving their baby their first taste of cake? They are saying that because they expect their child to like the taste, not realizing that they are actually suggesting that their baby should like the taste.
• Children are told to finish their greens, and then have a choice of desert afterwards. The healthy stuff becomes the work; the unhealthy stuff becomes the reward.
• Look at cafeterias in schools. What kind of food is offered to children there?
• How often are sugars present at fun childhood events, and which foods have the most interesting colors and shapes?
• A child runs to a parent and says, 'I'm hungry'. How often will the parent say, 'there is an apple in the food bowl'?
• At the age of 7, compare the number of different sweets a child has tasted to the number of different fruits they have ever tried.

At the risk of sounding negative, if this article has made you think twice or given you a new perspective, it was well worth the write! STAY STRONG!

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