All posts by Parker Miller

How Health Foods Can Go Wrong?

health food

Health foods are often associated with low-fat foods, as people believe that fat is bad for health. But, health foods are loaded with carbohydrates. People who have tried low-fat diet and added more packaged health foods in their diet would have noticed that it does not help. This is because fat, fiber, and protein are required on a daily basis for the body to function every day. But, food companies started removing fat and replaced it with sugar, which is considered far more dangerous than fat.

A recent study by The Guardian mentions that in 1972, John Yudkin- a British nutrition professor warned that sugar is dangerous than fat. For this claim, the professor was criticized widely.

Carbohydrates provide energy by breaking down to glucose. Sugars breakdown faster, and dramatically raise the blood glucose level. Foods like milk and fruit contain sugar along with fiber and protein and other nutrients. But the health foods contain only carbohydrates, which does not give any nutrition and makes the person even hungrier. The study claims that the calories we gain are mostly from processed food such as bread, cakes, soda and snack bars.

Dietary guidelines with fat-restriction came into effect on 1977 in US which suggests limiting intake of fat to 10%. However, recent studies by BMJ claim that fat restriction has little to no effect in improving health after an eight-year trial with fifty thousand women undergoing fat restriction diet. It did not reduce the women’s risk of cancer, or their weight.

Food companies started replacing fat with carbohydrates, increasing health threats as the ideal amount of sugar intake is just 50 grams per day. The solution for this major health threat is the intake of healthy fats from foods like avocado, nuts and fish and cutting back on refined carbohydrates and snacks. Vegetables are important for an everyday meal. Nuts are a source of healthy fats and fiber. Incorporating fishes like salmon helps protect cell membranes, as they have omega-3 fatty acids. Avocados are rich in fat, fiber and have less sugar. Eating a few slices a day is healthier than carb rich foods.

Getting Rid Of Health Foods Misconceptions

Proper-Nutritional

Health foods have replaced naturally available products- cow milk is replaced by almond milk. Even though few health foods do have their benefits, they are not as healthy as they claim to be.
Multivitamins are being taken by people every day. Vitamins do have a great role in processing our energy, but the little amount needed is present on the food we eat. Hence, there is no real need for pills unless the person is deficient.

Almond butter is extremely costly and is said to have health benefits. But, Andy Bellati- a certified dietitian says that it has no more nutritional value than peanut butter. It also has vitamin E, protein, and healthy fats. Juicing fruits or vegetables removes their fiber content which is the major ingredient to make one feel full. Juice has only sugar, which causes constant hunger and low- protein results in losing muscle mass. Gluten-free food does not have any huge health impact. Similarly, almond milk does not have any nutrient in it. Cow milk can be replaced with soy milk.

Granola bars are one of the much-consumed health foods, but it contains a huge amount of sugar in it. A single cup of granola contains 600 calories which equal the calories consumed by eating two turkeys. Avoiding egg yolks and eating only egg whites started when experts claimed that yolk had bad cholesterol. However, recent studies show that dietary cholesterol has little to no effect on blood cholesterol level.

Contradictory to popular beliefs, water that is bottled is not healthier or cleaner than normal drinking water. Agave replaced sugar for its low glucose content. However, it has fructose, another sweetener, which causes as much health threat as increased glucose levels. Detoxing the body is completely pointless as the body itself cleanses and filters any harmful substances through kidney and liver. Blood is filtered by the kidney to remove dietary toxins while liver detoxifies chemicals from medications.

Coconut oil is identical to olive oil but has increased the number of saturated fats. Himalayan pink salt has minerals like calcium, potassium, and iron, but experts say it serves no purpose and is just like any other salt. Similarly, coconut water has the same nutritional value as water and a piece of fruit.

Myths On Russia’s Military Interference In Syria

russian millitary

Vladimir Putin is on a misinformation campaign to the Russian audience on the military intervention after the 1979 Afghanistan invasion outside the previous Soviet Union. It is reported that Putin is falsely narrating to cover up the objectives of Russian intervention in Syria. He has also come up with a false narration about the Islamic State of Iraq misguiding the International Society. Just two days before starting the Russian air campaign, on September 28, he started a false narrative seeking international intervention and forming a coalition against the ISIS. On September 30, he steps in on the Syrian issue not to fight them but to stop the influence of US in the Middle East and showcase the Russian military power in the region.

Putin’s air campaign was targeted at the Syrian armed groups in a war with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and not the ISIS. Reports reveal that ISIS has around 7,000 fighters from the former Soviet Union, and it has declared its governorate in the North Caucasus region. ISIS is viewed as a serious security concern by Moscow, but the behavior of Russia reveals that it is using anti-ISISI as a tool to achieve its larger objectives. The goal of Russia is to preserve the Syrian regime and ensure the influence of the US and its allies is diminished in the region.

Putin is running this misinformation campaign to make his real objectives unclear and maneuver the US and its allies to help Russia secure its goals. Russia has used the November 13 Paris attack in its favor to lure France into its ambit. The US may also accept the proposal put forward by Russia in ending the civil war in Syria.