Tag: fuel

Whether we’re looking to lose weight or improve our overall health, most of us could probably spend more time thinking about what we’re putting in our bodies.
Some foods seem like they’d be good for you, but unless you’ve actually read the nutrition labels, you might be surprised at what’s in them. Here are a few foods to avoid if you want to keep your diet on track.

1. Soda isn’t the only beverage to avoid.

You already know that sodas aren’t great, but don’t just switch out the sugary beverages with “diet” alternatives. Diet sodas have been linked to weight gain by a number of scientific studies.
“Consensus from interventional studies suggests that artificial sweeteners do not help reduce weight when used alone,” wrote neuroscientist Qing Yang in a 2010 mini-review of artificial sweeteners. “BMI did not decrease after 25 weeks of substituting diet beverages for sugar-sweetened beverages in 103 adolescents in a randomized controlled trial, except among the heaviest participants.”

Another study linked artificially sweetened beverages with an increased risk of stroke and dementia. We’d recommend sticking to tap water, black coffee, and unsweetened tea, perhaps with a twist of lemon for flavor.

2. Certain condiments can pack on the calories.

Condiments and sauces might seem like excellent tools for making nutritious foods more tolerable, but they’re often full of unnecessary sugars and salts. Barbecue sauce, for instance, can pack in up to 35 calories per tablespoon-sized serving, and most of those calories come from carbohydrates.

Whenever possible, consider cutting the condiments and replacing them with fresh vegetables. By using a tomato slice instead of ketchup, for instance, you can cut your caloric load while adding potassium, fiber, and vitamin C to your diet.

3. Beware of many—but not all—canned foods.

Too much salt can lead to high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease, and many canned foods are high in sodium. But contrary to popular belief, salt is not essential to canning.

During the canning process, foods are exposed to high temperatures for long periods. This eliminates any harmful bacteria, preserving the food, and since there’s no bacteria, there’s no real need for salt.
There’s just one problem: The canning process can make foods unpalatable. To get around this issue, some manufacturers add a ton of salt to their recipes.

Ultimately, you’ll need to read the labels to find out whether canned foods are high in sodium. You’ll find that sauces and soups often have a ton of salt, but many canned veggies are perfectly fine. Even when they are packed in salty water, you can cut the sodium content by simply rinsing the vegetables in fresh water.

4. Yogurt is a nutritious addition to your diet, unless…

Yogurt is considered a classic health food. It’s a great way to add protein and calcium to your diet, but if you’re not careful, it’s also a great way to add a bunch of empty calories.

Many flavored yogurts contain about 18 to 26 grams of sugar per serving, sometimes with added artificial sweeteners. Plain yogurt, by comparison, contains about 12 grams of sugar, most of which is lactose. You’re better off buying the plain yogurt and adding fresh fruit; it’ll taste better, and you’ll save a few calories.

Vitamin C is the go-to cure for the common cold, right?

Wrong.

It turns out that there’s no evidence to support the pervasive claims that a big glass of orange juice can cure a case of the sniffles.

In fact, the opposite is true. High doses of any vitamin—including vitamin C—are harmful to your health. So why do Americans continue to spend more than $30 billion annually on vitamin supplements?

The bizarre history of the vitamin supplement craze starts with one brilliant scientist, Linus Pauling, who believed that vitamin C was an all-natural miracle cure and convinced millions of Americans to believe the same.

Vitamin C: the Original Megavitamin

By the time Linus Pauling was 30 years old, he’d already won the first of two Nobel Prizes for his groundbreaking work on chemical compounds. He was considered one of the most brilliant scientists of his time. According to The Atlantic, even Albert Einstein admitted Pauling’s work was “too complicated.”

After winning the Nobel Peace Prize for his anti-war work in the 1960s, Pauling received a letter from Dr. Irwin Stone, who claimed that a “High Level Ascorbic Acid Regimen” of vitamin C could extend human life by several years.

Despite little evidence to corroborate Stone’s claims, Pauling was an instant believer in the healing power of vitamins and immediately began taking vitamin C in quantities that far exceeded the recommended daily amount.

In 1970, Pauling published a best-selling book called Vitamin C and the Common Cold, which boldly asserted that taking 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C daily could eventually eradicate the common cold altogether.

In the revised edition published in 1976, Pauling went even further. He claimed that high doses of vitamin C could cure not only cancer but virtually every other disease known to man.

Although Pauling was a highly regarded scientist and was considered the father of molecular biology, his peers published study after study that refuted his claims. Nevertheless, Pauling remained adamant, and his books stayed on bestseller lists for years.

Vitamania goes viral.

An undeniably brilliant scientist, Pauling was largely considered a quack by medical professionals.

Still, by the mid 1970s, nearly 50 million Americans were following Pauling’s vitamin C advice to ward off colds, cancer, and other ailments.

In 1972, Dr. Irwin Stone (remember him?) published The Healing Factor (with a foreword by Pauling), which further promoted the idea that megavitamin therapy could cure myriad ills.

The vitamin craze continued to grow steadily until the early 1990s, when it exploded after Time magazine published a cover story echoing Pauling’s claims that vitamins could “fight cancer, heart disease, and the ravages of aging.”

The magazine sold like hotcakes and was even distributed to members of Congress in an effort to influence the Food and Drug Administration to support vitamin supplements.

A couple of decades later, and vitamania is everywhere. V
itamins are in everything from drinks to snack cakes.

According to journalist Catherine Price, “we tend to think that vitamins can hold the key to good health, and we let this enthusiasm for the idea get in the way of our good health.”

Linus Pauling truly believed that vitamin supplements could cure every disease on Earth. His enthusiasm spurred the modern vitamin craze that has persisted for more than 40 years.

Although Pauling was an exceptional molecular biologist, his claims regarding vitamin supplements are mostly untrue.

In reality, Price says, “there’s potential long-term risk in constantly saturating our bodies with way more than we actually need.”

Although there are people who do suffer from serious vitamin deficiencies around the world, most Americans get all the vitamins they need from a well-rounded diet. Recent research shows that vitamin supplements do nothing to improve heart health or memory loss.

Antioxidants aren’t a cure-all.

Pauling believed that antioxidants were the reason vitamins could cure everything from colds to cancer. It turns out that antioxidants found in vitamins (particularly vitamin C) could be the reason vitamins actually shorten lifespan.

A little science:

Antioxidants prevent cell damage done by free radicals. Free radicals in the body are highly reactive because they contain an unpaired electron. Without antioxidants to stabilize free radicals, serious cellular damage that leads to heart disease, cancer, and memory loss can occur.

Free radicals aren’t all bad, though. In certain instances, free radicals can act as signal substances that alert the body something’s wrong, thus triggering the balancing antioxidant response. It’s only when too many free radicals exist that long-term cellular damage can occur.

A variety of antioxidants naturally occur in food and help the body balance free radicals. This variety provides a protective buffer as antioxidants connect to free radicals in the body.

In an interview with Scientific American, Dr. Cleva Villanueva explains it this way: “chocolate has more than 20 antioxidant flavonoids. One is converted into a free radical and becomes reactive, but less reactive [than the first]. It then reacts with another, and that one is less reactive and so on and so forth, and all of them react with each other, decreasing the damage that would be happening to our lipids, or proteins or DNA.”

When we take a large amount of just one antioxidant—like a big dose of vitamin C—that protective buffer disappears. 

According to Diane McKay, a researcher at Tufts University, “If you have too many antioxidants, you suppress your body’s own ability to turn on its antioxidant defense system.”

The Truth About Vitamins

In reality, the truth about whether vitamins are good or bad for us lies somewhere in the middle. Vitamins are necessary for overall good health and can in moderation lower the risk of certain health conditions.

Unless you do have true vitamin deficiency, such as with rickets, most doctors recommend a nutritious diet full of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins as the best way to get the recommended daily amount of vitamins.

Linus Pauling was wrong about vitamin C, but he steadfastly believed in his work until the end of his life. Although vitamins may not do anything for your cold, doctors agree there’s nothing wrong with drinking orange juice in moderation when you’re sick.

Amazon seems poised to enter the home-delivery meal market.
The company filed a trademark application on July 6 detailing plans for “prepared food kits composed of meat, poultry, fish, seafood, fruit and/or and [sic] vegetables…ready for cooking and assembly as a meal, as well as primarily grain-based offerings.”

But what will the Amazon Meal Kits actually look like?

Well, we may not have to wait long to find out.
According to GeekWire, the meal kits are already available in select areas. One of the website’s readers reached out to provide some pictures and info.

GeekWire reports that vegetarian Meal Kits are slightly cheaper, at $15.99 each.

We should note that there’s no indication that Amazon will keep the same pricing when introducing the product to a wider audience.
Currently, customers need to be subscribed to both Amazon Prime and Amazon Fresh (the company’s grocery delivery service) to access the meal kits.

It is pretty typical to feel pressure to lose weight. Whether you’re looking forward to a big day, like your wedding or next beach vacation, or you’ve just welcomed a new baby and want to “bounce back,” you’re certainly not alone if you want to drop some pounds. In fact, over half of the American population—53 percent to be exact—has dreams of losing weight, according to a 2016 Gallup poll.

Of course, it’s one thing to want to lose weight and another thing to make it happen. Weight loss is simple in theory, requiring burning more calories than you take in each day. In practice, it is much more difficult.

Between finding the time for exercise, sticking with strict nutrition plans and preparation of unprocessed foods, it makes sense that so many people are looking for an easy fix to their weight loss woes.

It isn’t all that uncommon for both men and women to turn to a diet that promises quick weight loss, but these fad diets seem to be specifically targeted at women. There are so many out there that make big promises of quick weight loss, but can they deliver on those promises? And exactly how healthy is it to embark on intense weight loss plans?

We put some of the most bizarre modern diets under the microscope, taking a close look at what they promise, what they deliver, and any side effects that may come along with the diet. Here’s what we found out.

1. The HCG Diet

The Promise: This approach has been around for half a century but has recently regained popularity as a fast way to shed pounds. The HCG diet promises rapid weight loss through calorie restriction and supplementation with a synthetic version of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), a hormone that is naturally produced by pregnant women. This diet is based on research that linked the presence of high HCG levels with loss of belly fat.

Users are encouraged to follow a very specific protocol, beginning with a “fat-loading” phase of a few days that is followed by up to 40 days of eating less than 500 calories a day, all while taking HCG drops three times daily.

The Results: You might be surprised to hear it, but this diet actually does work in the sense that those who follow the extreme protocol will lose weight. The truth is, any time you cut your calorie intake, you are going to experience weight loss.

Still, there isn’t any research to support the idea that taking an HCG supplement contributes to weight loss success, according to the Journal of The Academy of American Nutrition and Dietetics. The journal also raises other concerns, pointing out the nutritional inadequacy of an extreme, low-calorie diet and just how difficult it is to maintain for the long term.

2. The Master Cleanse

The Promise: Cayenne pepper, lemon juice, and maple syrup, oh my! These three foods are the bedrock of the Master Cleanse, also known as the lemonade diet. Over the course of 10 days, dieters are instructed to drink a tonic made from these three ingredients, combined with water, and then take a specific laxative before bed.

The creators of the cleanse promise that anyone who commits to this diet plan will see quick weight loss due to the metabolism-boosting effects of the ingredients along with healing of the digestive tract.

The Results: Any success experienced on the Master Cleanse can be attributed to extreme calorie restriction. The reality of this diet is that it is what Dr. Ed Zimney, columnist at Everyday Health, calls a “starvation diet.”

He insists there is nothing special about the suggested ingredients, except that the maple
syrup provides just enough sugar to keep your body going for 10 days. Zimney didn’t have anything positive to say about the diet, noting that he believes any weight loss experienced would be reversed as soon as the user reintroduces typical foods and that long-term maintenance of this diet could be deadly.

3. The Baby Food Diet

The Promise: If you’ve ever snuck a taste while feeding your baby, you know that jarred baby food isn’t the most flavorful meal. The blandness of baby food isn’t enough to scare off committed dieters, apparently, since an entire weight loss plan exists that encourages women to eat tons of jarred food for days on end.

The baby food diet is an unofficial program that suggests substituting breakfast, snacks, and lunch with jarred baby food as a means of cutting calories and controlling portion sizes.

The Results: Similar to many other fad diets, the baby food diet works in the sense that it allows dieters to restrict their calorie intake.

However, jarred baby food simply can’t meet the complex nutritional needs of an adult, according to WebMd. Following this diet for an extended period will likely result in nutritional deficiencies.

4. The Cabbage Soup Cleanse

The Promise: Losing 10 pounds or more in a single week is the enticing promise made by the cabbage soup cleanse. This is a low-calorie, high-fiber diet characterized by a very methodical day-by-day nutritional guide.

Dieters are discouraged by the diet’s creators from following this weight loss method for any longer than seven days, as they don’t believe it is a sustainable long-term plan.

The Results: One positive attribute of this diet is that the creators are fairly up front about the limitations of the diet. They admit on their homepage that the cabbage soup cleanse can’t be maintained for the long term and should be discontinued at day seven.

Unfortunately, even though this diet does result in weight loss, it probably won’t deliver a long-term change. Dieters are encouraged to eat under 1,000 calories a day and will lose weight very quickly but will also gain it back as soon as they return to a typical diet, according to Dr. Melinda Ratini of WebMd.

5. The Prayer Diet

The Promise: This weight loss plan is less of a diet and more a plan to pray for help to lose weight. The prayer diet promise originates with a website called Prayers for Special Help.

Readers are encouraged to use pre-written prayers—such as a prayer to resist cravings—to aid them in their weight loss goals. These prayers are intended to provide dieters with the extra strength they need, through connection with God, to commit to making changes to their lifestyle.

The Results: Of course, prayer alone won’t help you lose weight, but connecting to a higher power as a means of making lifestyle changes actually isn’t a bad idea.

Research has shown that meditation is helpful for those who want to lose weight because it helps individuals to set their intention on their goals each day. One could argue that prayer has the same effect and that by engaging in daily prayer about weight loss, individuals may become more motivated to achieve their goals.

6. The Cookie Diet

The Promise: Finally, a diet exists that promises lots of my favorite food and weight loss at the same time! The cookie diet is a low-calorie diet that is both high in protein and fiber. Dieters can’t eat any cookie they want, of course.

Instead they must purchase cookies created specifically for this program. Instead of meals for breakfast and lunch, dieters eat these cookies, which promise to keep hunger under control and achieve weight loss results. For dinner, a typical, balanced meal is encouraged.

The Results: Even though you will lose weight if you follow the cookie diet guidelines, you shouldn’t expect to be able to maintain the weight loss for the long term.

The real problem with diets that require purchasing pre-packaged foods, according to WebMd, is that dieters don’t learn how to make real lifestyle changes. Because of this, as soon as you are through with the diet, you won’t have tools for maintaining a healthy lifestyle moving forward and will likely gain any weight back.

Simply because these fad diets aren’t the right choice for sustainable weight loss that doesn’t mean you should give up your goals for a healthier lifestyle. The truth is, research has proven time and time again that a slow and steady approach leads to the most maintainable weight loss plan.

By honoring your body’s hunger by eating plenty of healthy fats, fruits, and vegetables you can lose weight through a healthy lifestyle you can maintain for the rest of your life.

Americans eat some

Casu marzu has been banned both in the U.S. and UK for obvious health reasons. Unless you visit Sardinia and know a guy who knows a guy who deals in illegal cheeses, casu marzu will have to stay on your foodie bucket list.

8. Tonka Beans

Tonka beans are valued in fine dining for their aroma, which has hints of vanilla, cherry, almond, and cinnamon.

The tonka bean’s distinct flavor is thanks to coumarin, a chemical compound that has been banned in the United States since 1954 because it can cause liver problems in high concentrations.

Although tonka beans are technically banned in the United States, many restaurants continue to find ways to import and use the bean. Or, you could jet off to Europe, where coumarin is not restricted, for a taste of tonka.

9. Ackee Fruit

The ackee fruit has been adopted by Jamaica as its national fruit, even though it can famously cause Jamaican vomiting sickness. The seeds of the ackee fruit are extremely toxic, and only the yellow fruit surrounding the seeds are edible.

If the ackee fruit is not prepared correctly, eating it can cause not only the aforementioned vomiting but can also lead to hypoglycemia, muscle weakness, coma, and even death, which is why it has been banned in the United States.

But if you can’t make it to Jamaica for fresh ackee, canned and frozen ackee can be purchased stateside.

10. Shark Fins

Shark fin soup is a delicacy across much of Asia. The shark fins don’t provide much flavor, but they add texture to the soup, which is often served at banquets and weddings.

Harvesting the shark fins is pretty gruesome, which is why shark fin harvesting has been banned in the United States. When shark fins are harvested, the sharks are captured, their fins are removed, and the sharks are then dumped back in the ocean.

Shark fin soup continues to be served in the United States, as imports are still legal in many states. But recent legislation introduced in 2016 aims to totally stop shark fin imports into the United States.

If the legislation passes, foodie thrill seekers will have to travel outside the United States to get a taste of shark fin soup.

Why do avocados go brown so quickly?

If you’ve ever made guacamole, you’ve likely noticed that raw avocado quickly turns into an unappetizing brown mess. That’s because of the same chemical process that causes apples and other fruits to brown—it’s just that in avocados, the process moves very quickly.

Here are the basics: When you expose an avocado’s flesh, an enzyme called polyphenol oxidase helps to convert phenolic compounds into quinones. This eventually produces polymers called polyphenols, which give the flesh a brown color.

To put it another way, oxygen is the enemy. It starts the underlying chemical process, and once it starts, it doesn’t stop.

While you can’t stop an avocado from browning entirely, you can slow the process.

The most common trick is to add lemon juice. Lemon juice boosts the acidity, slowing the enzymes and preventing the browning process. But this only works if you use enough lemon juice to preserve the entire avocado—exposed sections of the fruit will still brown.

You can also cover the avocado in a tight cling film. This prevents the oxygen from contacting the fruit, which slows the reaction.

You can also use red onions to stop avocados from browning.

For this method, you’ll simply small-dice a red onion and seal it in an airtight container with the avocado. The fruit should touch the onion; for best results, add in the pit on top. Again, the onion’s acidity staves off the enzymatic reactions, giving you more time to enjoy your fruit.

Of all of the methods listed here, the red onion trick is probably most effective—but it can flavor your avocado. That’s not such a big deal if you love onions or if you’re mixing onions into your guac, but it might be a dealbreaker for some readers.

By understanding the browning process, you can also preserve uncut avocados.

The browning process begins occurring as soon the avocado is plucked from the tree, but by limiting oxygen exposure, you can preserve the fruit. As soon as your avocados are ripe, wrap them in cling film and store them in your refrigerator.

What if you’ve got some unripe avocados that you’d like to ripen? Place them in a brown paper bag with an apple or banana. This works because apples and bananas contain ethylene, which triggers the ripening process. By enclosing the different fruits in a single bag, you trap in the ethylene, and your avocados

Many people consider mac and cheese the ultimate comfort food. Unfortunately, a Belgian study warns that the cheese powder used to make the dish contains alarming levels of chemicals.

The chemicals in question are called phthalates (pronounced THAL-eights). Manufacturers use phthalates to soften plastic, making it ideal for vinyl flooring, shower curtains, and food labels. Perfume, deodorant, and plastic bottles also contain the plasticizer.

Because phthalates do not chemically bond to plastic, they leach out over time. Fatty foods, such as the cheese powder from mac and cheese mixes, can then bond to the phthalates in their packaging, causing humans to ingest the dangerous substance.

The harmful effects of these chemicals are well studied. To protect children from exposure, Congress banned the use of phthalates in children’s toys and pacifiers. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates food safety, could ban the plasticizer from food packaging and labels, but so far has shown no willingness to do so.

The study detected phthalates in 29 out of 30 samples.

The number of phthalates that the study detected may seem low when you see the results. The lab measured the concentration of phthalates in parts per billion. Still, the chemicals exist at high enough concentrations to affect the body’s hormones.

For instance, phthalates can alter reproductive hormone levels in girls and inhibit testosterone production in boys. Heather Patisaul, a professor of biological sciences at the Center for Human Health and the Environment at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, told the New York Times, “That means there is less testosterone available to the developing male fetus, and since testosterone is absolutely vital to build his reproductive organs, the worry is that you will get malformations and other kinds of problems that translate to health effects later.”

Early childhood exposure can also be dangerous. Dr. Sheela Sathyanarayana, associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington in Seattle, said that research indicates that there is a link between early childhood phthalate exposure and various behavioral and neurodevelopmental issues.

Aggression, hyperactivity, and possibly even cognitive delays have been linked to phthalate exposure.

What can consumers do to decrease exposure?

Those who ran the study created a petition to urge Kraft to quit using phthalates in its packaging and labels. While the food giant has bowed to pressure in the past (a grassroots effort convinced the company to quit using food dyes in 2015), the current petition has less momentum behind it.

Instead of waiting for the industry to change, consumers can benefit from an immediate decrease in the chemical by switching to homemade mac and cheese. The study found that non-powdered cheeses had around four times less phthalates present than the powdered mixes.

When consumers switch to homemade mac and cheese, they gain the freedom to make other aspects of the meal healthier as well. They could substitute wheat pasta or add broccoli and other veggies to make this comfort food more nutritious.

Phthalate levels are highest in fatty foods.

A 2014 meta-analysis found phthalates in a stunning variety of foods in the United States, Europe, and China. Levels were highest in meat, oils, fats, and cream. Scientists also detected phthalates in yogurt, milk, eggs, pasta, fruits and vegetables, but the plasticizers were at much lower concentrations in these foods.

Phthalates are everywhere, and there’s no way to completely avoid them. A National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey found that nearly the enti
re U.S. population has phthalates in their bodies. But by avoiding common sources for the chemical, such as perfumes, plastic bottles, fast food—and, sadly, boxed macaroni and cheese—consumers can reduce their exposure to this dangerous chemical.

According to the latest available figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 20 percent of Americans drink diet beverages on any given day. Many of these products boast weight-loss capabilities, but how true is that claim? The answer is a subject of controversy.

Manufacturers of zero-calorie beverages have very different answers from those of diet advocates, which is why it’s so important to do your own research on the products you’re eating and drinking. Here’s a quick introduction to the wild world of zero-calorie beverages.

Searching for the Truth About Zero-Calorie Drinks

It isn’t easy to find information on the effects of zero-calorie artificial sweeteners. Many of the published studies reach conflicting conclusions. One paper will find a direct correlation between artificial sweeteners and weight gain, while another states that there’s no link to obesity at all. How do you know whom to trust?

The key is to pay attention to who is conducting which study. Reporter Markham Heid discussed the conflict of interest in sweetener research in an article for Vice:
“One analysis from the Center for Behavioral Medicine at Northeastern Ohio University found that 100 percent of industry-funded aspartame studies concluded that the sugar substitute was safe, while 92 percent of independent studies came to just the opposite conclusion. Another meta-study, this one from Johns Hopkins, determined that industry funding and study authors’ ‘financial conflicts’ introduced bias into their flattering or benign findings on artificial sweeteners.”
It’s hard to find the truth when financial interests skew the science. Sifting through study after study quickly becomes overwhelming, but don’t get discouraged. Another way to learn about what you consume is to study the specific ingredients that manufacturers use to sweeten zero-calorie drinks.

Tracking the Artificial Sweetener Culprits

There’s a wide range of artificial sweeteners—and even a few natural ones—on the market that claim to be safe zero-calorie options. Although these sound like miracle products, don’t celebrate just yet.

If you’re a regular purchaser of bottled beverages, it’s best to know the side effects of what you’re putting in your body.
Stevia is a popular plant-based sugar substitute. It is 200 times sweeter than sugar and naturally calorie free. While this may sound like the Holy Grail we’ve all been waiting for, we’re still uncovering parts of the stevia story.

The U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has designated steviol glycosides, the active ingredient in the stevia plant, as “generally recognized as safe.” However, whole-leaf and unprocessed stevia extracts are not legal to use as sweeteners in the United States.
Sucralose is another well-known artificial sweetener found in many processed foods and drinks. Studies suggest that regular consumption of this product can lead to more sugar cravings instead of satisfying your sweet tooth. Doesn’t that defeat the entire purpose?

Artificial Sweeteners Altering Your Chemistry

Despite the murkiness of the research, it’s clear that artificial sweeteners aren’t the solution to the obesity epidemic. A 2013 study found that people who drank artificially sweetened beverages had a 47 percent increase in body mass index (BMI) over those who did not. Scientists now believe these sweeteners alter how our bodies perceive and react to sugar, which is not good.
When we consume artificial sweeteners, our taste buds think they’re sugar, causing the body to release insulin. But the lack of calories and natural sugar molecules confuses the body. This confusion eventually interferes with regular insulin production.

Besides, as researcher Susan Swithers outlines in a 2013 study, frequent consumption of artificial sweeteners can cause a lot of the same problems as sugar. Swithers found a link between sugar substitutes and weight gain, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes.
Indulging in a soda every once in a while won’t hurt. But if you drink artificially sweetened products every day, try cutting back. Water or plain club soda are the healthiest drink alternatives, and they won’t cause side effects. What could be sweeter than that?

Few things are worse than suddenly discovering that one of your favorite foods is bad for you. We were shocked to discover that grilled meat, roasted potatoes, and toast can all carry serious health risks (okay, maybe the grilled meat wasn’t completely surprising).

But if you’re a coffee drinker, we’ve got good news: You probably don’t need to lay off your java habit.

Research backs up coffee as a healthy drink.

Two recent studies from Annals of Internal Medicine show a link between coffee and decreased mortality.
The studies don’t attempt to explain the link, opting to simply demonstrate the relationship between coffee consumption and the incidence of various diseases. One study focused on European countries, and the other chose participants of varying ethnicities in Los Angeles and Hawaii. The results were similar across the board: Increased coffee consumption led to longer lives.

The European study followed more than 500,000 people from 10 countries. Researchers followed up with the participants after 16.4 years to assess their health. The 25 percent of men who drank the most coffee were 12 percent less likely to die than the group who drank no coffee at all.
For women, the difference was slightly less noticeable; the heavy coffee drinkers had a 7 percent lower mortality rate.

Multi-ethnic study backs up European findings.

Many earlier studies focused on Europeans and Americans of European descent. An American study funded by the National Cancer Institute tracked people of diverse ethnicities to determine whether genetics played a role in coffee’s apparent benefits.

The researchers confirmed that coffee decreased mortality in African Americans, Japanese Americans, Latinos, and Caucasians. However, the study did not show a statistically significant decrease in mortality for native Hawaiian coffee drinkers.

Polyphenols may be the key.

Although scientists have extensively studied coffee’s beneficial effects, they haven’t conclusively shown how the beverage decreases mortality. Some scientists believe that polyphenols, a type of antioxidant, could be the key to the coffee’s health benefits.
A recent study showed that consuming dietary polyphenols can protect against hypertension, dyslipidemias, inflammation, and other conditions that are associated with cardiovascular disease. Dietary polyphenols are found in dark chocolate, tea, and coffee.

That’s good news for decaf drinkers, since the results also indicate that caffeine probably isn’t an important factor. In fact, caffeine causes several of coffee’s detrimental health effects, including headaches, insomnia, anxiety, and upset stomach. Insomnia is especially problematic, as scientists have linked poor sleep habits with fibromyalgia and various other conditions.

Should everyone drink coffee?

Additional studies should show how coffee affects specific areas of health. In the meantime, coffee seems to be a perfectly safe addition to your diet, provided that you drink it black. Adding sugar and cream can increase the risk of obesity, counteracting many of the heart-healthy benefits of your daily cup. One study even showed that milk can reduce the antioxidant capacity of coffee or tea.

Finally, if you can’t stand java, don’t feel compelled to start. Other substances like dark chocolate and tea can also provide substantial benefits by delivering the same types of polyphenols.