With so much information surrounding healthy eating, it’s difficult to keep track of what’s good for you and what’s not. One minute something’s unhealthy and the next were being told it’s a super-food… confusing to say the least.
Healthy diet has long been centred around low fat and low-calories but more recently, focus has shifted towards foods that contain natural, healthy fats. But how do you know which are the bad foods to avoid, and which are the good foods you can turn to? Take a look at this list of once bad foods, turned good.
The Avocado
Avocados have had a bad reputation in the past for being a particularly high fat and calorific fruit. In actual fact, it is one of the most nutritionally dense foods, full of vitamins, fibre and heart healthy fats! Smash it up with chilli, lime and serve with poached eggs- yum!
Peanut Butter
Okay, so this is where you need to check your labels for the cheaply made, high sugar and saturated fat versions to find the best kind. Supermarkets are now getting savvy to the growing demand for wholefoods and that includes glorious nut butters, perfect alternatives to use in baking, spreading on celery and on toast of course! Look for jars that contain 100% nuts and nothing else. In a nutshell (see what we did there?!), they’re natural source of protein, rich in vitamins, minerals, fibre and healthy fats. Peanut Butter – one of the bad foods no more!
Coffee
There’s plenty of negative press around coffee but research tells us that there are many health benefits to it. Drinking 1-2 cups of coffee per day can help prevent diseases such as heart disease, cancer, Parkinson’s and diabetes. It can also benefit weight loss by triggering insulin before a workout. Read this post for more about the health benefits of coffee.
Chocolate
And no, we don’t mean endless bars and bags of milk chocolate treats! Organic, dark chocolate made with 70% or above cocoa solids is what you’re looking for. Dark chocolate of this kind is considerably rich in antioxidants that can contribute to a healthy heart, blood pressure, skin and brain activity. When eaten in moderation of course!
Popcorn
Yes really…just not the sugar coated, toffee laden or doused in salt kind… sorry! The good news is when you buy plain popcorn kernels, you are in control of what you put on them and how much you put on them. They are a wholefood, a grain and full of fibre. Perfect!
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