Should you try clean eating?

Have you heard of “clean eating”?  A fad that has been around for a while.  I have had students that say they “eat clean”.  Or they have adopted a clean eating lifestyle.  What is “clean eating” and is it good for your health?  

What is “clean eating”? 

Actually, it means different things to different people.  Medical News Today investigated the studies on clean eating.  They noted clean eating can lead to healthier eating but can also lead to “disordered eating”. 

At its core, clean eating means eating things as close to nature as you can.  Thus, you choose “natural, nutrient-dense foods and avoid processed and refined foods”.   Following this version of clean eating can lead to healthier eating and help with weight management.  These people focus on fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and high-quality proteins like eggs, cow’s milk, cheese, yogurt. 

However, some people define clean eating in unhealthy ways.  They choose a more restrictive and unhealthy interpretation of clean eating as giving up dairy foods, going gluten-free or avoiding any added sugar.  

What is people’s understanding of clean eating? 

A study in the journal Nutrients , reviewed adolescents and emerging adults’ perceptions of clean eating.  Most of those polled, 55% had heard of clean eating.  They had varying definitions of clean eating with 40% saying it was eating non-processed or whole foods.  Only 13% said it was eating non-GMO foods or organic.  About 30% said clean eating meant dietary restrictions and avoidance of certain foods.  Over 70% viewed clean eating as healthy with only 18% noting any harmful or adverse effects of clean eating. 

What are the health benefits of clean eating?

Clean eating is beneficial when people focus on eating whole foods and eating less processed foods, foods with less sodium and added sugar, drinking less sugary beverages and avoiding ultra-processed foods. 

I had a student that was really into clean eating.  He ate one of the healthiest diets of any of my students.  He focused his eating on whole grains, fruits, vegetables, real dairy and healthy proteins.  There were few fast-food items and no sugary beverages like sodas in his diet. 

Although there haven’t been any studies on clean eating and health, there are a lot of studies about not eating healthy and adverse health consequences.  The BMJ reports that eating more ultra-processed foods is associated with an increased risk of heart disease and brain diseases.  What were the ultra-processed foods in this study?  The list included commonly eaten items such as frozen dinners, sugared drinks, packaged snacks, chicken nuggets, and instant noodles.  They recommended people eat more minimally processed foods which is consistent with the clean eating approach. 

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) hasn’t reported on “clean eating”.  In fact, a search on their website for clean eating, results in washing hands “clean”, “clean” and sanitize, and nothing about clean eating.  CDC does note that eating too many foods like sugary beverages, processed foods, foods high in sodium can increase one’s risk of chronic diseases. In contrast, “adults who eat a healthy diet live longer and have a lower risk of obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers”.

Eating “clean” can improve the quality of one’s diet.  CDC notes only 1 in 10 adolescents and adults eat enough fruits and vegetables.  Eating clean would increase one’s intake of fresh fruit and vegetables.  CDC also notes 60% of kids and 50% of adults consume at least one sugary drink a day.  Clean eating would eliminate the sugary drinks.  

 

What are the downsides of clean eating?

Some people take a restrictive approach to clean eating and limit their intake of many foods.  Some advocates of clean eating try to avoid foods with “all traces of added sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, preservatives, artificial colors and flavors and other additives”.  While this may sound good it makes so many foods off limits that it is almost impossible to adhere to.  Others go gluten-free, thinking that is clean eating.  Banning food groups like grains is not healthy.  Banning food groups like dairy is also not healthy. 

How can you adopt the healthier version of clean eating?

1. Focus on fresh fruits and vegetables.  This is not hard to do in the summer as there are so many choices for eating fresh.  So many fresh fruits to choose from such as watermelon, plums, strawberries, raspberries, and peaches.  We just went to an orchard last weekend and came home with delicious peaches and plums.  Farmer’s markets have so many fresh vegetables this time of year including corn, green beans, kale, tomatoes, etc.
2. Focus on real dairy – real cow’s milk, real cheese, real yogurt.  Many people today don’t even know what dairy foods are.  When I say “real milk” a student asked me if almond milk was real milk.  He was surprised when I said the only real milk comes from a cow.
3. Focus on whole grains – many of the students I teach have no whole grains in their diet and at the start of the nutrition class are often unsure what whole grains are or even how to identify what foods are whole grain.  (See Whole Grains in Your Diet .) 
4. Read the ingredients and focus on foods with fewer ingredients and less added sugar.  We switched to real butter after reading all the ingredients in margarine.  I was pleasantly surprised when eating at my daughter’s house recently and she had an old-fashioned butter dish on the table with a stick of real butter.  She said she switched to real butter because margarine just had too many ingredients in it.  When my other daughter comes to a dinner party at our house, she often brings homemade whipping cream.  It is so good and doesn’t have the high fructose corn syrup and other ingredients in the can of whipping cream or those ingredients in the artificial whipping cream in the plastic bucket.

Have you made any switches from highly processed foods like margarine and back to real foods like real butter?  Are there ingredients you look for on the label that you try to avoid?  Eating healthy doesn’t mean you give up sweets or any food.  It does mean you add some healthier choices to your day.

 

Sources:  investigated , choose , Nutrients , The BMJ , CDC , notes , avoid foods , Whole Grains in Your Diet    Image sources:  Clean eating , Farmer’s Market , Healthy you