It would be nice if the toaster was the next best thing in weight-control devices, but the truth is that a slice of bread doesn’t lose any calories when it’s toasted. That’s according to the USDA’s online nutrient database.
Yes, it does shrink a bit, but that’s from water loss. So, to trim your morning toast calories, you would be better off focusing on using less butter or margarine. It’s amazing how many popular beliefs on diet are not based on proven scientific nutrition facts. The following list of nutrition myths includes examples from Christine Gutelius, a nutrition resource educator at Cornell University’s Cooperative Extension in Cayuga County, N.Y.
BUFFET OF IGNORANCE
Calories eaten at night are more fattening.
FALSE You will only gain weight from eating at night if you eat more calories than you burn in the whole day. Be aware that foods eaten as snacks in the evening tend to be higher in calories, which can contribute to excess calories for the day.
If you’re watching your cholesterol, you can’t eat shrimp.
FALSE Shrimp is high in dietary cholesterol but is very low in saturated fat, which has a much greater effect on blood cholesterol level. Eating shrimp occasionally, even shrimp fried in heart-healthy fats like canola oil, is acceptable in a heart-healthy diet.
Frozen vegetables are not as nutritious as fresh vegetables.
FALSE Surprise! Flash-freezing vegetables right after picking prevents vitamins from being destroyed. To preserve the vitamins when you cook vegetables, microwave or steam them.
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Grapefruit, cabbage soup and celery burn fat.
FALSE Sorry! There are no fat-burning foods. Moderate physical activity is the best way to burn fat.
Skipping breakfast helps you lose weight.
FALSE Studies show that people who eat breakfast are more likely to lose weight and keep it off. Skipping breakfast tends to make you hungrier later in the day.
“All natural” on a food label means the product is safe and pure.
FALSE The Food and Drug Administration does not define or regulate the use of the words “all natural” on food labels. Any food can claim it is all natural.