Everybody knows that healthy food is good, but the problem is that many people are confused about what is unhealthy and what is healthy. With so many questions about ingredients, labels, and what is actually healthy for you, it can be tough to get the right answer.
To really understand the differences between foods may help you make the right choices. Once you realize the difference between unhealthy and healthy food, you might wonder how you can eat more good foods in your diet. So these are the main differences between healthy and unhealthy food:
1. Calories are not the same
When it comes to calorie intake, it’s important to find a balance. Not all calories are the same. There is a big difference between’ junk food’ calories and calories from a healthy meal.
Not only that unhealthy food calories are bad but, you’ll also probably be a lot hungrier if you choose to only eat 1200 calories of unhealthy food per day because unhealthy food is usually calorie dense and not very filling.
For example, 300 calories of salad are going to be a lot more than 300 calories of a burger. A lot of people take on a flexible macros approach which means they fit both healthy and unhealthy food into their diet, so long as they hit their macros for the day. This is really not a healthy approach. You should take as many calories from healthy food and avoid calories from junk food.
2. Cost
Some people say that eating healthy food may be unhealthy for your wallet. But how much more expensive are healthy foods than unhealthy ones?
Researchers compared the average prices of unhealthy diets with more processed food, refined grains, and meat, with healthy diets containing fish, nuts, fruits, and vegetables. The findings show eating healthy costs an average of $1.50 daily more than a cost of eating unhealthy food.
That translates to an annual cost of about $550 more per person, so is it worth 1, 50 $ daily to boost your diet? The extra cost would represent a real burden for some families, but on the other hand, this price difference is quite small if compared to the economic costs of diseases created by consuming unhealthy foods.
3. Health benefits
Studies have shown that eating unhealthy foods will increase your risks of getting Type 2 diabetes, cancer, and many other health problems. Heart disease is also a consideration.
Eating unhealthy foods can make you obese over time, and obesity will certainly lead to many serious health issues. When you choose to eat only healthy foods, you will have a boost in immunity, better weight management, and better emotional balance and increased energy levels.
All of these things combined together will create a much longer and happier life. Many foods have a huge impact on health. Many studies have shown that foods low in saturated fats, especially the whole-grain foods, can help protect our organism from heart disease and many other health issues.
4. Nutrients
Good nutrition keeps muscles, bones, organs, and other body parts strong for the longer period of time. By consuming vitamin-rich food your immunity system will boost and your organism can fight against many diseases.
Eating healthy means that you get all needed vitamins and minerals, something that far too many people are lacking in the nation today. Fruits and vegetables provide potassium, lean meats can provide protein and the whole grains provide fiber.
This is just the small amount needed daily when it comes to nutrients and minerals essential to proper work of your body. Unhealthy food can only increase the number of bad fats, sugar, etc. Fruits and vegetables are examples of healthy foods that are rich in micronutrients such as minerals and vitamins, and because of that, it is recommended that we consume 5 or more fruits and vegetables every day.
5. Different sugar levels
Nothing good comes from eating sugar that is very much present in unhealthy food. It creates fatigue and bloating, stores as fat, sets the stage for cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes wrecks, your immune becomes weak and crashes your blood sugar.
The important thing when eating food is how quickly that sugar raises your blood sugar levels. Rather than eating no sugar at all, there is an alternative in a low-glycemic diet. The foods you should eat are the ones that create a steady and slow rise in blood sugar.
With eating these foods your blood sugar will not crash and create fatigue, inflammation or gain pounds.You would have to eat so many vegetables to raise your blood sugar even just a little bit. Besides having minimal sugar amounts, to begin with, fiber in these foods further buffers out that sugar load.
6. Unhealthy food contains too much sodium
Unhealthy foods such as hot dogs and burgers, are considered unhealthy because contain high amounts of salt (sodium), saturated and trans fats and contain many calories.
Unhealthy food is designed to be addicting and very tasty, but this food is also in a lack of all of the essential nutrients. Unhealthy foods contain a lot of preservatives, sugar, and sodium in order to guarantee long shelf life. The added fat and calories are harmful to our health.
In order to avoid eating unhealthy food, avoid shopping in the aisles of your grocery store, and instead go around to the outer store edges where are all good nutritious foods like lean meat, fruits, vegetables and dairy products. The consumption of food items that have high sodium amounts and fat content leads to obesity, diabetes, and chronic heart disease.
7. Difference between fats
“Unhealthy” food is an umbrella term used to describe foods that are rich in sodium, calories, saturated and bad fats (trans fats). Not all fats are the same. Scientists tell us that the type of fat we are consuming is putting us at greater risk for these illnesses.
In fact, numerous studies have shown that the total amount of fat that you eat affects weight or disease, but what is even more important is how much healthy versus unhealthy fats you consume. This is because trans fats and saturated fats (bad fats) increase the risk for many diseases and good fats monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats (good fats) decrease that risk. Too much fat or cholesterol can cause a heart disease, but at appropriate levels, both can contribute to good health.
8. Proteins can be good or bad
When it comes to protein, certain sources contain components that in large amounts can be really dangerous to your health. This does not mean you should avoid these foods, but to know which foods to choose could help you make smart dietary choices.
The protein that comes from consuming animal related foods like eggs, meat, and poultry contains saturated fat. Eating products with high saturated fat content can raise LDL cholesterol in the blood. When this cholesterol accumulates it forms plaque in the arteries that creates limit blood flow, which results in heart disease.
Protein foods high in saturated fat are fatty meats and whole-milk products. In addition to being rich in saturated fat, red meat has also been linked to some diseases like cancers and diabetes. Processed unhealthy meat foods include foods like hot dogs bacon and sausage, so limiting your intake of these foods is recommended.
9. Bad carbohydrates in unhealthy food
Choosing foods containing good carbs over bad ones is also crucial for your good health.
Good carbs can help lower blood cholesterol and heart disease risks and make feel full for long periods of time, which helps in maintaining a healthy body weight.
So, knowing the difference between bad and good carbs is a must. Foods containing good carbs are high in vitamins, minerals, fiber, protein, healthy fats and essential nutrients. Examples of healthy carb-containing foods are fruits, vegetables, and legumes. Nuts and seeds also contain small amounts of carbs.
Bad carbs are found in foods that contain almost no nutrients and it is packed mostly with sugar. These foods do not keep you feeling full very long like good carbs do. Examples of bad carbs are pastries, cookies, sugary drinks, soda, lemonade, doughnuts, and candies.
10. Maintaining a healthy weight problem
Foods that are high in sugar and fat can cause a sudden sugar rush and create us energetic feeling. But this effect fastly wears off and we end up with low sugar, craving more food to maintain that sugar high.
Another consequence of eating unhealthy food is the “empty calorie” effect that fills us up only for a short period of time and then we again feeling hungry. So you will crave more food in order to get the vital nutrients.
Keeping your healthy weight will help lower your risk of cancer and other serious diseases. Many people gain pounds during their lives, often without knowing it. To help keep a healthy weight, it is very important to create long-term healthy habits, including eating healthy foods and being regularly physically active.