Try This Not That

There are plenty of food choices that provide the same flavor (or better) while supplying your body with more of the healthy nutrients it needs. This section is designed as a quick reference to help people make healthier choices the next time they're at the market. If you have any ideas for additions, please let us know!

This

Not

That

The Reason

Coconut Oil	Vegetable Oil	Coconut oil is only used by the body as energy and not stored as fat. This means that it not only discourages weight gain but even promotes weight loss.
		Polyunsaturated vegetable oils become damaged while cooking, even before reaching their smoke point. Saturated fats such as coconut oil, lard, and butter do not.
		As a result of processing, vegetable oils contain roughly 4.6% of trans-isomers (trans fats).

Butter	Margarine	Butter provides fat soluble vitamins and also improves the body's ability to digest them.
		Butter supplies butyric acid, an important nutrient for digestive health.
		Artificial spreads and margarines are made up of unstable, polyunsaturated fatty acids and typically contain trans fats.

Lard	Vegetable Shortening	Crisco contains both full and partially hydrogenated oils, which have been shown to negatively impact cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Vegetable shortening also contains trans-fat, which has been shown to increase incidences of heart disease.
		Lard is a saturated fat, making it much more stable in cooking. Be sure to purchase lard without any hydrogenation.
		Many people think that lard makes flakier pie crusts and better-tasting baked goods overall.

Natural Peanut Butter

Peanut Butter with Fully Hydrogenated Oils

Food manufacturers are avoiding the trans fats labeling issue by mixing small amounts of fully hydrogenated oil with liquid polyunsaturated oils. This produces a new type of oil, named "interesterified oil," that may be even more unhealthy than trans fats but without the stigma. Researchers studied fat rich in trans fats, interesterified fat, and saturated fat for their impact on cholesterol and blood sugar. Both the trans fats and interesterified fats had negative impacts on cholesterol ratios and blood glucose levels compared to the saturated fat group. Avoid peanut butter with ANY kind of hydrogenated oil.

Wright Salt	Table Salt	Table salt is stripped of important minerals and contains additives such as ferrocyanide or alluminosilicates. Alluminosilicates contain alluminum which is toxic.
		Wright salt contains sodium chloride, potassium chloride, magnesium sulphate, lysine hydrochloride, silicon dioxide, zinc chloride, copper glycinate, selenium, and potassium iodide. These are essential minerals that promote good health.
		Wright salt has been linked to a significant reduction in death from heart disease and strokes in Finland.

Sourdough Bread		Other Breads	Unlike Sourdough bread, most other breads are made with yeast and promote unstable blood sugar levels.
			Sourdough bread contains lactic acid bacteria which neutralizes most of the gluten.

Grass-Fed Beef		Grain-Fed Beef	Grass-fed beef is more nutrient-dense than grain-fed beef and includes a higher amount of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). CLA is anti-cancer, anti-tumor, and good for both the cardiovascular and immune system.
			Grass-fed beef produces no E. coli bacteria and does not contain hormones or antibiotics.

Raw Milk	Pasteurized Milk	Pasteurization destroys important enzymes, beneficial bacteria, and alters the milk sugar to a form that raises blood glucose levels.
		Raw milk, unlike pasteurized, does not cause allergies and is anti-pathogenic.
		Pasteurized milk is typically produced in crowded, manure-laden conditions, and pasteurization fails to kill all of the pathogenic organisms.

Whole Milk

Fat Free or Skim Milk

Fat free and skim milk reduce the absorption of fat soluble nutrients in the milk. Non-homogenized is also a better choice than homogenized milk.

Oatmeal	Cereal	Cereals contain added sugar and are much higher on the glycemic index than oatmeal.
		Most cereals are made up of processed grains, along with some undesirable additives. However, oatmeal just contains rolled oats.
		Oats contain beta glucans which are useful for cardiovascular and immune system support.

Dark Chocolate

Milk Chocolate

Dark Chocolate is rich in flavonoids, which provide cardiovascular benefits while lowering blood sugar levels. Milk chocolate contains a limited amount of flavonoids. Aim for 70% or higher cacao content to reap the full benefits.

Frozen Yogurt	Ice Cream	Unlike ice cream, frozen yogurt is not associated with lactose intolerance.
		Frozen yogurt contains enzymes that assist with the digestive process.
		Some ice creams contain trans fats. Frozen yogurt contains no artificial fats.

Truvia		Splenda or Equal	While not perfect, Truvia is healthier than the Aspartame found in Splenda and Equal. Aspartame can cause headaches, depression, neurological disorders, and even cancer.
			Splenda exacerbates blood sugar damage, causes premature aging (premature shrinkage of the thymus gland), and kills beneficial bacteria in the gut.

Oven

Microwave

German, Russian and Swiss research has shown that microwave cooking causes molecular damage to food, which may result in immune system suppression, free-radical generation, and the development of cancer causing substances.

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Comments (2)

SabrinaLouise | March 22, 2011
Lovely chart. Thank you :-)

Elit3 | June 22, 2011
Great stuff, thanks!!

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