Hi friend,
Some myths about health just won’t die…
Myth #1: Fat is evil
Fat has been scapegoated by Big Food,
It’s an easy target with an unfortunate name.
Big Food spent hundreds of millions marketing the Health Star Rating, demonising fat, and pushing low-fat, high-sugar products… like cereal.
We got off on the wrong foot with fat… particularly the saturated kind.
TLDR: Fat isn’t the enemy they made it out to be. Big Food profits from misinformation.
Myth #2: Healthy choices cancel out unhealthy ones
Drinking a green smoothie in the morning doesn’t erase last night’s fast food,
Having skim milk in your coffee doesn’t mean the bag of chips never happened.
Why?
Because health doesn’t work like a points system where good cancels out bad.
The good news is that one “bad” choice doesn’t undo a healthy lifestyle,
Just as one “good” choice doesn’t create one.
TLDR: Health isn’t about offsetting – it’s about what you do most of the time.
Myth #3: I’ll just exercise myself into shape
You can’t outrun a bad diet,
To burn off one croissant, you’d need to run for 30 minutes,
And that’s if you don’t “reward” yourself with extra food afterwards.
Exercise is incredible for strength, longevity, and mental health,
But when it comes to fat loss, what you eat plays a bigger role.
TLDR: You can’t outrun a bad diet. Exercise is great for health, but fat loss starts in the kitchen.
Nutrigrain vs Carbonated Water: Health Star Rating
Nutri-Grain Cereal
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Stars
Ingredients: Cereals (51%)(wheat flour, oatmeal [contains oats], maize flour), sugar, wheat protein, maltodextrin, molasses, oat fibre, vegetable gum (acacia gum), salt, barley malt extract, minerals (calcium carbonate, iron, zinc oxide), raising agent (potassium bicarbonate), natural flavours, natural colours (paprika, turmeric), vitamins (niacin, vitamin B6, riboflavin, folate).
vs
Carbonated Water
Rating: ⭐⭐ Stars
Ingredients: Water, Co2
Honestly, how did we get here?
When sugary, ultra-processed cereals outrank water you know the system is broken.
Also..
Reddit has some gems, like this guy talking about the health star rating system.
Thanks for reading my first newsletter, I hope you found some value.
– Prof Grant Schofield, Chief Science Officer
