nutrition myths

Top 5 Nutrition Myths On Social Media That Must End

Nowdays, Because of social media a lot of myths about nutrition is spreading. That are totally wrong. So, through this article I will tell you 5 biggest Nutrition myths.

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Myth 1: – Eating 6 meals a day is necessary to lose weight

This concept has been propagated a lot these days by various health professionals & the general public that eating smaller but frequent meals increase metabolic rate and will help you lose weight.

However, this is not true. To put it in simple terms, when you eat food, your body uses energy for digestion & absorption of food which is also called the thermic effect of food. And this energy raises your metabolic rate to some extent.

But it will be the same if you eat 6 meals of 300 calories each or 3 meals of 600 calories each or 2 meals of 900 calories each. The energy used or expended will be the same in all three cases.

It really doesn’t matter how many times you’re eating in a day as long as your caloric consumption is in line with your goal.

Let’s say your daily maintenance calories are 2500 kcal, if you want to lose weight, you’ll need to consume fewer calories than that (eg:- 2000 kcal).

What you have to make sure is to take 2000 kcal through your diet whether it comes from just 2 meals or 6 meals collectively. The body doesn’t care you eat 6 times a day or 2 times a day, it just needs the required calories to function.

Also, studies have shown that rather than eating multiple times, fewer meals a day contributes to great health and body functions.

So, in a nutshell, go for the number of meals you are comfortable having as per your lifestyle and consume calories according to your goals i.e., fat loss or muscle gain to get the desired results.

Click the button given below to count your daily maintenance calories

Daily Calories

Myth 2: – You Can’t Build Muscle on A Vegetarian Diet

There is a general perception among the public that one can’t build muscle on a vegetarian diet.

Let’s understand both the aspects of this myth very clearly – building muscle & vegetarian foods.

In order to build muscle, you need to do resistance training first of all.

And in addition to resistance training, you need to consume sufficient protein because protein is the only macronutrient that performs the repair of muscles cells & stimulates muscle growth if consumed in optimal quantities.

For that reason, protein is also called the building block of muscles.

To put this in context, anything upwards of 1.2g per kilogram to 1.7g per kilogram of body weight is optimal for growth.

Now, where does this protein come from in your diet? A number of foods are rich sources of protein – both vegetarian & non-vegetarian such as chicken, fish, egg, dairy products such as milk, curd, paneer, soy products such as chunks, granules, tofu, whole grains, lentils, beans, etc.

So, you don’t need only meat to get Lean or to build muscle.

As mentioned earlier, your body doesn’t care where the calories are coming from, it considers how many calories are coming. Likewise, your body doesn’t care where the protein is coming from, it just considers the protein.

There are plenty of protein sources for vegetarians cited above.

And if one is taking enough protein to match his daily protein requirements you shouldn’t worry about anything.

The only factor you have to consider is that most vegetarian protein sources are incomplete proteins, which means they lack one amino acid or the other. Just make sure to eat a variety of protein sources throughout the day to make that a complete protein.

For example – rice is low in lysine but high in methionine, legumes are high in lysine but low in methionine, so by combining the two (like rajma & rice) it makes an excellent source of complete protein.

And particularly, for vegetarians, dairy & soy are sources of complete protein. Even, touted as the best muscle-building supplement – whey protein is made from Dairy only.

So, enjoy the muscle-building benefits by including as many of these products in your diet.

Myth 3: – Fats make You Fat

A very common misconception in the general public is that eating “Fats will make you Fat”. No, it’ll not.

Eating excess Fats will make you fat, eating excess carbs will make you fat, eating excess protein will make you fat, basically, eating anything in excess of your caloric requirement will make you fat whether it’s a chai, almonds, or roti.  

Just to give you some perspective, fat has 9 calories per gram and it is the most energy-dense macronutrient in comparison to the other two macronutrients – Carbohydrates & Protein, both of which give 4 calories per gram.

So, the same amount of fat will give you more than twice the energy of protein & carbohydrates. Hence, it is always blamed for your extra kilos most of the time.

But it is not individual foods or macronutrients in isolation, that make you fat.

If you’re eating anything that contributes to being in a state of caloric surplus, meaning, eating more than your maintenance calories or what your body needs, you’re ultimately going to gain weight no matter where the calories come from.

For example – your daily maintenance calories are 2000 kcal and you are eating 2400 kcal, and the extra 400 calories are coming from carbs and protein, you will still gain weight.

But you have a choice, whether you want your body to use these extra calories as fuel to build muscle or to convert them as fat.

That’s a topic for a different discussion but for now, the bottom line is, Fats don’t make you fat, extra calories do.  

A detailed read about this article can be found here.

Myth 4: – Supplements Will Get You the Results

Supplement word means “something that is added to something else” meaning it has no role to perform on its own.

So, to simplify, supplements are added to the diet if the diet lacks something, else there is no need for a supplement as long as you’re able to fulfill its requirement on its own.

So, if your diet lacks calcium, it makes sense to use a calcium supplement, likewise for other nutrients such as protein.  

Purely from a fitness perspective, supplements can boost performance if you’re disciplined with your workouts and nutrition plan.

But they can do hardly anything on their own.

If you are thinking that supplements are going to get you ripped or reduce your fat percentage, let me tell you that supplements are used to supplement a good diet not to replace a diet.

Without training your body and eating good nutrition, supplements are going to take you nowhere.

If you’re just lying on your bed taking fat burners to lose fat or taking protein to gain muscle without working out, don’t do it, I repeat, don’t do it you’re just wasting your time and money.

Though most muscle building & fat loss supplements don’t work at all, but that’s a topic for a different article, but for now, please understand that supplements don’t work unless you do.

Myth 5: – Eating Carbs After 6 PM Makes You Gain Weight

This is a popular myth that if you eat rice or roti at dinner, it will make you gain weight.

Well, this isn’t true.

To put it simply, what & how much you eat is far more important for gaining weight than when you eat.

Let’s understand this from 2 perspectives – logical & caloric.

First the logical, I gram of carbohydrate is equivalent to 4 calories. Now, these calories won’t change after 6 PM, 7 PM, or 9 PM. It will remain 4 calories for 1 gram of carbohydrate whether its roti, rice, quinoa, apple, banana, or any other carb source.

More importantly, this logic may have been coming from people who usually eat more calories at night and some studies (1) show that people eating late at night tend to make poorer food choices such as chips, colas, ice cream, etc.

These are calorie-dense foods, that add significantly more calories without much nutritional value and may add to your overall calories leading to a caloric surplus.

But even then if you’re consuming below or similar to your maintenance calories, you will not gain weight, whatsoever.  

Let’s say you don’t eat carbs after 6 pm and your daily maintenance calories are 3000 kcal but, you are eating 3500 kcal a day.

Aren’t you going to gain weight? Obviously, you’re.

The main factor to gain weight is the Energy balance, not carbs proteins, or fats as mentioned above.

No matter if you eat carbs after 6 pm or 9 pm, you’re not going to gain weight as long as you’re not in a caloric surplus. It’s that simple.

Conclusion

In conclusion, choosing the right type of carb (complex carbs not simple carbs) will help you stay satiated for longer and remove unnecessary cravings at night if that’s your area of concern.

And, don’t worry about eating your favorite dal roti at night. Just make sure you’re not skipping meals throughout the day, are well-hydrated, and keep a check on how much you’re eating to stay on track.

lotte

Is Lotte Choco Pie Good For Kids?

Lotte Choco Pie is an extremely popular snack choice among kids these days. So, it is important for us to know, whether it’s good for our kids or not.

Let’s see what nutritional information says about the healthfulness of this product.

Nutrition Information of Lotte Choco Pie

100 g of this product has about 34g of added sugar, a negligible amount of protein, no dietary fiber, and 17g of fat.

Source

The nutritional label is good enough to tell us that this product isn’t a good choice for kids & adults both.

But let’s not conclude right here. A further investigation into the ingredients will tell us the complete picture of this product.

Source

Evaluating Ingredients of Lotte Choco Pie

The first ingredient is wheat flour which is nothing but Maida only. An attractive term frequently used by marketers these days to confuse consumers into thinking that they’re consuming an atta-based product.

But if the product is made from atta, it will say whole wheat flour instead of wheat flour (1).

Then, the Choco covering is made from sugar, hydrogenated fat, cocoa solids, milk solids, and emulsifier.

Now, hydrogenated fat has trans-fat in it which is extremely dangerous and may increase the risk of heart disease if consumed regularly.

Hydrogenated fat is normally found in a lot of commercially made foods such as cookies, biscuits, cakes, nut butters (sometimes), doughnuts, frozen foods, fried foods such as samosas, pakoras (depending on how many times the same oil is reheated for cooking), etc (2).

It works by lowering your good cholesterol HDL and increasing your bad cholesterol (3).

To minimize the use of trans-fatty acids (TFA), check the Nutrition fact panel on packaged food items for TFA content, if it mentions TFA content of more than 0.2 gram per serving then avoid the product and search for some healthy substitute (2).

The nutritional label of this product says trans fat content not more than 0.7 gram per 100g which means it is definitely more than 0.2 g per 100g.

All this coupled with sugar may have other negative health outcomes.

Moving further, sugar is added again, then the liquid glucose, another name for sugar.

Further ingredients such as oil, corn starch, sugar alcohols – glycerol, sorbitol, raising agent, acidity regulator, salt, stabilizer, etc. have no role to perform in your body. Some might even have side effects.

Nor will they give any nutritional benefit to your kid’s health.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Lotte Choco Pie is loaded with sugar, refined flour, and hydrogenated fat which makes it a bad dietary choice.

If you or your kids are consuming it regularly, the best thing you could do is stay away from a product like this.

And look for better & much healthier snacks for your kids by looking at the ingredient label of the product and going for products minimal in added sugar, salt, no hydrogenated fat, and a good amount of protein & fiber.

Kids in their growing up years need Whole nutritionally rich foods such as whole grains, lentils, fruits, vegetables, nuts, dairy, etc. that can support their physical & mental growth and this is one product that’s definitely not for them.   

A better approach to follow would be to serve 80-90% whole or minimally processed foods to your kids.

The remaining 10-15% could be filled with other processed foods with better ingredients.

weight loss vs fat loss

Weight Loss Vs Fat Loss – What Should You Aim For?

The term “Weight” consists of the total weight or mass of your body.

This includes the weight of your bones, lean muscle, fat tissues (mass), water weight, etc.

What is Weight Loss?

Now, when you’re trying to lose weight, it can either be a result of muscle loss, fat loss, water loss, or even a combination of these three.

So, don’t get so excited about just the number going down on the scale. It could just be your water weight and your muscle mass largely.

And as you lose muscle, you will begin to experience difficulties in performing day-to-day physical tasks.

A later outcome of this could be sarcopenia, a condition that is characterized by losing muscle mass & strength over a period of time with contributing factors being reduced level of physical activity, age & gender (1).

Essentially, your body composition will not improve, you will just become a smaller version of your previous self.

What Is Fat Loss?

But “Fat Loss” means the weight lost by specifically targeting your body fat or the fat tissues over your lean muscles.

So Fat Loss looks like a healthier approach to aim for, both to lose weight and to look good (read sexy 😉) by preserving as much lean muscle mass as possible and having a great body composition.

But benefits of fat loss over weight loss go much beyond than just having a great body composition.

Problem With Losing Muscle

After the age of 30, one tends to lose 3-8% muscle mass every 10 years and this rate particularly shoots up after the age of 60 resulting in involuntary loss of muscle mass & strength also known as Sarcopenia as discussed above (2).

And this is primarily responsible for disability in older people.

Right Approach to lose fat

But how do we achieve Fat Loss over Weight Loss because both look the same as both require a caloric deficit diet? Right? 

The real game is the amount of deficit, protein consumption, and physical activity level.

The general problem seen with people struggling to lose Fat is their ‘unrealistic expectations of getting the desired results over a short period of time (like 7-10 kgs in a month or so).

People go for huge deficits (like 1000 calories) in order to get quick results, but guess what? This eventually slows down the metabolism as the body turns on the ‘Starvation Mode.

A better term for starvation mode would be “metabolic adaptation” (4).

Meaning, your body will require fewer calories now to survive because it is smart & it has adapted to the current nutrition pattern.

Also, a large amount of deficit can cause fatigue, Nutrient Deficiencies, loss of lean muscle, and above all you won’t be able to sustain it.

And, therefore deficits need to be small with the optimum amount of protein consumption.

Studies have shown that for most people a calorie deficit of 500 calories per day is sufficient for fat loss and unlikely to affect your hunger or energy levels with the right food choices and also minimizes muscle loss.

Secondly, Resistance Training has a vital role. It preserves the lean muscle mass, prevents metabolism to slow down, and boosts the fat-burning process (3).

The ‘American College of Sports Medicine recommends at least 0.8g of protein per kilogram of body weight for sedentary individuals and 1.2-1.7g of protein per kg of body weight for active individuals.

Conclusion

To conclude, optimal protein intake, along with some form of resistance type training, a moderate caloric deficit, and long-term lifestyle changes must be looked at for fat loss if you want to sustain it even after achieving it.

References used –
Book –  Sports Nutrition for Health Professionals – American Council on Exercise

bread

Is Brown Bread Healthy?

Let’s understand what healthy means first. A healthy product is the one which when consumed provides energy & offers a benefit to your body nutritionally.

At a time, when consumers turned health-conscious and started avoiding white or maida breads, brands became smarter in finding ways to trick us into purchasing a cheap product (the ingredients) in the name of health.

Which in today’s case is brown bread. As you would be thinking what’s wrong with brown bread. It’s made from whole wheat flour which is good for us.

Is it? Well, if you turn the pack and look at the ingredients, the first ingredient is maida and whole wheat flour is just 5%. This alone is a strong enough reason to not buy a product like this.

Source

And then comes a list of never-ending food additives such as preservatives, acidity regulators, emulsifiers, improvers, antioxidants of which some preservatives and emulsifiers may give side effects.

In another bread we saw, the second ingredient was Maida and a bunch of food additives including brown color to make sure it looks like an atta bread.

Source

In fact, even in one of the multigrain breads, we saw maida as their first ingredient.

Source

If there’s one thing that these brands have gotten good at is their marketing & advertising.

So, the takeaway for you is to evaluate every product (including bread) you purchase by looking at their ingredient label first and not just trusting the front of the pack or their marketing message.

Also, as a consumer of bread, our recommendation is to look for a local bakery bread, that’s made of just 5 ingredients – whole wheat flour, yeast, water, salt, and oil (for greasing only).

These commercial breads are made in factories and so many food additives are added which perform specific purposes in their manufacturing but they have no role to perform in your body.

If you can’t find bakery bread, look for bread with the maximum amount of whole wheat flour and no Maida. So basically a 100% whole wheat or atta bread with minimal use of food additives is what should aim for when a freshly made bakery bread isn’t available.

References used –
https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/56317
https://www.sustainweb.org/realbread/food_additives/#banned

stress

4 Practical Ways To Reduce Stress

Stress has become an important part of a modern lifestyle and is regarded as a normal thing in day-to-day life. But it can take a toll on your health.

It can be due to your work, personal life situations, health concerns, financial challenges, setting wrong expectations, etc.

It can even lead to further health issues such as depression, anxiety, weight issues, heart disease, etc.

Let’s understand this with what is happening in the body and then we’ll look at some practical ways to fix it.

When you’re stressed, the body enters survival mode and changes the internal environment by increasing your heart rate, rising blood pressure, fastening your breath. sharpening your senses. Basically, prepares you to handle the situation – either fight or flight. Along with it, it releases a bunch of stress hormones – Cortisol, Vasopressin, growth hormone, etc.

But if your stress is occurring repeatedly, how you respond to the stressor is all that’s of major significance. Here are a few practical ways that’ll help you win over stress every time.

1. Physical activity

Physical activity in any form is a major stress buster. It is not just about doing when you’re stressed but exercising regularly can have several benefits apart from managing your stress such as healthy weight, improved body composition, improving mood, etc.

Even yoga has proven benefits to reduce stress.

2. Make healthy food choices

Some people turn to high sugar high-fat foods, smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc., and become even more stressed and the vicious cycle continues.

Develop a healthier response to stress by consuming whole and minimally processed foods, such as whole grains, whole grain flakes, nuts and seeds, nut butter, fruits, vegetables, beans & lentils, chicken, fish, etc.

3. Minimize the usage of phone

In so many studies, stress has found links with excessive screen time or phone usage. Excessive phone usage is also linked to disrupted sleep. Minimizing the usage of phone is surely a better way to handle stress.

Instead of looking inside the screen, look outside the screen & just walk in the garden by your side, maybe enjoy listening to your favorite music, pursue your hobby, spend time with friends. A lot of better things you can end up doing if you minimized usage of your phone.

4. Find your stressor and try to eliminate it permanently

Whether it is your work life, personal life, financial obligation, or any other, always work toward finding a permanent solution to the problem so that it stops bothering you over and over again.

Sources –
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/16-ways-relieve-stress-anxiety
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7264390/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33109502/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29673047/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stress_hormone

sattu

Everything About Sattu

Everything About Sattu: A Common Indian Food

sattu Is a common Indian food. But only some popele knows that how much nutritious and healthier it is. So, read this full article because I will discuss everything about sattu.

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Sattu is made from roasted Bengal gram (roasted chana), or roasted barley.

Some sources point to its incredible history as a savior food used during wars, and also used to fight malnutrition at one point due to its incredible nutritional properties.

In fact, it is also believed that lamas from Tibet who walked the path of enlightenment and went without food for several days used Sattu as their staple food.

Such incredible history was lost owing to modernization, globalization of food culture, and Sattu was merely looked down upon as a poor man’s food. But thankfully, Sattu is now, reviving its old glory.

Why not. It very much deserves that place.

Nutritional Value Of Sattu

Nutrients 100g Sattu
Calories 400 kcal
Protien 20-23g
Carbohydrates 66g
Dietary Fiber10g
Fat6-7g

It is also a very good source of iron meeting about 30% of daily RDA, so people with iron deficiency must include this in their diet.

It is also known to have a cooling effect on the body, and therefore in order to beat the heat this summer, sip this drink either salted by mixing some lemon or sweet with some jaggery powder.

Also, if you’re someone who’s looking to gain some weight, sattu can help there too.

A quick look at the nutritional composition of most mass gainers tells us that each 100g of any mass gainer contain about 15-20g protein, 50-60g carbohydrates, and 3-4 g fat which is a similar sort of composition with Sattu and even better on protein count, at almost 1/5th the cost.

So, you’ll save yourself a lot of money and consumption of an intensely processed carbohydrate, maltodextrin along with so many food additives and artificial sweeteners.

Sattu can help by consuming extra calories in liquid form by drinking it with water or milk or including sattu in your shake which may help in staying in a caloric surplus.

It can be part of both your pre and post-workout meals.

You can use this food to make paranthas, laddoos, sharbat, shakes, and so on.

All in all, a protein, iron, and fiber-rich food, that has a cooling effect on your body to ward off the heat. If you’ve not already tasted it, it’s time you give it a try.

Source –
https://www.thebetterindia.com/227027/sattu-health-benefits-summer-recipe-indian-food-history-shivaji-china-gop94/
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/search?search=sattu  

potatoes

Can Potatoes Help In Losing Weight?

Let’s understand this by splitting this into two parts –

First, the nutritional composition of a potato.

100g Potato contains 97 calories and has about 2g of protein, 2g fiber, 22g of carbs, negligible amount of fat, and 75% water. It is a good source of several micronutrients such as potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamin C, B6, etc., implying they are nutrient-dense.

All those who thought potatoes are no good must consider their fantastic nutritional profile before making conclusions.

However, potatoes are high on the glycemic index (GI) scale which means that they do spike blood glucose levels and this is particularly, an area of concern for people with diabetes who should avoid high GI foods in particular.

Now let’s understand whether or not potatoes can help you with weight loss but before we come to that let’s first understand how your body actually loses weight?

The answer is simple – when you consume fewer calories than your body actually burns – resulting in what we call a ‘Caloric Deficit’ – which is the primary condition to lose weight. In a Caloric Deficit, your body uses fat as fuel or energy resulting in fat loss.

Simply put, if your maintenance calories (calories required to maintain the same weight) are 2000, and you need to lose weight, you will have to consume less than 2000 calories. And a 100g potato has almost 100 calories, just to put things into perspective. Now you can calculate how many potatoes would you like to fit into this diet.  

But above all, potato is a high-satiety food. In fact, according to Healthline, a satiety survey conducted in 1995, ranked 38 foods on the basis of how filling they are after consumption, and foods that crossed a score of 100 were considered highly filling.

And it was surprising to note that boiled potato (not fried, deep-fried, sauteed in oil) scored 323 on the satiety index and was ranked as the most satiating food.  

And why it’s important is because, on fat loss, you need more satiating foods so that it becomes easier for you to stay in a caloric deficit and you’re not hungry all the time.

And, optimal protein consumption is advised during fat loss, so that your body retains as much muscle as possible during that phase.

The bottom line is “will potato help you lose weight?” – No, a caloric deficit diet will whether it includes potato or not.

No seeds, fruits, salad, or any other food will help you lose weight until you are in a caloric deficit. No matter you eat Potatoes or not, as long as your body is not in a caloric deficit, you’re not going to lose weight, and also being in a caloric deficit if eating potatoes, you’re still going to lose weight.

Potatoes are highly nutritious and should be a part of your diet but in limited portion sizes.

Source –
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/15-incredibly-filling-foods
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/170027/nutrients

cornflakes

Cornflakes Vs Oats Which Is More Healthier

A Comparison Between Cornflakes & Oats Which Is More Healthier Option

Oats and Cornflakes Both are popular breakfast options but let’s understand which one gives us the biggest bang for the buck.

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Before proceeding, it is important to understand that breakfast is consumed with a purpose to keep us full & to provide energy for the first part of the day so that we can carry out all physical and mental tasks without feeling hungry.

For any breakfast to be qualified as a good breakfast, it must be rich in complex carbs & dietary fiber, good in protein, and a moderate amount of fats.

Nutritional Value of Cornflakes & Oats

Nutrients Cornflakes (100g)Oats (100g)
Calories 357kcal379kcal
Protein 8g13g
Carbohydrates 84g67g
Fiber3g10g
Fat0.4g6.5g

Now, let’s look at Kellogg’s cornflakes first, which is made with 88% corn grits, sugar, cereal extract, salt, synthetic vitamins & minerals & antioxidants.

Cornflakes is marketed for being enriched with iron and combining it with milk. Clearly, there is nothing nutritive about cornflakes standalone that’s why it uses synthetically added vitamins & minerals & a bowl of milk for its marketing.

Also, fiber is negligible (3g per 100g) and protein content is just 7g per 100g both nutrients which are responsible for satiety. Though the serving size mentioned is 30g but chances of consuming way more than that is quite likely leading to increased consumption and less level of satiety.

On the other hand, Oats (we’re talking about 100% Natural Oats) being a complex carbohydrate is rich in fiber (10g per 100g) and protein (12g per 100g) leading to increased levels of satiety, fullness and you get to enjoy a lot of other proven benefits that come with it.

Even from a price point, Oats is way cheaper than Kellogg’s cornflakes.

So, if you’re consuming, cornflakes for breakfast, it’s time you make the switch and enjoy the benefits of consuming a filling & nutrient-rich food.

Now, this obviously doesn’t mean you just can’t consume cornflakes, you may, if you wish to, but when there are other better options available, you definitely should think about it.  

Sources –

https://www.amazon.in/Kelloggs-Corn-Flakes-875g/dp/B00TZIHC6I https://www.amazon.in/Quaker-Oats-2kg/dp/B01LYEV6RF/

dark choco

Is Dark Chocolate Healthy?

Dark chocolate is made from the seeds known as cacao beans of cacao tree or Theobroma Cacao which are fermented, dried, roasted & further processed to make dark chocolate.

Usually, anything above 50% cocoa in a chocolate is considered a dark chocolate but some countries may have higher percentages for a chocolate to be considered a dark chocolate.

But to make sure that the benefits of cocoa in dark chocolate outweigh the negative effects of huge amounts of sugar being added to chocolates these days, we’re considering at least 70% dark/cacao solids. This leaves limited scope for adding further ingredients such as sugar etc.

Because, after all, dark chocolate must be enjoyed for its bitterness and strong nutritive value.   

Coming to its nutritive value, dark chocolate is a great source of iron, copper, magnesium, manganese, phosphorous, zinc, etc. & a good source of protein, fiber.   

It is especially rich in plant compounds called flavanols or flavonoids which has shown considerable evidence to reduce the risk of heart disease and lower blood pressure.

The darker the chocolate is, the more are these flavanols.

Flavanols help the lining of the arteries, endolethium, to produce more nitric oxide which has a very relaxing impact on the blood vessels, improves blood flow which in turn lowers the blood pressure, thereby improving heart health.

In fact, several studies link the regular consumption of cocoa-based beverage by Kuna Indians, a tribe in Panama, to their heart health. This tribe is found to have lower blood pressure levels and despite their high salt intake, cases of hypertension were very rare among this population.

And, rate of death from diseases such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease was significantly lower in this group as compared to people from the same community who moved to urban areas.

But some sources point out other lifestyle factors for their healthy life.

Nonetheless, the benefits of the consumption of dark chocolate must not be undermined.

Dark chocolate is both calorie & nutrient-dense food as almost 40% of its calories come from fat majorly saturated fat. So, no matter, how healthy it is, it can still be a reason for your weight gain if you’re consuming more calories than your maintenance. Therefore, in order to enjoy its health benefits and keep yourself fit, it must be consumed in moderation.

As the majority of chocolates in the market are loaded with sugar, you, as consumers of chocolate, must look for at least 70% or more cocoa in dark chocolate and minimal sugar. Eat in moderation, maybe 1-2 squares regularly to make this food a tasty & healthy choice for you.

Sources –
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7211351/
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/food-features/dark-chocolate/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6478304/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3835452/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_chocolate

tagz

Are TagZ Chips Featured In Shark Tank India Any Better Than Lays?

Let’s evaluate both products from an ingredient & nutritional perspective.

Also, we are comparing basic salted versions of both products and any conclusion drawn will be based solely on just one flavor only.

Lays uses Potato, a mix of refined palm & rice bran oil, and iodized salt (1%) while TagZ uses Potatoes, sunflower oil (cold-pressed or refined, not mentioned on the pack, assuming it’s refined), potato starch, rice flour, salt (3.4%) and emulsifier soy lecithin.

If only, ingredients were used for deciding which one’s better, lays win because of least amount of ingredients and less salt. TagZ unnecessarily used a bunch of fillers in addition to their main ingredient.

From a nutritional standpoint, TagZ contains less than half the amount of fat but uses more than double the amount of sodium than Lays salted version.

And, both have a negligible amount of protein, fiber, and micronutrients which are a prerequisite for any product to be called “Healthy”.

From a processing standpoint, TagZ is obviously better since the chips are not fried but popped while lays are deep-fried snacks.

In conclusion, TagZ is a better alternative than Lays from a caloric & processing standpoint only however, it’s still a leisure/comfort snack being sold at more than double the price of Lays with no nutritive value at all. Neither Lays nor TagZ will bring satiety and moderation is the key even with the consumption of TagZ.

If you’re consuming this product thinking of it as a healthy alternative to Lays or any other potato chips, don’t fall into such claims because there are other better & actually healthy snacks available in the market.  

Sources –
https://tagzfoods.com/collections/collection-page/products/tagz-salt-trippin-sharing-packs
https://www.amazon.in/Lays-Potato-Chips-Classic-Salted/dp/B08Q912MYJ/