nutrition | foods to avoid
The Challenges of Modern Foods
One of the most important understandings of evolutionary health is that our homo sapiens bodies have not significantly changed for tens of thousands of years, but the world that we live in has changed in almost every way. The biological process of evolution designed our species to thrive in the world as it was 50,000 years ago, an environment that no longer exists, and this mismatch makes us very sick. It creates metabolic, hormonal, and inflammatory ailments and illnesses in our bodies that cause fatigue, weight gain, body aches, digestive issues, skin irritations, irritability, anxiety, and depression. Unless the mismatch is addressed we will develop serious diseases that can be painful and likely end our lives prematurely.
Nowhere is this mismatch easier to observe than in the diet of modern humans. For their meals, our prehistoric ancestors foraged for plants and hunted animals. Their digestive and metabolic systems evolved to require these rich natural food sources to function correctly. We've inherited our digestive and metabolic systems from these ancient humans—they function the same way today as they did in humans that lived 50,000 years ago—but we're no longer consuming the nutrient-dense foods that prehistoric people ate. Most of our diet consists of artificial foods manufactured from sugars, oils, and chemicals. As a result, our food and energy needs are unbalanced and our metabolic systems suffer. weight gain, lipid disorders, and chronic inflammation that leads to physical discomfort and pain, and eventually premature death.
The Mismatch Method Nutrition Plan
The simple truth is that we can't eat the manufactured and processed foods of the 21st century and expect to feel well and to live happy, long, and pain-free lives. Science doesn't work that way—biology doesn't work that way.
This leads to some very logical conclusions that people ignore at their own peril. We must eat the foods that satisfy our evolutionary design and avoid those we're not adapted to consume. It means we must start making meals with whole natural foods we don't often eat and give up artificial foods designed by their manufactures to overstimulate our sense of smell and taste. If we can't make this trade-off, we'll never feel well and will eventually develop one or more serious illnesses. We'll likely spend the last few decades of our lives, at best, in discomfort and, at worst, in pain and hospitalized.
The good news is that changing to a nutrient-dense, anti-inflammatory diet can be done quite easily—it's not as difficult as you think. Thousands of people have learned to make meals with new and healthy foods. Their bodies have adapted to the tastes and flavors of healthy foods and now crave them.
The remainder of this article identifies foods and drinks that are best to avoid, as they aren't the nutrient and antioxidant-dense foods our evolutionary design requires for mental and physical health. There will also be an explanation of why it's best not to consume them. Understanding the science behind why something is unhealthy helps you make good decisions and change your eating patterns.
Avoid manufactured and processed foods and drinks that have added sugar.
These are foods and beverages with sugar as an added ingredient. These added sugars have many names (there are over 60) and include agave nectar, barley malt, beet sugar, blackstrap molasses, brown rice syrup, brown sugar, buttercream, cane juice sugar, cane sugar, caramel, carob syrup, castor sugar, coconut sugar, corn syrup, crystalline fructose, date sugar, demerara sugar, dextrin, dextrose, ethyl maltol, evaporated cane juice, Florida crystals, fructose, fruit juice, fruit juice concentrate, galactose, glucose, golden sugar, glucose syrup, golden syrup, granulated sugar, grape sugar, high fructose corn syrup, honey, icing sugar, invert sugar, lactose, malt syrup, maltodextrin, maltose, maple syrup, molasses, muscovado sugar, panela sugar, raw sugar, refiner’s syrup, rice syrup, sorghum, sorghum syrup, sucrose, sugar, sucanat, treacle, turbinado sugar, yellow sugar, and white sugar. As we reviewed in the website article Eat | The Science: Good & Delicious, foods are composed of six different types of nutrients. Three of these—carbohydrates, proteins, and fats—are called macronutrients which are metabolized to provide energy for your body. The remaining nutrients—vitamins, minerals, and water—are micronutrients, which build and maintain tissue and regulate body functions. Many types of foods contain carbohydrates (often shortened to "carbs.") These foods are classified as either "whole" (fruits and vegetables, which are healthy for your body) or "refined" (manufactured foods that are not healthy for your body at all). The carbohydrates these foods contain are called "whole carbs" or "refined carbs." When you chew and swallow food, it travels down your esophagus to your stomach, where acids and enzymes break down carbohydrates into small molecules of sugar called glucose. The glucose is absorbed by your intestines and passes into your bloodstream. The sugar molecules are transported throughout your body, where muscle, bone, and organ cells use them for energy. When glucose enters your bloodstream, it signals your pancreas to secrete a hormone called insulin. Insulin’s role is to help the cells in your body absorb glucose. As glucose is absorbed into your cells, the sugar level in your bloodstream lowers. This alerts your pancreas to decrease the amount of insulin it’s producing. When you haven’t eaten for a while, your glucose and insulin levels are low, triggering your body to use the fat stored in your liver and muscles for energy. Whole carbs are primarily found in fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables (no sugar, flavorings, preservatives, or chemicals added) which contain naturally occurring sugar, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. These were the primary food sources of our ancient ancestors, and our evolutionary design requires that they are also our primary food sources if our bodies are to function optimally. The fiber in whole carbs slows the digestive process, resulting in more gradual and consistent blood sugar production. This ensures that the ideal amount of glucose passes through your bloodstream and that fat storage is maintained at optimal levels. Unfortunately, our modern diet of manufactured and processed foods disrupts this efficient and effective metabolic process that has sustained humans for thousands of years. One cause of this disruption is the large amounts of sugar that manufacturers add to foods and drinks. And this is not just candy, desserts, and sodas—even soups, sauces, and other savory packaged foods have added sugar. When you consume processed foods and drinks that contain large amounts of sugar, too much glucose is absorbed into your bloodstream. Your pancreas works extra hard to produce enough insulin to move the glucose into your cells, but it can’t keep up. The level of sugar in your bloodstream continues to rise. Your liver and muscles can only store a certain amount of glucose as fat, and when that amount is exceeded, the extra sugar is stored as fat throughout your body. Most of this fat storage occurs around the thighs and buttocks in women and the abdomen in men. If you continue consuming sugary foods, you’ll produce more and more insulin. With so much insulin in your bloodstream, your body’s cells become numb to the hormone and stop responding to it—a condition called insulin resistance. Because your cells no longer react to insulin, they can’t absorb glucose, which remains in the bloodstream. This further increases the blood sugar levels in your body. The excess glucose is eventually stored as excess fat—not just around your midsection and flank but also throughout your body. Over time this excess fat will produce proteins that activate an inflammatory response as if your body is being attacked by a virus or infected with a toxin. While the fat cells are present, you are in a state of chronic inflammation. As you consume more sugar, insulin resistance strengthens, and more chronic inflammation spreads throughout your body. Symptoms of this inflammation make you feel unwell. The inflammatory process activates immune cells to defend your body. Without bacteria or viruses to fight, the immune cells can become confused and mistakenly attack your healthy tissues and organs. Many scientists believe this immune cell damage to otherwise healthy body parts contributes to developing serious illnesses. The simplest way to avoid sugar-added refined carbohydrates is to avoid packaged foods as almost all contain refined carbs. If you read the labels of nearly any packaged food, you’ll find some form of added sugar.
Avoid manufactured and processed foods containing preservatives and chemicals.
Another cause of chronic inflammation is foods with refined carbs that are chemically processed. These are typically packaged snacks, baked goods, and pre-prepared meals. The preservatives (typically nitrites and acids) and chemicals (typically colorings and flavorings) in processed foods can adversely affect your gut microbiome. The gut microbiome is trillions of bacteria that live in your enable digestion by helping break down certain types of food into glucose for cellular energy. The gut microbiome is also essential to your immune system as some bacteria protect your body when you ingest dangerous microorganisms and toxins. The gut microbiome works well when the bacteria that live there are delicately balanced in variety and volume to support your health. When you consume refined foods, the chemical ingredients disrupt this balance. Because your gut microbiome is part of your immune system, this imbalance triggers an immune response. If you continue eating processed foods, you will eventually develop chronic inflammation. As we’ve discussed, the symptoms of chronic inflammation can be debilitating. Over time, it can develop into one or more serious diseases. As with sugar-added refined foods, the easiest way to not consume foods with preservatives and chemicals is to avoid packaged foods as they almost always contain these substances. If you don’t believe us, read the labels of nearly any packaged food, and you’ll find the names of chemicals and preservatives that are difficult to pronounce.
Avoid baked goods made with white flour.
Most food manufacturers use refined grain flour (white flour) to make bread, pasta, rolls, snack chips, and desserts. Commercial bakeries use white flour because it is less expensive and can be stored on a shelf for years, and the resulting baked foods are light and fluffy, which consumers typically prefer. Eating these baked goods can create metabolic challenges for your body. Grains are seeds from cereal crop plants such as wheat. Refined grains have been machine milled—which removes most of the fiber and essential nutrients—from the grain. Starch is chemically similar to sugar and is broken down by the digestive system into glucose. Because foods made with white flour contain no fiber, there is nothing to slow the release of glucose during the digestive process. Consuming baked goods made with white flour also contributes to elevated blood sugar levels, excess fat storage throughout the body, and chronic inflammation.
Avoid grains and foods made with grains (there are better sources of fiber).
It is best to avoid eating grains such as oatmeal and foods made from grains such as bread, pasta, rolls, snack chips, and desserts. First, there is the challenge of gluten, a substance found in wheat, rye, and barley. Some people have celiac disease, a severe disorder in which gluten damages their small intestines. Some people experience digestive distress after consuming wheat, rye, or barley—a condition called gluten intolerance. Even if you don’t have celiac disease or gluten intolerance, it is common for many people to experience fatigue and upset stomachs after eating it. As such, it’s best to stay away from gluten. So, what about eating grains that are not refined and don’t contain gluten? This is also discouraged due to their carbohydrate load. Grains contain more carbs than whole foods. If you eat whole grains along with servings of fruits and vegetables, you’ll likely overconsume carbs. To avoid this, you would need to choose grains over fruits and vegetables, which is a terrible trade-off. A slice of bread or a dinner roll has significantly fewer nutrients than a similar serving size of vegetable or fruit.
Avoid fruit juice (but eat plenty of fruit).
Fruit carbohydrates contain sugars in the form of glucose and fructose. Unlike glucose, which can be used for energy by most cells in your body, fructose can only be broken down into glucose by the liver before it is metabolized into energy. Food manufacturers often use fructose as a sweetener in refined foods and drinks (e.g., a typical soda contains 30 grams of fructose). When fructose is transported to your liver too quickly, the liver is overwhelmed and immediately converts the fructose to fat storage. Overconsumption of fructose can lead to severe health issues. Because of this, you may think that naturally occurring fructose in fruits is bad for you. It’s not. Fruit adds variety to your meals, satisfies your sweet tooth, and provides your body with critical vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. The chewing resistance of fruit slows the intake of fructose, while the fiber it contains decreases the speed of fruit digestion. This provides your liver the time to synthesize the fructose into glucose. Fruit juices, however, should be avoided. They will stress the liver the same way as sweetened sodas, as juice doesn’t have the chewing resistance and fiber of whole fruit.
Avoid foods and beverages that contain artificial or natural sweeteners.
Artificial and natural sweeteners are substitutes for sugar, chemicals added to beverages and foods to make them taste sweet. While they may be based upon or even start with natural food, they are not real—a manufacturing process creates them. They’re often referred to as intense sweeteners because some are as much as 1,000 times sweeter than sugar. It is for this reason that it is best to avoid them. Dependency upon ultra-sweet foods will make rich nutrient-dense fruit taste bland when, in fact, fruit should be the sweetest food we eat. Ongoing use of artificial sweeteners may result in cravings for manufactured foods not aligned with our evolutionary design. This can lead to metabolic challenges and, ultimately, chronic inflammation. It is best to avoid all artificial and natural sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners include Acesulfame, Advantame, Aspartame, Enliten®, Equal®, Necta Sweet®, Nectresse®, Neotame, Newtame®, Nutrasweet®, PureLo®, PureVia®, Raw®, Saccharin, Splenda®, Stevia, Steviol, Sucralose, Sugar Twin®, Sunett®, Sweet and Low®, Sweet'N Low®, Sweet One®, Sweet Twin®, Truvia®. The most common natural sweeteners are luo han guo fruit extract, monk fruit, and monk fruit extract.
Avoid fried foods and packaged foods containing trans fats.
Trans fats are refined food products created through an industrial process that adds hydrogen to vegetable oils making them solid at room temperature. Manufacturers use partially hydrogenated oils in their foods to increase shelf life. Trans fats can be found in commercial baked goods and packaged foods (pastries, cookies, doughnuts, muffins, cakes, pizza dough, crackers, chips, etc.). Trans fat oils are used in commercial deep fryers because they do not have to be changed often. Foods such as french fries, fried chicken, and battered fish contain trans fats. Trans fats are directly linked to chronic inflammation and cardiovascular disease The good news is that in 2018 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned the use of trans fats. Unfortunately, foods containing trans fats last many years, so check your pantry for foods containing partially hydrogenated oils. Today food manufacturers use fully hydrogenated oils that still contain trans fat but at lower levels. The bad news is that when used for frying, the trans fat content of the fully hydrogenated oils can increase, so it’s best to avoid all fried foods.
Avoid most dairy products.
While, as a species, humans have adapted to tolerate cow milk consumption, this ability weakens with age. Research has indicated that two-thirds of the world’s population over the age of 20 are either dairy (lactose) intolerant or sensitive, which can cause uncomfortable and often debilitating digestive issues. The traditional belief that milk is necessary for strong bones and the prevention of osteoporosis is not valid. A healthy diet of whole foods provides enough calcium, potassium, magnesium, protein, and healthy fats from non-dairy sources to support a strong skeletal system. The Amazing Nutrition Plan recommends avoiding all dairy products except for small amounts of butter, ghee (clarified butter) for cooking, and plain Greek yogurt for healthy sauces and dressings (as these are low in lactose.)
Avoid consuming foods prepared with omega-6 vegetable and seed oils.
Cooking with oils rich in omega-6 fatty acids or consuming foods made with these oils is discouraged. These include soybean, canola, corn, palm, peanut, sunflower, grapeseed, cottonseed, safflower, sesame, sunflower, and vegetable oils. There are two types of polyunsaturated fats—omega-6 fats found in seed and vegetable oils and omega-3 fats found primarily in fish and some isolated seeds. Minimizing chronic inflammation in your body means balancing the ratio of omega-3 and omega-6 fats. Some omega-6 fats can create inflammation, while omega-3 fats reduce inflammation. Molecular biologists have found that most omega-6 fats produce a chemical signal that activates inflammatory responses. They’ve also found that omega-3 fats produce an enzyme that can disrupt the chemical signal that activates these responses. The primary source of omega-6 fat in the diet of Americans are vegetable and seed oils. If we want to balance the ratio of omega-3 from fish and plant sources, it is best to avoid omega-6 cooking oils.
Avoid eating processed meat and fish.
Processed meats (such as hot dogs, luncheon meats, bacon, and jerky) and processed fish (such as sardines and herring packed in a tin) typically contain harmful chemicals and preservatives that contribute to chronic inflammation. Your intestinal tract is home to trillions of gut microbiome bacteria. Some of these bacteria assist your digestive process in breaking down certain types of food into glucose. The gut microbiome is also a component of your immune system, protecting your body against microorganisms you may ingest with food. Your microbiome is a rich and complex mixture of different amounts and strains of bacteria, delicately balanced to optimize your health. When you consume preservatives and other chemicals in refined foods, the mix of bacteria becomes unbalanced. When the gut microbiome is unbalanced an immune response is triggered. If you continue eating processed foods, the gut biome stays unbalanced, more immune responses are activated, and chronic inflammation develops.
Selected References
(1) Chronic inflammation and disease: Furman, D., Campisi, J., Verdin, E., Carrera-Bastos, P., Targ, S., Franceschi, C., Ferrucci, L., Gilroy, D. W., Fasano, A., Miller, G. W., Miller, A. H., Mantovani, A., Weyand, C. M., Barzilai, N., Goronzy, J. J., Rando, T. A., Effros, R. B., Lucia, A., Kleinstreuer, N., & Slavich, G. M. (2019). Chronic inflammation in the etiology of disease across the life span. Nature Medicine, 25(12), 1822–1832. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-019-0675-0
(2) Chronic inflammation and disease: Hunter, P. (2012). The inflammation theory of disease: The growing realization that chronic inflammation is crucial in many diseases opens new avenues for treatment. EMBO Reports, 13(11), 968–970. https://doi.org/10.1038/embor.2012.142
Sugar-added food and fat storage: Juul, F., Martinez-Steele, E., Parekh, N., Monteiro, C. A., & Chang, V. W. (2018). Ultra-processed food consumption and excess weight among US adults. British Journal of Nutrition, 120(1), 90–100. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114518001046
T-Cell Profile in Adipose Tissue Is Associated With Insulin Resistance and Systemic Inflammation in Humans. Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, 34(12), 2637–2643. https://doi.org/10.1161/ATVBAHA.114.304636
Sugar-added foods and insulin resistance: Macdonald, I. A. (2016). A review of recent evidence relating to sugars, insulin resistance and diabetes. European Journal of Nutrition, 55(S2), 17–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-016-1340-8
Ultra-processed Food Consumption and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes Among Participants of the NutriNet-Santé Prospective Cohort. JAMA Internal Medicine, 180(2), 283. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.59421
A note about white flour: Aller, E. E. J. G., Abete, I., Astrup, A., Martinez, J. A., & Baak, M. A. van. (2011). Starches, Sugars and Obesity. Nutrients, 3(3), 341–369. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu3030341
(1) The gut microbiome: Bolte, L. A., Vich Vila, A., Imhann, F., Collij, V., Gacesa, R., Peters, V., Wijmenga, C., Kurilshikov, A., Campmans-Kuijpers, M. J. E., Fu, J., Dijkstra, G., Zhernakova, A., & Weersma, R. K. (2021). Long-term dietary patterns are associated with pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory features of the gut microbiome. Gut, 70(7), 1287. https://doi.org/10.1136/gutjnl-2020-322670
(2) The gut microbiome: Zinöcker, M., & Lindseth, I. (2018). The Western Diet–Microbiome-Host Interaction and Its Role in Metabolic Disease. Nutrients, 10(3), 365. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10030365
LDL cholesterol activates immunes response: Tsoupras, A., Lordan, R., & Zabetakis, I. (2018). Inflammation, not Cholesterol, Is a Cause of Chronic Disease. Nutrients, 10(5), 604. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10050604
Note about artificial sweeteners: Chattopadhyay, S., Raychaudhuri, U., & Chakraborty, R. (2014). Artificial sweeteners – a review. Journal of Food Science and Technology, 51(4), 611–621. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-011-0571-1
FDA banned trans fats: Kummerow, F. A. (2009). The negative effects of hydrogenated trans fats and what to do about them. Atherosclerosis, 205(2), 458–465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2009.03.009
(1) Changing views on saturated fat: Siri-Tarino, P. W., Sun, Q., Hu, F. B., & Krauss, R. M. (2010). Meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies evaluating the association of saturated fat with cardiovascular disease. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 91(3), 535–546. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.2009.27725
(2) Changing views on saturated fat: Hooper, L., Martin, N., Jimoh, O. F., Kirk, C., Foster, E., & Abdelhamid, A. S. (2020). Reduction in saturated fat intake for cardiovascular disease. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2020(8). https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD011737.pub3
Two-thirds of global population lactose intolerant: Catanzaro, R., Sciuto, M., & Marotta, F. (2021). Lactose intolerance: An update on its pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment. Nutrition Research, 89, 23–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nutres.2021.02.003
Omega-6 fat pro-inflammatory, omega-3 anti-inflammatory: Simopoulos, A. P. (2008). The omega-6/omega-3 fatty acid ratio, genetic variation, and cardiovascular disease. Asia Pacific journal of clinical nutrition, 17.
(1) Processed meat and the gut microbiome: Bolte, L. A., Vich Vila, A., Imhann, F., Collij, V., Gacesa, R., Peters, V., Wijmenga, C., Kurilshikov, A., Campmans-Kuijpers, M. J. E., Fu, J., Dijkstra, G., Zhernakova, A., & Weersma, R. K. (2021). Long-term dietary patterns are associated with pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory features of the gut microbiome. Gut, 70(7), 1287. https://doi.org/10.1136/gutjnl-2020-322670
(2) Processed meat and the gut microbiome: Zinöcker, M., & Lindseth, I. (2018). The Western Diet–Microbiome-Host Interaction and Its Role in Metabolic Disease. Nutrients, 10(3), 365. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10030365