| Eggs must be stored in the fridge
This really depends on how quickly you are planning to use the eggs. For most cooking purposes, eggs are better used at room temperature; cold eggs will crack when dropped in boiling water, cold whites will not whisk well, and cold yolks will not blend well in sauces and mayonnaise. So if you are using the eggs within the next couple of days, they can be stored at room temperature. But if you wish to store them for longer, it is recommended that you store them in the fridge, in their boxes as the shell is porous and can absorb flavours and aromas easily. Just be sure to remove them from the fridge about 30 minutes before use so they can come up to room temperature. |
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Oysters are an aphrodisiac.
Oysters are high in zinc, which controls progesterone levels and can have a positive effect on the libido. Zinc deficiency can cause impotence in men, so any food rich in zinc is considered an aphrodisiac in that respect, and oysters just happen to be loaded with the mineral but they do not necessarily increase libido.
| If you take a vitamin supplement you don’t need to worry about what you eat the rest of the day.
Although vitamin supplements may provide all the vitamins you need each day, there are lots of other important nutrients they don’t provide. So it’s still important to choose a healthy balanced diet. Vitamin supplements are no substitute for a healthy diet. |
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| Smoothies are healthy
All natural smoothies are full of vitamins, are health boosting and count towards your 5-a-day. But they are loaded with natural fruit sugars, in some cases, they contain more sugar than canned drinks! It is also worth bearing in mind that the acid in fruit juices and smoothies will attack the enamel on your teeth. So it’s advisable to rinse your mouth out with water or drink milk after drinking a smoothie and don’t brush your teeth as this will just strip the enamel away. |
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Organic food is better than conventional food.
Whether organic foods are better than conventional foods is still under debate. Organic foods are more appealing due to the absence of hormones, pesticides and other chemical agents. However, organic foods are more susceptible to “natural” toxins; some having been grown in animal manure, they can be exposed to mycotoxins from mould spores and dangerous bacteria like E. coli and salmonella. When treated with pesticides or other synthetic chemicals, conventional foods may carry less of a chance of contamination.
| Fresh veggies are better than frozen
Frozen vegetables are usually processed within hours of picking, which prevents the loss of many nutrients during the freezing process, therefore they keep their high vitamin and mineral content. A large number of frozen veggies are just as nutritious, or in some cases even more nutritious, than fresh ones - frozen peas are a classic example. |
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| Mouldy cheese should not be eaten and thrown out.
This can be true in some cases but not others, it depends on the type of cheese. If you discover small amounts of mould growing on hard cheese (like Cheddar or Gouda), you can cut the mould off and eat the parts that were untouched. If you discover mould growing anywhere on soft cheese (like Brie and cream cheese), the mould has probably spread through the liquid and is unsafe all over. Most cheeses have a lifespan of one to two weeks after purchase and you can extend the life of cheese by keeping it sealed tightly from outside air and kept in your refrigerator, below 5C. |
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Fat free is calorie free.
Many low fat or no fat foods still contain a lot of calories; to make such foods taste better, extra sugar, flour, or starch thickeners are usually added. These ingredients are high in calories and may lead to weight gain. It is advisable to check food labels for the serving size and number of calories per serving.
| Butter contains more fat than margarine
It is easy to assume that margarine contains less fat than butter. In fact, they contain similar levels of fat but butter is animal based where as margarine is plant based. |
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| Most of the salt in our diet is added at the table.
Just 10-15% of the salt in our diet is added at the table or when we are cooking. 75% comes from processed food. Each day the average person eats about 9g, or two teaspoonfuls of salt a day. The recommended levels are just 6g. |
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7 Comments on "Top 10 food myths"
great facts:)
While I cannot comment on farming practices in Britain, I can in the States. The organic versus conventional farming argument is a bit flawed here. Most of our E Coli outbreaks are linked to manure being used in conventional farming as well as run off from farms.
I wanted to make a comment on your smoothie section. while smoothies do contain a fair amount of sugars, the important thing is the difference between simple and complex sugars. If you are making our smoothies with all fruit and fruit juice you are getting simple sugars which your body can readily use and burn off. Processed and preserved smoothies may be made with additives such as corn syrup that are complex sugars, these are much harder for your body to break down. Another example of why reading the ingredients is so important.
This is really interesting. I didn’t know about the need for eggs to be at room temperature for cooking etc. I’ll try to remember that from now on!
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