Redefining Junk Food
Redefining Junk Food
By Chris Rosenbloom, PhD, RDN, CSSD, April 12, 2017
A teen swimmer wrote to say that he “loves junk food, but really wants to eat healthy.” He went on to explain when he tries to eat healthy “unprocessed” foods, he always defaults to “processed” foods. He thinks his eating habits are negatively affecting his swimming and really wants to change.
It is refreshing to hear from young swimmers who know there is a connection between healthy eating and performance but have a hard time figuring out what is a healthful diet.
I suggest that swimmers redefine “junk” and stop thinking in black and white terms about foods. Part of the confusion comes from the word “processed” and how casually the term is used in the media to describe foods that are devoid of all nutrients. It is interesting that some people who say they eat unprocessed foods drink almond milk, which is a highly- processed food that doesn’t even contain many almonds (it is only about 2% almonds!)
Learn more here:
It is refreshing to hear from young swimmers who know there is a connection between healthy eating and performance but have a hard time figuring out what is a healthful diet.
I suggest that swimmers redefine “junk” and stop thinking in black and white terms about foods. Part of the confusion comes from the word “processed” and how casually the term is used in the media to describe foods that are devoid of all nutrients. It is interesting that some people who say they eat unprocessed foods drink almond milk, which is a highly- processed food that doesn’t even contain many almonds (it is only about 2% almonds!)
Learn more here:
