The lack of healthy food is more dangerous than an excess of unhealthy food

Author: Mikhail Ziborov - author of the site makefitness.pro.
2022-04-30

Food is conditionally divided into harmful and healthy. The harm does not lie in the food itself, but in the quantity of that food. We have provided much more information about healthy eating/harmful food in our group. But what if I tell you that undereating healthy food is much worse than consuming a lot of unhealthy food?

Why a Lack of Healthy Food is More Harmful than an Abundance of Unhealthy Food?

The thing is, unhealthy food becomes truly harmful when you overconsume it. Having one or two cups of cola each day won’t hurt you. But if you drink 2-3 liters daily, that’s excessive. The same goes for Big Macs, smoked foods, and other processed foods.

Moreover, the couple of cups of cola you drink daily, the eaten burger, or a pack of chips can be compensated for. For example, through physical activity: whether you trained or engaged in non-exercise activity — you burn off those calories, negating the harm of all that junk food.

However, if you’re generally under-consuming, lacking essential nutrients, no matter how much you train or maintain high physical activity, you won’t become healthier. Where will you get proteins (like collagen) for the recovery of your internal organs if you are systematically eating only vegetables, grains, and other seemingly healthy foods?

As you see in the example, a person eats properly but is missing important elements — complete proteins. As a result, their health will likely deteriorate over time. On the other hand, if, alongside burgers, cola, and other junk food, they consume enough proteins, fats, carbohydrates, fiber, micronutrients, and everything necessary for health.

In short, undereating healthy food is far worse than eating unhealthy food. By the way, in this article, I wrote about the two conditions under which unhealthy food will not do you any harm at all.

Excess Harmful Food or Lack of Healthy Food: What Do Scientists Say?

In this study, conducted in 2017, scientists gathered data showing that 266 million people from various countries suffered from dietary risk factors (11 million deaths, about 255 million people with deteriorating health up to disability). A more detailed form of the study can be found here.

The research was conducted over 27 years: from 1990 to 2017. What specifically caused people to die or their health to deteriorate?

1. High sodium intake. In simpler terms, it refers to table salt (sodium chloride). Notice that it’s not just sodium intake but high sodium intake. That’s what I meant — excess. 3 million deaths occurred during the study period, and 70 million suffered health declines.

Some may argue that this is just an example that excessive unhealthy food is dangerous. Yes, but against the backdrop of undernutrition of healthy food.

2. Low whole grain consumption. 3 million deaths occurred, and 82 million were affected.

3. Low fruit consumption. This also includes vegetables (they have a similar effect on the body: the same fiber, vitamins, minerals, etc.). 2 million deaths occurred, and 65 million suffered health declines.

These are the main dietary risk factors leading to such severe diseases as cardiovascular diseases (1st place), various types of cancer (2nd place), and type 2 diabetes.

But there are also additional risk factors. This includes a lack of:

- Legumes (peas, beans, lentils, and similar);

- Nuts and seeds (the more variety, the better, but we know that pistachios go beyond our budgets);

- Dairy products;

- Fiber (which can be obtained from both vegetables and fruits, or in pure form — available at any supermarket);

- Polyunsaturated fatty acids (especially important are DHA and EPA from the Omega-3 group; ALA, found in flaxseed oil, is not sufficient).

A separate remark on Omega-3. Currently, people are consuming too much Omega-6 fats. They are necessary for us, but in excess quantities, they increase overall inflammation in the body. Omega-3 helps counteract this inflammation. Since we are not getting enough Omega-3, inflammation runs rampant. New cancer formations are the most vivid manifestations of these inflammations.

Additionally, the category of supplementary dietary risk factors includes excess:

- Red meat (if you can’t live without meat at all, periodically replace it with white meat);

- Processed meat products (sausages, hot dogs, etc. — it’s better to reduce these and supplement your diet with white meat).

To simplify, in general, your diet should be diverse: eat a little of this and a little of that, etc. Everyone knows this, but for some reason, almost everyone neglects it until something happens to their health (until the thunder strikes, the man doesn’t cross himself).

I understand that it’s impossible to cover all questions about nutrition in one article. So, please use the link to the entire section on Nutrition, where you will likely find what concerns you.

A clear example of how nutrition directly affects our health: fiber is highly likely to protect your intestines from cancer (research).