Top 5 Foods That Don't Deserve Their Bad Raps

1. Pizza has a bad reputation because when you have it, you're usually eating the unhealthy kind made from white crust, a lot of cheese and high fat meat toppings. If you make a pizza at home from scratch, you can use a whole wheat crust, fresh vegetable toppings and add as much or as little cheese as you want. This increases the amount of fiber, vitamins and minerals while lowering the calories and saturated fat to give you a healthier pizza.

2. Peanut butter gets a bad rap because it is very high in fat. If you're on a diet, a food that is high in fat will add a lot of calories to your daily intake. Peanut butter however, is high in healthy (unsaturated) fats. These fats have been shown to decrease your risk of heart disease. While you shouldn't be eating whole jars of this stuff, having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is very healthy.

3. Eggs get a bad reputation because they are high in cholesterol and have a bit of saturated (bad) fat. If you have a cholesterol problem, you should stay away from foods that are high in saturated fat and cholesterol. If you are otherwise healthy, eggs provide a high amount of good quality protein and are low in calories. If you are worried about the fat content, you can buy eggs laid from hens with modified diets that are lower in saturated fat than traditional eggs.

4. Since beef is high in saturated (bad) fat, many people stay away from it. Beef is also high in good quality protein and iron. You can buy lean ground beef that has as much fat as ground turkey. Lean ground beef is also usually less expensive and tastier than ground turkey. You can also try organic beef if you are worried about hormones and antibiotics found in meat products.

5. Low carb diets labeled bread as unhealthy because of the high carbohydrate content. Carbs come in two categories: good and bad. Bread can be made out of good or bad carbs so lumping all bread into the bad category is like stereotyping. If it is made out of 100% whole wheat flour, it is good. The whole wheat flour is high in fiber and nutrients while white flour is not. This is true of all foods made from flour including snacks and pasta.

For more healthy food ideas, visit the Guide to Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. You can also see what nutritious foods other people are eating by visiting the diet forums.

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