Don’t be fooled by these 5 foods’ ‘healthy’ reputations

Nutrition science is constantly evolving, which means foods people once thought were healthy can end up being terrible for you. Even dietitians experience this.

“I found my way into the profession because when I was young I needed the support of a dietitian,” says Jessica Cording, author of ‘The Little Book of Game-Changers.’ “This is very common with people who work in the field.”

Cording grew up in the ’90s, when diet culture was everywhere. “Everything was low-fat, fat-free and ‘light,’ and we were told that was healthy,” she says.

She stresses that “our perception of what’s healthy evolves,” including during her schooling to become a dietitian. But Cording notes that it’s OK to have less-healthy foods in your diet. “It’s all about context and overall diet patterns,” she says. “If something hits an itch, there can be room for that.”

The concern is when someone mistakenly thinks a certain food or foods are healthy and ends up relying too much on those foods, she explains.

While food science will continue to change, Cording says, there are certain foods that she once thought were healthy that definitely aren’t. These are the biggies she flagged.

Plant-based meats

“When plant-based products first became a big thing, I remember thinking that the fake meat products were healthy simply because they weren’t animal-based,” Cording says.

While some products designed to replace meat are more nutritious than others, she notes that many popular products are high in sodium and additives. “They can contribute to bloating,” Cording says.

These “meats” don’t necessarily have a positive effect on health. A 2022 randomized crossover trial, for example, had healthy adults eat two or more servings of plant-based meats per day for eight weeks, followed by two or more servings of animal meats per day for eight weeks. The researchers found that the results were “contrary to our hypothesis, since we expected relative improvements in biomarkers of inflammation from the plant-based meats.”

“My body never liked them,” Cording says, pointing out that she once relied heavily on plant-based meats in her diet. “I remember coming to a place as a dietitian and thinking, ‘No wonder I wasn’t feeling OK.’ I wasn’t getting enough protein, iron, vitamin D or calcium.”

Fat-free cheese

The American Heart Association recommends choosing low-fat dairy products for heart health, but fat-free cheese takes things a little farther.

“I grew up when fat phobia was alive and well,” Cording says. “I remember thinking we were supposed to eat fat-free cheese and fat-free everything.”

But she points out that fat-free cheese is heavily processed and isn’t satiating, leaving you feeling hungry not long after eating. These products also often have more thickeners and additives than full-fat cheese, she adds.

“These cheeses don’t generally melt and stretch like regular cheese,” Cording says. “They’re not as satisfying and just don’t taste as good, which can lead to someone feeling deprived and more likely to overeat.”

There’s not a lot of data on fat-free cheese, but some research suggests that there might be some brain benefits to eating full-fat dairy. A January study published in the journal Neurology tracked 28,000 people for 25 years and found that adults without a genetic risk for Alzheimer’s who ate more full-fat cheese had an up to 17 percent lower risk of developing the disease.

Diet soda

Cording says she used to view anything with sugar substitutes as a better option. “Diet sodas with aspartame seemed like a healthier choice to me,” she says.

While she stresses that drinking diet soda in moderation is probably fine, a growing body of research has linked artificial sweeteners with serious health conditions, including cancer.

In 2023, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer classified aspartame as possibly carcinogenic to humans. Other sugar-free sweeteners like xylitol have been linked to a higher risk of heart attack and stroke. And a scientific review of 21 studies published in 2023 specifically linked high diet soda consumption to poor mental health, rheumatoid arthritis, hip fractures and accelerated cell aging, among other health issues.

Cording says she’s seen patients struggle with caffeine jitters, headaches and stomachaches with a regular diet soda habit.

“Also, it can lend a health halo effect to a meal if someone feels they are saving calories,” she adds. (A health halo means people perceive a food or meal as healthier overall than it truly is, often because of one specific factor — like lower calories — that overshadows other less healthy elements.)

Light yogurt

“Light yogurts have had such a health halo,” Cording says. But these products use a lot of artificial sweeteners, are very low in calories and low in protein, she points out. Cording has seen patients struggle to regulate their appetite through the day when they rely heavily on light yogurt.

“They’re not super satiating, not great for brain function or helpful for things women need, like hormone health support,” she says. “Sure, they’re low calorie, but you get very little actual nutrients.” She adds that unsweetened Greek yogurt is “so much better.”

Frozen yogurt

Frozen yogurt’s popularity has ebbed and flowed over the past few decades, and it’s currently experiencing a resurgence.

“I used to think that frozen yogurt was a ‘healthy’ dessert,” Cording says. “But eventually I realized that, wait, there’s not that much nourishment happening with this.”

Cording says she’s frequently seen her patients who love frozen yogurt overindulge. “It tends to be really easy to overeat and, when you add a lot of toppings, calorie-wise it can be similar to eating a whole meal,” she says.

Frozen yogurt does tend to have slightly more calcium than ice cream and might contain active bacterial cultures, but it’s still a dessert and should be viewed that way, she says.