The Lies We Tell Ourselves
And 7 Nutrition “Truths” that are Absolute BS
I’ll never change my mind.
It’s just every once in a while.
I’ll maintain my boundaries next time.
I’m not a people pleaser.
I don’t belong here.
I’m never going back to school.
I’ll get started tomorrow.
It’s just this one last time.
I don’t deserve what I have.
If it can’t be perfect, it’s not worth doing.
Things will never change.
I’ll feel this way forever.
I can’t.
I’d love to.
I’m fine.
The Lies we tell Ourselves
Some of these are lies I told myself last week; some are ones a few of my dearest friends told themselves. When we think of a lie, we usually think of something overtly false or negative. We don’t think about the subtle, and we don’t usually factor in our self-narratives. And, we often don’t consider the ones that were given to us – that feel so natural to believe or just become part of the fabric of who we are but aren’t actually reflective of our true selves.
I spend a lot of time being introspective; it’s one part just me being how I’m geared, one part being an overthinker/analyzer, and one part being incredibly curious, especially about what’s at the root of why we do the things we do.
I also work with clients to help them be introspective; it’s not a practice that comes easy for everyone – in fact, I often call it Compassionate Self-confrontation. There can be a lot of discomfort with questioning the “facts” or just digging around what we know to be true about ourselves.
So, this week, I found myself wondering: Can a lie be a positive thing? And, my initial gut reaction was a bit of a hot take: I found myself saying, “Hell yeah!” A little over-zealous maybe, but true, nonetheless. Look, I’m not talking about lies that hurt ourselves or other people or ruin lives. I am talking about the fake-it-till-you-make-it kind.
I’ll give you an example. When I first committed to getting my Master’s in Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine, I had some hurdles to get past before I could really get started. One of the biggest was a lie I had told myself for years – since I was in grade school: “I can’t science.”
It wasn’t just a lie that became part of my self-narrative, it defined my career choices and personality. I sought out the arts, to a great extent, because I believed I was incapable of excelling in the sciences (which, literally, my entire family does). But, I was about to embark on a graduate degree that started with chemistry and biochemistry as its foundation. If I didn’t change the narrative, it would all be an uphill climb.
So, instead, I told myself a different lie: “I enjoy science. I’m good at it. It comes easy to me.” I said it like a mantra over and over and over. All day. Everyday. I said it to myself; I said it out loud. I said it with feeling. I visualized it. I said it until I believed it.
I said it until it became true.
And, that’s when I realized, not all lies are lies. I’m not talking here about little white lies, either. I’m not talking about the things we say to be tactful or spare someone’s feelings, or the things we know aren’t true but feel we have to say to conform to a social norm (like saying we’re “fine” when we know damn well that we’re not, but we also know the person asking doesn’t really want to know, they’re just being polite).
Some lies are truths that we have yet to discover or believe. Some lies that are not-quite-lies also come from being misinformed. And some are truths that simply have yet come to pass. Perhaps the biggest determining factor for me was not the fact of the matter but my perspective, mindset and, therefore, belief. Perhaps I’m just playing fast and loose with the term “lie;” perhaps “limiting belief” may be more representative.
Some parts of the above example point back to neuroscience; to rewiring my neural pathways and creating new ones (in addition to modifying or replacing a self-narrative that didn’t serve me to hold onto). The body will generally take the path of least resistance. The body loves patterns, pathways, routine; it will almost always take the path of least resistance, which tends to be the familiar. It’s why it can be so challenging to create new behaviors, thoughts, and perceptions that stick.
But we actually do this everyday … make decisions that result in behavior change – often without thinking about it or being aware of it. We’re taking in stimuli 100% of the day. Whether we’re awake or asleep, whether passively or actively, our body is constantly taking in and assessing stimuli and then making subtle (or major) changes.
This is one reason I believe we should be intentional with what we choose to eat, watch, listen to, interact with, and who we choose to spend time with. Our body doesn’t just digest food, it digests ALL stimuli. And, as we say in Ayurveda: You are what you digest.
I’m not advocating for hypervigilance or an overly-curated existence; we don’t need to further live in the echo chamber of our own thoughts and perspectives. What I am advocating for is putting on the curiosity mindset hat and being willing to reflect on the what and why of our perspectives. This may take you down some roads best traveled with support from therapy, a coach, a support group, or trusted individual, so proceed with self-compassion.
In thinking about the lies we tell ourselves, it got me thinking about the lies we’re told and we, often unquestioningly, believe. To be fair, sometimes these beliefs are based on the best information we currently have, and we don’t know them to be false until further data becomes available.
For the sake of this article, I will use several nutrition “facts” that are still out there as facts, and therefore, have become lies in disguise. Have you believed in any of these? Do you currently?
7 Nutrition “Truths” that are Absolute Bullshit
This list is not exhaustive and many of these things – not all – started as fact, and only became inaccurate (and therefore “lies” for the context of this article) as we got more data.
1. Eating Fat Will Make Me Fat
The roots of the fat-is-bad and fat-free movement comes from some early research from the 1950s that correlated fat intake with heart disease – there was never causation established. There have been hundreds of studies and over 20 review papers and they’ve largely concluded that saturated fats don’t cause heart disease (that’s not to say it’s harmless!).
Further, simply eating foods that have fat will not make you fat – biochemistry and nutritional biochemistry simply don’t support that. It’s easy to oversimplify to good-vs-bad (eating fat = bad; eliminating all fat = good, but it’s not that straightforward.
Maintaining the perspective that all fat is bad disregards the:
Important role fat plays in the body
Quality of the fats consumed
Differences between subcutaneous fat and visceral fat
Quantity of food consumed
Impact of other macronutrients – excess calories from pretty much any source can be stored as fat (including protein)
Fat forms the protective layer around nerves called myelin sheath. Some of our most important hormones, like reproductive hormones, are created from cholesterol, which comes from your liver (it produces all we need) and from animal sources of food and tropical oils – both of which also tend to be high in saturated fat.
The quality of the cholesterol we consume is super-important. If we have foods that contribute to more cholesterol than our body needs and it’s high in LDL cholesterol (aka the “bad” cholesterol), it can contribute to plaque build-up in our arteries and lead to heart disease, but it still doesn’t make all fat bad!
Key Takeaways
Quality over quantity. Trans-fats, especially, should be avoided. Saturated fat intake should be minimized. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats should be prioritized.
2. Fat-free is Better for Me
The rise in fat-free foods happened after the research mentioned in the section above made everyone demonize fat. With the removal of fat from products, came the addition of sugar and salt (and other things to make foods hyper-palatable). It’s at this point we really see the rise in creation and production of ultra-processed foods.
Snack foods, as we know them today in their ultra-processed, nutrient-lacking glory, became a THING with the advent and popularization of fat-free foods. When the fat was removed from foods, it turned out they didn’t taste so great. So, food scientists went to work. They didn’t just add sugar, sugar alternatives, and sugar derivatives – with many snack foods containing multiple forms of sugar – and salt, they also doubled down on the things like texture, perfecting crunch, the rate at which something dissolves in the mouth, the overall mouth-feel, alternative oils, shelf-life additives, color additives, and the list goes on. This also is the time when sugar-loaded and sugar-alternative beverages started to really make an entrance.
Nutrient-lacking ultra-processed foods, as we know them today, have been found to be as addictive to the body as drugs and alcohol. Fat-free snacks ran, so the nutrient-lacking ultra-processed foods of today could fly.
Food scientists aren’t done, yet. Where some companies are leaning into the changes of palates and nutritional needs and desires that have come with the GLP-1 wave, others are actively working on ways to circumvent the effects of GLP-1s – more simply, they’re figuring out how to design ultra-processed foods to bypass hunger and satiety signals and trigger more consumption (and they’re leaning into AI to do it). I’m not generally an alarmist, but it’s fascinating to see methods being used with food science that are on par with drug development (there’s an interesting article from Forbes that digs into this).
And we’re living the impacts: A bunch of fat-free foods that were marketed as “good for you foods” ultimately contributed to dysregulating insulin sensitivity and being hyper-palatable and addictive contributing to further metabolic dysregulation, which have been big contributors to the skyrocketing incidence and increased prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes and obesity.
Key Takeaways
I’m not saying to not consume any fat-free foods at all – I, personally, really enjoy fat-free plain Greek yogurt. I am saying: Read your nutrition labels. Look at how much added sugar and sodium is present and how much protein is/is not inside. And almost more importantly: Look at the vitamin and mineral content. It’s HERE that you’ll better understand if the food you want will nourish your mental health.
3. Sugar-Free is Better for Me
So, we had a swing toward fat-free foods, because fat was bad, which created a bunch of high sugar, high salt food, people developed metabolic imbalances (chief among them obesity and Type 2 Diabetes), and what happened next? Atkins, South Beach, Whole 30, Paleo, and keto. And, along with them, the pendulum-swing to sugar-free and the belief that all carbs are bad.
Sugar-free foods and beverages – I’m including diet soda here – were thought to be a potential way for people to swap out their full-sugar counterparts. I actually don’t hate this in theory. I think these foods can be part of a bridge-plan that strategically works toward decreased intake or stopping consumption of snack foods, sodas, etc. However, the reality is that they’re not generally used in this way.
While there has been some research that has shown diet sodas may be an effective swap for full sugar in individuals that have obesity, most often research has found that diet sodas confuse hunger cues … you get the flavor and the experience without the satiety signals, which can lead to snacking. The “sugar-free”, “low carb,” or “reduced calorie” nature of these types of foods also frequently end up causing people to eat more than they intend through the belief they’re healthier. They also suffer from many of the same issues of hyper-palatability and addictiveness as most nutrient-lacking ultra-processed foods (as described above).
Key Takeaways
If you have Type 2 Diabetes, there’s a good chance sugar-free and diet will be an inherent part of your life when you’re evaluating packaged foods and beverages. If you don’t have Type 2 Diabetes, consider one of three approaches:
Create a plan where you’re using these strategically to replace and decrease consumption of full-sugar versions; have an ramp-down exit plan
Think about the real reason you want that specific food; is there a whole-food option that will meet that need? The crunch of celery won’t ever hit the same as Cheetos or Doritos, but if it can be good enough, maybe that’s good enough. If it’s one of those days and nothing but the Cheetos or Doritos will do, consider limiting the quantity and seeing if you can add a serving or two of colorful vegetables into your day.
Opt to stop consuming the type of snack or food completely and lean-in to whole foods instead. I’ll say here that I get busy AF, and sometimes I need a frozen meal ASAP, or I’ll get so hangry no one will want to be around me. This is where I’ll remind you: There’s a difference between convenient foods and convenience foods.
4. Carbs are Bad
I feel like I covered a lot of this in the section above, so I’ll say this as concisely as I can: Quality of carbohydrate matters. Not all carbs are created equal and carbs not inherently bad.
Some carbohydrates contain fiber which is critically important for gut health – most Americans don’t meet their daily requirements for fiber (women should ideally aim for 30g). Carbs (as we all know) break down to glucose which is the primary and preferred source of energy for our brain and the only thing that feeds our red blood cells.
And, if we’re active women, especially at perimenopause, they’re necessary to fuel our workouts and post-workout recovery.
I do think our current food guidelines recommend eating more grains and breads than most people need without putting enough emphasis on fiber and colorful vegetables and fruit. I also think they don’t go far enough in recommendations for protein, but that’s a different topic; if you’re interested in learning more about protein requirements, check out this article.
Key Takeaways
It’s easy to think of carbs only as bread, grains, sugar, and refined carbohydrates (desserts, pastries, candy, soda, etc.), which is how they got demonized – to be fair, refined carbohydrates taste delish but don’t really benefit the body – but carbohydrates also include vegetables and fruit. Lean into:
Colorful vegetables and fruit
Low glycemic fruit
Fiber-rich whole grains, vegetables and fruit
Whole grains when you have grain
Resistance starches
5. I Eat/Ate this Way, and I’m fine, therefore You will be, too
Our bodies are unique, what works for me may not at all work for you. In fact, there’s a bunch of things that are generally healthy that don’t really work for me (lentils, for example, spike my blood sugar hard). Further, two people in the same household may have very different nutrition needs based on their sex (individuals with menstrual cycles have different needs especially throughout the month), age, health status and conditions, medications, activity levels, and others.
I’ve seen it happen many times. Friends go in on a diet challenge together; it works great for some and not at all for others. On the flipside, I’ve had clients who grew up eating heavy, stick-to-the-ribs breakfasts and equally heavy lunches and dinners with nary a vegetable in sight (aside from a stray potato here and there) every single day; they think because they’re fine (despite their GI distress), that vegetables are useless for everyone.
Finding the eating pattern that works best for you is often a fair bit of test-and-learn. Notice I said eating pattern and not “diet”. Diets, as in the term used for the purpose of weight reduction, serve their purposes and can be well executed; they also can result in yo-yo dieting, which will do you no favors in the long run.
Key Takeaways
Instead of doing a rip and replace with your whole diet (here, referring to the types of food we habitually eat), start small. Start by changing one thing, see how you feel, see if you want to integrate it long-term. You may not feel any dramatic changes – in fact, you may not notice anything at all at first – but you will be working toward more sustainable changes.
6. Calories In, Calories Out (CICO)
This is one of the ones I despise the most, because it’s often used to shame individuals with larger body sizes. I know several people who really believe that weight and weight loss is as simple as CICO. It’s NOT. Again, science, research and physiology simply doesn’t support that.
Yes, energy balance is important. But it is not a single cause and effect of weight changes.
Two of the biggest proof points that come from GLP-1s are the facts that CICO and willpower aren’t the roots of obesity. There are far more physiological and neurological aspects at play.
7. Supplements are the Solution
Supplements are meant to supplement … I mean, it’s in their name. They’re not meant to replace nutrient-dense foods, and unless there’s a chronic condition they are helping address, they aren’t meant to be long-term.
I say this often: This is not a time where if some is good, more must be better. That’s true whether referencing a single supplement at high doses or taking multiple supplements everyday. There’s only so much your gut can absorb and your kidneys can handle. If you’re taking 10, 15, 20 supplements a day – especially if you’re DIYing it – it's time to reassess.
It’s common to hear “a pill for an ill” as the approach of allopathic medicine; however, simply swapping pharmaceuticals for supplements is no better.
I get annoyed at functional medicine practitioners who rely on protocols (aka supplement regimens) to do the heavy lifting. Yes, there absolutely are times extensive and complex protocols may be needed, but if they’re not coming with guidance on nutrition and lifestyle, question that practitioner. The point of functional medicine is to address imbalance in the body from a systems approach – to get to the root causes – rarely will a protocol be the single solution to the complex, interconnected problem.
For more on Supplements check out this article on safety and this one on the 13 things you should know about every medication and supplement you’re taking.
Wrapping it Up
Don’t let old, irrelevant information become a lie you tell yourself. It’s hard to challenge a belief we’ve long held – it becomes the familiar terrain the body craves.
The nature of research is to hold things as facts until we can prove, repeatedly, that they’re not. As technology advances and more studies are conducted that span generations, we will have new data that will force us to redefine our norms (we can see this with hormone replacement therapy over the past 20 years). I, personally, can’t wait to see how much of what we know and the perspective we have on GLP-1s will change over the next decade – rest assured, they will.
And it’s not that the scientists got it wrong now, they just know what they know based on the data and technology we have available.
We can only ever make the best decision we can with the information we have.
And, sometimes that evolution creates “facts” we’ll probably later consider a lie.
References
A short history of saturated fat: the making and unmaking of a scientific consensus. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36477384/
AI Is Hacking Your Hunger: How The Food Industry Engineers Addiction. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonsnyder/2025/03/03/ai-is-hacking-your-hunger-how-the-food-industry-engineers-addiction/
P-092: RED BLOOD CELL GLUCOSE CONSUMPTION AND METABOLISM IN SICKLE CELL DISEASE. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9429842/
Let’s Connect
Website: drfowlerdcn.com
Schedule a free 15-minute Discovery Call