Affiliate Nutritional Supplements Articles & Resources

One needn't be a media critic to point out the flaws in this "news" story. It wasn't even news, as no new research or clinical data supported the allegations. The scientist in question wasn't identified as a flak (I recognized her from a conference). It wasn't explained that osteoporosis afflicts women after menopause -- not as teens -- and that its consequences are rarely "deadly."

The reason teens need calcium is that it is during this stage of life that the body builds bone tissue. Some real information about the importance of a diet high in calcium-rich vegetables and moderate in protein would have been useful and possibly even newsworthy. However, this news report was merely repeating the dairy industry's tired and seriously flawed advice: drink milk and build your bones. Our perky newscaster didn't seem to notice that the association between milk intake and osteoporosis rates wasn't supported with any scientific evidence. Could that have been because the data doesn't support the story?

Unfortunately, this kind of shoddy reporting isn't unique, but examples of it are becoming more common as news organizations rely increasingly on slickly packaged, agenda-based health and science reports. The media isn't solely to blame. Advertisers are clever about convincing consumers that high-fat, sugar-loaded packaged foods are "healthy," that alcohol and cigarettes are glamorous, and that vegetarians are anemic wimps -- too pious to admit the joys of eating a juicy hamburger. Well, we've had it. Here is an incomplete list of some of the most misleading nutrition myths being disseminated every day. Some of these myths slander a vegetarian diet, others support it. We take issue with both because we believe the hard, cold clinical truth serves everyone's interest.

1) MYTH: MILK IS THE BEST SOURCE OF CALCIUM Calcium is for maintaining bone health and preventing osteoporosis, but drinking milk to get calcium is like driving with one foot on the brake and one foot on the gas. That's because many scientists believe that retention -- rather than intake -- of calcium is what prevents bone fractures, which may explain why countries that consume the most dairy products also have the highest rates of osteoporosis. The reason: Amino acids in milk protein makes the kidneys excrete calcium and displaces potassium bicarbonate, a calcium-friendly compound in plant food. The result: People consuming the most dairy products are ingesting plenty of calcium, but because they're also excreting it, they're coming out way behind in the calcium equation. Scientists who blame osteoporosis on a calcium deficiency are ignoring the detrimental effects of protein. "To assume that osteoporosis is due to calcium deficiency is like assuming that infection is due to penicillin deficiency," says Mark Hegsted, ., professor of nutrition at the Harvard School of Medicine. In fact, preliminary results of the Nurse's Health Study, a massive trial being conducted at Harvard, found that women who ate the most animal protein were at greater risk for forearm fractures, supporting the hypothesis that animal protein in milk can weaken bones. Good plant sources of calcium include leafy greens, sesame seeds and tofu coagulated with calcium salts.

2) MYTH: VEGETARIANS DON'T GET ENOUGH IRON This MYTH is based on hypothesis, not evidence. Although the iron stores of vegetarians may be relatively low, the incidence of iron-deficiency anemia in vegetarians is not significantly different from that in omnivores, according to the American Society of Clinical Nutrition. True, most animal protein is rich in iron. But iron is abundant in plants as well, and your body isn't particular about the source. In fact, the latest research coming from the . Department of Agriculture (USDA) is bearing out what nutritionists have suspected for years: that the lower your iron levels, the more your body absorbs from food, keeping you in a constantly regulated state of balance. Besides, high stores of iron aren't necessarily desirable. New evidence also suggests a link between excessive iron stores and heart disease and cancer.

3) MYTH: IF YOU DON'T EAT MEAT, YOU WON'T GET FOOD POISONING Although as many as 80 percent of all cases of food-borne illness result from eating tainted meat, vegetarians aren't immune. At present there is no universally accepted definition of food poisoning, though fruits and vegetables can harbor deadly levels of bacteria like Salmonella or E. coli. And a few cases have shown that vegetarians can be affected whenever fruits or vegetables, water, cooking surfaces or hands come in contact with infected soil or food. To be on the safe side, you can take extra precautions by always washing hands before handling food; not eating fruits if the skin has been punctured; and avoiding unpasteurized cider and raw milk and cheese.

4) MYTH: SUPPLEMENTS CAN REPLACE NUTRITIOUS FOOD No way Supplements do what their name implies: They supplement a good diet but can't replace one. Fruit and vegetables contain a spectrum of nutrients, fiber and phytochemicals that pills can never duplicate. Last year, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) found isolated dosages of synthetic vitamins did nothing to help subjects ward off cancer. "Supplementing with isolated nutrients instead of a natural mix of foods was not the most productive approach," observed Adriane Fugh-Berman, a medical nutrition researcher at the NIH. Nutritionists believe that vitamins and minerals are vital to good health but that they work better (in descending order of options): eaten whole in foods; taken with nutritious food; or taken in multivitamin form. Some experts caution that "mega-dosing" on single dosages of certain vitamins or minerals can displace other nutrients, defeating the original purpose of taking vitamins to improve health.

5) MYTH: FAT-FREE FOODS WILL MAKE YOU LOSE WEIGHT If only this were so. Despite the spate of fat-free and reduced-calorie foods on supermarket shelves, Americans are getting fatter than ever. "The Snackwell Syndrome," as nutritionists call it, refers to the phenomenon of people consuming more calories in the form of high sugar foods than they would if they ate the full-fat version. In fact, a 1996 survey by the Calorie Control Council, an Atlanta-based industry trade group, found that adults who reported eating three or more servings of "lite" or reduced-fat foods every day ingested more calories than people who avoided such foods. This may explain why obesity rates are increasing in lockstep with the growth of low-calorie products.

6) MYTH: ALL VEGETARIANS ARE HEALTHY AND FIT To assume all vegetarians have a healthful diet is as absurd as assuming all Roman Catholics are virtuous. We know vegetarians who eschew animal products but smoke cigarettes, drink too much coffee or alcohol, get too little sleep and binge on sugary sweets.

7) MYTH: KIDS NEED MEAT TO GROW PROPERLY Parents of vegetarian children have nothing to worry about; in fact, their children may be healthier than others. Clinical studies have shown that children born to vegetarian mothers have the same weight norms and growth rates as babies born to omnivorous mothers. In fact, studies suggest that vegetarian toddlers and pre-schoolers are slightly heavier and taller than their counterparts. Adolescent girls, because of their discomfort with their changing bodies and a preoccupation with weight, often eat fewer calories than they need. For these reasons some vegetarian girls get lower-than-recommended levels of iron and zinc, usually because they're simply not eating enough. In other words, vegetarian infants, toddlers and teens get all the nutrients they need for proper health and growth without meat as long as they get sufficient calories.

8) MYTH: A VEGETARIAN DIET IS TOO RESTRICTED FOR MOST PEOPLE TO ENJOY Allow us to refer you to our recipes and cookbooks. Vegetarian cuisine is far more than brown rice and brown beans. The plant kingdom is a multi-colored world full of crunchy, chewy, creamy and even "meaty" textures. From rare white truffles to artichokes and summer corn, the most flavorful foods are often gifts of the earth. A vegetarian diet is as much an indulgence in pleasure as it is a commitment to personal and planetary health.