In this article, I am going to discuss what does clean eating mean, is clean eating beneficial and how to have a right balance.
What is clean eating?
Clean eating is the latest buzzword! This recent dietary trend is often advocated as being the only truly virtuous & healthy way to eat. This concept has nothing to do with whether the food is clean or dirty. It means much more beyond that.
What does “clean eating” exactly mean may vary from one person to other. It is more to do with choosing eating minimally processed foods that offer maximal nutritional benefits. There can be many variations to clean eating; but, generally, it means that you eat foods that are as close to their natural state as possible.
Clean eating is based on the following core principles:
(i) Mainly eating whole food, and keeping off processed food — the extent of processing that is acceptable often depends on individuals’ perception & choice.
(ii) Eliminating sugar from your diet — again here, the degree of exclusion is individuals’ own interpretation. For most this is elimination of refined sugar only (which I also do & recommend), while for others this may mean the exclusion of ALL sugar, including naturally occurring (which I don’t recommend).
(iii) Opting for organic food wherever & whenever possible.
(iv) Avoiding all preservatives such as stabilizers, color additives, binders, fat replacers and emulsifiers.
On the extreme end some people go as far as elimination of grains, gluten, soy, dairy, or all animal products. So much so, some clean eaters may only include raw foods in their diet or go ‘paleo’, or opt for to shop sustainably and only buy foods grown locally. But, I think it’s not necessary to go that far.
Is Clean Eating Good For You?
The foods that are not heavily processed retain most of its nutrient contents and so offer optimum health benefits. Most Americans diet comprises of overly processed foods. They are mostly made from synthetic ingredients, and contain sugar, fat, sodium, preservatives, chemicals, food dyes and various other additives. The human body is not accustomed to them and doesn’t quite know how to deal with them. Undoubtedly, these additives are harmful to our overall health and well-being.
Clean eating is all about healthy and nutrient-dense foods. Clean foods nourish your body with adequate amounts of vitamins and minerals, good quality protein and healthy fats. They improve heart and brain health, help with weight management, develop a robust immunity system and boost energy levels.
When Eating Clean Gives Best Results
The clean diet can be most healthy & beneficial, especially when your present diet is based on mostly processed foods having high amounts of saturated fat, sugar & salt and little in the name of vitamins and minerals. Whereas some of the characteristics of clean eating are based on sound scientific evidence, but many medical experts are concerned about very extremes of clean eating and the needless elimination of foods (and even entire food groups) that contain various nutrition.
Nutrition is complex subject.
If you eliminate food or food group from your diet, for whatever reason, you need to exercise caution to make sure the remaining diet has all the vital nutrients in the right amounts. It can be quite detrimental to your health if you simply remove a food or food group from your diet. You need to make sure that you are replacing it with something that provides a similar range of nutrients. Otherwise, you are taking the risk of becoming nutrient deficient.
So in view of the above, if you do plan to eat ‘clean’, it is recommended that you do so after checking with a nutrition expert to make sure that you are not exposing yourself to the risk of nutritional deficiencies.
The pitfalls of “Eating Clean”
Let’s now see “Why Clean Eating Can Be Bad For You?”
If taken to the extreme, “eating clean” has the risk of progressing into an eating disorder known as ‘orthorexia’. Unlike anorexia, wherein a sufferer has excessive anxiety about food and weight gain and concentrate on keeping a tight rein on how much he or she eats, a sufferer of orthorexia is obsessive about eating only pure and healthy food and concentrate on food quality. Though, a sufferer of orthorexia begin with the good intentions, food purity eventually becomes so central to everyday life, that other nutrition aspects are overlooked.
In addition to the potential risks for nutritional deficiencies, psychological issues can arise due to the labeling and classifying of foods as being ‘clean’, ‘good’ or ‘pure’.
By categorizing foods in this way, it can signal that a good number of foods are ‘impure’, bad or ‘unclean’, which can result into feelings of guilt, sin or wrong doing when these foods are eaten.
By eliminating ‘unclean’ foods, unfortunately a vicious cycle can be set up. You might have experienced such a feeling — where you really try hard to not eat a certain food, but then that food is all you can think about, and then you end up eating that food, leading to guilty feelings, and so on.
The feeling of goodness (virtue) that you get when you eat clean can result in feeling as if your world has collapsed when ‘slip-ups’ happen. This can also happen if you are put in a situation where you feel that you are unable to control your food, as can often happen when you eat out or eat with friends or family.
The Way Forward – Balance Your Diet
You don’t have to go to extremes to stay healthy. By and large, all foods can be part of a healthy, balanced diet. What’s important is that you need to find the right balance that works best for you and your health. You also have to keep in mind that healthy eating means more than just eating healthy food.
It is equally important to have a healthy affiliation with food — one that is not formed out of being virtuous or fear of slip-ups, but is established on the pleasure derived from the eating and all that has to offer.
Clean Eating Foods List
I have made this list keeping the right balance so as to avoid being obsessive about eating clean.
# 1
Fresh Vegetables
Avocados, Brussels sprouts, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Carrots, Green beans, Mushrooms, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Sweet potatoes, Corn, Peppers, Onion, Salsa,
# 2
Fresh Fruits
Blueberries, Strawberries, Apples, Bananas, oranges, Grapes, 100% fruit juice without additives/added sugar
# 3
Lean Meats/Protein
Eggs from grass-fed chickens, Fresh Fish, Dried beans, Plain nut butters (no sugar added), Unflavored/unsalted nuts
# 4
Grain/Cereal Foods
Those made with whole grains, whole-wheat pasta, brown/unpolished rice, air-popped popcorn, and oats.
# 5
Dairy Products
Cheese, Plain yogurt, Milk, Unsweetened/unflavored nondairy milks
Important Notes
(i) Desserts & drinks can be a whopping source of added sugar. So, choose unsweetened coffee & tea, seltzer and pure, plain water. Think of making treats at home with natural sugar such as dates, resins or honey, and with fruit and whole grains.
(ii) Eating the items listed above as fresh as possible without being overly processed is clean eating. Try to have them as close to their natural state as possible. Yeah, how clean your diet is, is all up to you!
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About Author: Renu Bakshi, AKA Fitness Buffhq, is ISSA Certified Elite Trainer. He passed 
Personal Fitness Trainer Course, Nutrition Health Coach course & Specialist Exercise Therapy course from ISSA, USA obtaining + 97% marks. He shares his experience and knowledge about nutrition and effective workouts to get you in the best shape of your life, no matter how old you may be. The author says: “For me age is just a number!”
