Diet Industry Buzzwords

Listen here I am walking down the aisle in a local grocery store, and am finding callout labels, with the wellness industry promoting their products.     As a marketer, I know the tricks of the trade and a common technique used is “dialing in” to social trends and exploiting individual’s areas of weakness (including body image).

Next time you are at the grocery store,  reading a blog, article, or advice from your friends, I I encourage you to look out for the following buzzwords.   These are current trends, with profit as the motivator, not your wellness.

·         Detox – Often used to imply that the body needs to rid itself of toxins, though the body already has natural detoxification processes.

·         Clean eating – Suggests that some foods are "clean" while others are "dirty," promoting restrictive eating habits.

·         Superfoods – Implies certain foods have extraordinary health benefits, often leading to overemphasis on a single food rather than a balanced diet.

·         Fat-burning – Promises to increase the body's ability to burn fat, usually through supplements or specific exercises that may lack scientific backing.

·         Metabolism-boosting – Claims to speed up metabolism to burn more calories, often linked to products or diets with little evidence of effectiveness.

·         Low-carb/Keto-friendly – Capitalizes on the popularity of low-carb or ketogenic diets, often demonizing carbs without considering individual nutritional needs.  I encourage you to read the ingredients of these popular keto snack foods.    I doubt you have any of these processed ingredients in your kitchen.   

·         Sugar-free – Promotes products as healthier by removing sugar, but often replaces it with artificial sweeteners that may not be better for overall health.  You may have seen the keto sweetener erythritol in the news recently for possible links to blood clots.    Sugar free does not equal healthy.

·         Plant-based – Suggests that a product is healthier because it is derived from plants, though not all plant-based products are inherently healthy.  In my refrigerator, I have some vegan hot dogs that ARE plant based, but that does not mean that they are healthy.   Let’s face it, hot dogs are never healthy!

·         Guilt-free – Implies that certain foods should make you feel guilty, reinforcing negative emotions around eating.   I consider a certain ice cream brand that boasts that you can eat the entire pint for under 200 calories.   

Don’t be duped by the Trillion Dollar/annual Diet and Wellness Industry. 

I encourage you to be your own advocate.    Food is so much more than energy.    Food represents family, love and culture.    Food is something to be enjoyed and not something that you should feel guilt about.    Variety, balance and moderation are the key!    As you learn to listen to your body, you will realize that it will give you what you need.    You will learn the internal instinct you had as a kid, listen to your hunger and stopping when you are full.