OHIO — Many people these days are struggling with their diet. They think they are eating healthy, but they really aren’t.
Liz Weinandy, a registered dietician at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and an Instructor of Practice and Medical Diabetes at OSU, said it’s pretty common for people to overrate the fact that they’re eating healthier than they really are.
“And the same goes for exercise, too. Oftentimes, many people will assess, you know, how much they’re exercising,” Weinandy said. “They’ve done studies to look at how many calories you burn, and people often overestimate how much they exercise as well. So the breakdown is real.”
Weinandy said, people’s perception versus the actual knowledge they have matters because a lot of diseases stem from these issues. Ultimately, she believes if you can educate people, then they can make better choices.
When asked about how people can reverse course and make proper assessments, “I think it starts early on in school, but beginning by educating people more throughout the lifespan starts really at a younger age. But even with knowledge, people don’t always make those healthy decisions. So trying to change the environment and make it easier for people to buy healthy foods that might be a price shift, maybe making some of these healthier foods more affordable.”
In other countries Weinandy noted that they’ve added taxes to less healthy foods, including sugary ones, which have helped.
