If you are dieting for health or weight-loss reasons, avoiding white food can make a big difference in your results. In her book "Making the Cut," trainer Jillian Michaels says to avoid anything white at all costs. As an experiment, try eliminating them for two to four weeks and notice the difference in your body, your energy level and your mood. Eating white foods makes you feel fat and sluggish and, like Michaels says, the chemicals used in these white products have been linked to autoimmune diseases, cancer, multiple sclerosis and diabetes.
White Sugar
White sugar has no nutritional value and is high in calories. According to MayoClinic.com, "sugar does little more than add extra calories to your diet and set the stage for potential health problems." Furthermore, most Americans consume more than 355 calories, or 22 tsp. of added sugar, every day. This far exceeds USDA guidelines and American Heart Association recommendations.
White Flour
Eating white flour is putting a highly processed food into your body that leaves you malnourished and vulnerable to chronic disease. The more processed a food is, the less nutritious it is. Your body produces insulin when you eat white flour and insulin promotes the storage of fat.
White Bread
Flour mills use chemical bleaches, like oxide of nitrogen, chlorine and chloride, to make the pure white flour found in white bread. When you eat white bread, you are also eating residual chemical bleach, according to WomenFitness.net.
White Rice
Your body easily digests the simple carbohydrates found in white rice and quickly converts them into sugar. Being a high-glycemic food, white rice can cause weight gain and interfere with weight loss. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, eating fewer refined grains and eating more whole grains, like brown rice, can improve insulin sensitivity.
White Pasta
White pasta causes fast and furious increases in blood sugar. Over time, these spikes in blood sugar levels can increase your risk of type 2 diabetes. To lower your risk, switch to whole grain pasta.
White Salt
Your body requires a certain amount of salt to function properly. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend a daily maximum of 2,300 mg for healthy adults and 1,500 mg if you have high blood pressure, kidney disease or diabetes; you are black; or you're middle-aged or older.
White Chocolate Mocha
The Starbucks Venti 20 oz. White Chocolate Mocha with 2 percent milk and whipped cream is worse than a McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Its 580 calories and 15 grams of saturated fat will ruin your diet.
