Empty plate with a question mark

Which types of carbs, fats, and protein should you eat?

Written by on in Cooking, Meat, Nutritional Therapy

In tandem with my last post, here are some examples of healthy vs. unhealthy macronutrients (carbs, fats, and proteins). If you didn’t catch my last post, be sure to check it out!

Notice that the unhealthy examples are all pretty heavily processed, while the healthy examples are real foods.

HEALTHY CARBS

  • Dark green leafy vegetables, such as:
    • Kale
    • Chard
    • Spinach
    • Collard greens
    • Mustard greens
    • Turnip greens
    • Bok choy
    • Mizuna
    • Tat soi
  • Other veggies (too many examples to list!)
  • Fruit (in moderation due to sugar content)
  • Starchy/ root veggies, such as:
    • Turnips
    • Sweet potatoes
    • Parsnips
    • Taro

UNHEALTHY CARBS

  • Pastries
  • Cakes
  • Pies
  • Donuts
  • Bread
  • Cookies
  • Packaged snack crackers
  • Pretzels
  • Snacks like Cheetos, Pringles, etc.
  • Ice cream
  • Candy
  • Potato chips
  • Pizza
  • Rolls/ buns

HEALTHY FATS

  • Grass-fed/ finished butter
  • Grass-fed/ finished ghee
  • Grass-fed/ finished cream
  • Grass-fed/ finished tallow
  • Pasture-raised lard
  • Pasture-raised duck fat
  • Avocadoes
  • Avocado oil
  • Oils made from nuts (except peanut oil)
  • Olive oil
  • Grapeseed oil
  • Coconut oil
  • Cocoa/ cacao butter
  • Coconut butter
  • Flaxseed oil
  • Hempseed oil

UNHEALTHY FATS

  • Peanut oil
  • Cottonseed oil
  • Canola/ rapeseed oil
  • Safflower oil
  • “Partially hydrogenated oil”
  • Margarine
  • Vegetable shortening (such as Crisco)
  • Vegetable oil
  • Deep-fried fast foods
  • Soybean oil
  • Corn oil
  • Sunflower oil

HEALTHY PROTEINS

  • Grass-fed/ finished beef
  • Pasture-raised chicken
  • Pasture-raised pork
  • Pasture-raised duck
  • Pasture-raised eggs
  • Pasture-raised bison
  • Pasture-raised elk
  • Pasture-raised quail
  • Wild-caught venison or other game
  • Wild-caught seafood

UNHEALTHY PROTEINS

  • Conventionally-raised animals and products from those animals (milk, cheese, cream, eggs, etc.)
  • Most farmed seafood
  • Soy

I just noticed that there’s a ton of examples in the “healthy” columns vs. the “unhealthy” columns. So there’s no reason to feel deprived when you’re eating healthfully!

Are there any foods above that you’re surprised about whether they’re healthy or unhealthy? Let me know in the comments below!