When it comes to nutrition, everyone seems to follow their own guidelines. But some widely held assumptions are wrong. These are the five biggest nutrition myths.

A balanced diet is extremely important for health. After all, food is the fuel that gives the body energy in the first place.

Unfortunately, some nutritional myths are dangerous half-knowledge. Phrases like “carbohydrates make you fat” are persistent in our society. This cannot be said in general terms.

Read here to find out what other rules of thumb you should erase from your memory as quickly as possible on the subject of nutrition.

“The bread is dark? Then it has to be healthy.” Unfortunately it’s not that easy. Dark bread is often a deliberately used optical illusion.

Instead of relying on naturally dark grains such as rye or spelt, some breads made from pure white flour are “colored” dark with malt extract.

This gives the impression that it is a wholesome product, when in reality it contains light wheat. That’s why it’s important to always read the recipe before buying bread.

With this assumption, it all depends. Not all fat is the same. In addition to the unhealthy, saturated fatty acids that are found primarily in burgers, pizza and other fast food, there are also unsaturated fatty acids that are found in avocado or fish.

And they are extremely important for the body. Just like carbohydrates and protein, the body needs them to function physically and mentally.

Bite into the orange once and your nutrient storage is filled up? Are you kidding me? Are you serious when you say that. The food with the highest vitamin C content is not, as many mistakenly believe, lemon.

In reality, it’s the pepperoni that’s bursting with vitamin C. In comparison: a hot pepper pod contains three times as much vitamin C as a lemon.

This thesis persists. As with fat, it depends on the type of carbohydrates you put into your body.

Complete and at the same time “good” carbohydrates are those that are completely chemically untreated. The germ and the bran are still on the grain here.

The situation is different with refined carbohydrates (in white flour and sugar). There is neither germ nor bran on it after processing. And so – in contrast to wholesome products – they neither keep you full for long nor promote natural digestion.

When things go really badly, you even get ravenous. And it can actually make you fat in the long run.

Drinking lots of water is healthy. That’s a fact. But you should stick less to the rule of thumb of two liters a day and listen more to your own body.

If it’s hot outside or you’ve been doing sports and sweating a lot, you may need a lot more. It also depends on the size and weight.

A tall person needs more fluid intake than a short person. To find out how much is enough, it’s best to stick to the following formula: 30 ml x body weight = daily fluid requirement. With a weight of 70 kilograms, this corresponds to around 210 milliliters – a little more than two liters.

The original for this article “Five nutritional myths you shouldn’t believe” comes from Schweizer Illustrierte.