“Everything in moderation” is a bit confusing - and I imagine to the average person. Should you consume everything in the same moderation? I hope not - how moderately you consume vegetables and how moderately you consume Crisco should hopefully be extremely different levels of moderation. Added sugars are fine to consume in moderation - does that mean you drink a Coca-Cola once a week? Once a month? 4 times a year? What is moderate? Moderate consumption and your ability to thrive on moderate consumption of soda are going to be different depending on your daily schedule, level of activity and even your genes.

The biggest issue with recommending "moderation" is that it seems to have come about to guide how many low nutrient, processed foods we can add into our diet. No one is talking about moderation when it comes to vegetables, but the Coca-Cola Company will be the first to tell you that their products are fine… in moderation. A can or two of coke per month, diet or not, is fine and is not going to cause you major adverse side effects - that is probably what is meant when nutrition professionals say, "everything is fine in moderation."

The major problem is that the business and capitalism of food do not work in a system of moderation. Soda isn't designed so that you only want one or two cans a month - it's pure sugar that taps into our primal desire for sugary foods. It does not contain the satiety mechanisms that whole foods contain, aka it has no fiber, fats, protein or any nutrient for that matter. Snack foods are designed to lure people in the same way. Processed foods (including packaged and snack foods) are laden with salt the same way certain beverages are laden with sugar - and people are drawn to them. Because these foods do not provide any satiety factors, someone can keep eating them all the while only gaining empty calories and salt. Foods high in empty calories are usually also high in salt and sugar - and usually processed - which are correlated with type 2 diabetes, heart disease, vascular complications, just to name a few, when consumed in large amounts. Because companies want their profits to be consistently increasing every quarter, having their products consumed in moderation does not allow for this.

Talking about moderation leaves it up to the individual to decide what is moderate. Take a look at the obesity epidemic - we're clearly really bad at moderation. There is some merit to this method and mantra because humans can also be quite obsessive - there are many people doing an exclusion diet (low carb, no grains, no gluten, no added sugars, etc.). These people seem to have a lot of anxiety about food in general, especially when it comes to how much to eat. No one should stress about food, that’s why "diets" don’t typically work in the long-term. However, until the food system is reflective of an environment that promotes moderation, is moderation the best choice?

RECOMMENDATION

Instead of everything in moderation, the best is to eat mostly unprocessed. Whole foods are rich in good nutrition, leaving room for that brownie, bag of chips, or soda you may crave. I would recommend limiting these foods to about 3x per week, which fits right under the manta of “moderation.” This ensures that you lead a healthy, balanced diet without complete restriction of any one food - processed or not.

- Kevin Klatt, Nutritionist + Assistant Site Manager for: