18 “Healthy” Foods I Will NEVER Eat Again

Over the past few months, I’ve learned something that completely changed the way I look at food: just because something is marketed as “healthy” doesn’t necessarily mean it’s healthy for me.

When I wore a continuous glucose monitor for three weeks, I got a front-row seat to exactly what different foods were doing to my blood sugar. Some foods I had eaten for years thinking I was making smart choices were causing significant spikes. When I started eliminating or changing those foods, I noticed a dramatic difference in how my body responded—and body fat started coming off much more easily.

Being selective and recognizing triggers

One thing I want to make clear: I’m not anti-carb, anti-fat, or trying to tell everybody they need to eat exactly like I do. I personally feel great eating about 150-200 grams of carbohydrates a day. The difference is that I’m much more selective about where those carbohydrates come from. Foods with more fiber and a lower glycemic impact, like regular oatmeal, sweet potatoes, and barley, tend to give me a much more stable response than something like fruit juice. What I’ve learned is that the type and quality of food matter tremendously.

I’ve also realized that certain foods are simply trigger foods for me. They may not technically be “bad,” but once I start eating them, I want more. Protein bars, low-carb tortillas, and especially nut butters can fall into this category. Peanut or almond butter might be healthy, but when I’m grabbing a spoonful several times a day, those calories add up incredibly fast. If your goal is losing body fat, even healthy calories still count.

Fats and Sugars

Another major change has been getting away from the idea that low-fat automatically means healthier. For years, we’ve been conditioned to fear fat, but not all fats are created equal. I would much rather focus on healthy unsaturated fats from foods like nuts, legumes, avocado, olive oil, and fish than obsess over avoiding all dietary fat. At the same time, I’m more conscious of saturated fat because of its potential impact on cholesterol.

Sugar has also become something I pay much closer attention to—not just obvious sugar, but foods and drinks that can significantly affect my blood sugar. Fruit, honey, juices, smoothies, sweetened yogurt, and certain supposedly healthy snacks can all be easy to overconsume because they have this health halo around them. Personally, I’ve dramatically changed how I approach them based on what I observed with my own body.

A cookie is still a cookie

I’ve also stopped assuming that labels like organic, vegan, low-carb, zero-calorie, or natural automatically mean something is metabolically healthy or conducive to staying lean. An organic cookie is still a cookie. Vegan junk food can still be incredibly calorie-dense. A zero-calorie drink can still contain ingredients I personally don’t want to consume regularly. Marketing on the front of a package doesn’t tell the whole nutritional story.

An individualized approach based on moderation

Ultimately, the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that nutrition is incredibly individual. Wearing a glucose monitor helped me understand my own body in a way I never had before. I started paying attention not only to calories and macros but also to ingredients, fiber, saturated versus unsaturated fats, blood sugar responses, and—just as importantly—my own behavioral triggers around certain foods.

None of this means you can never eat pizza, pasta, fruit, peanut butter, or anything else you enjoy. Life is way too short for that. Moderation matters. If I want pizza, I’m going to have some freaking pizza. The goal isn’t perfection—it’s understanding what you’re putting into your body, how your body responds, and making better choices most of the time. For me, focusing on whole foods, fiber, quality carbohydrates, healthy fats, and minimizing foods that trigger overeating has been an absolute game-changer.

The Avoid, Eliminate, or Limit List

1. Instant oatmeal — I avoid the flavored, sugary instant varieties. Regular oatmeal and plain quick oats are different; I consider those solid carbohydrate options because of their fiber.
2. Protein bars — Even bars marketed as natural, low-carb, or low-sugar didn’t always work well for me. They also became a trigger for sweets and cravings.
3. Fruit — I stopped regularly eating fruit after observing how certain fruits affected my glucose. Whole fruit does contain valuable fiber, so I’m talking specifically about my personal response—not saying fruit is inherently unhealthy.
4. Fruit juice — This is a big one for me because without the fiber of whole fruit, the sugar can hit the bloodstream much faster.
5. Juices, smoothies, and “healthy” green drinks — These can contain much more sugar than people realize, especially when fruit and juices make up a large portion of them.
6. Pasta — I generally avoid pasta, including many of the healthier or high-fiber alternatives. If I’m going to occasionally splurge on pasta, I’d rather have something I genuinely enjoy and keep it moderate.
7. Low-carb tortillas — Even though they may contain a lot of fiber, I found them to be a trigger food that encouraged me to keep eating.
8. Low-fat processed foods, including low-fat cheese — I stopped obsessing over low-fat products. Removing fat doesn’t automatically make something healthier, especially if other ingredients are added to compensate for the loss of flavor.
9. Dairy — I’ve personally stopped eating dairy primarily because it doesn’t agree with me. That doesn’t mean I think all dairy is nutritionally bad. Cottage cheese, for example, can be high in protein and relatively low in calories.
10. Sweetened/flavored yogurt — Plain Greek yogurt can be an excellent option, but flavored varieties can contain substantial added sugar.
11. Honey — “Natural” sugar is still sugar. I personally stopped using honey and prefer monk fruit when I want sweetness.
12. Zero-calorie and artificially sweetened drinks — I avoid diet sodas and zero-calorie energy drinks. If I want caffeine, I typically choose black coffee.
13. Organic junk food — An organic label doesn’t magically turn cookies, chips, or other processed snacks into health foods.
14. Vegan junk food — Vegan doesn’t automatically mean low-calorie, minimally processed, or healthy. Some vegan foods can be incredibly calorie-dense.
15. Soy — I’ve personally chosen to cut soy out of my diet.
16. Beer — I’ve cut out beer and specifically mention wanting to avoid hops.
17. Alcohol, including wine — I’ve greatly reduced my overall alcohol consumption and believe zero alcohol is ideal. One surprising thing I observed with my glucose monitor was that wine actually caused my blood sugar to drop rather than spike, which led me to learn more about how the liver prioritizes metabolizing alcohol.
18. Peanut butter and almond butter — Nut butters became one of my biggest caloric traps. A spoonful here and there can quickly turn into hundreds of extra calories without making you feel like you’ve eaten much. I now sometimes use powdered peanut butter, such as PB2, as an alternative.