During my senior year of high school, I decided to try something different: the paleo diet. This is when I truly discovered my love for bacon. At my high school, it was very common for girls to diet, and even try extreme things such as juice cleanses to lose weight. This was not only extremely unhealthy, but also caused me and many other students around me to have a bad mindset when it came to food.
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My mom had been paleo for a while because it lowered her risk of developing diabetes. I decided I’d officially had enough with the stress eating was causing me, and wanted to try something different. I cut out grains and replaced them with delicious fatty meats. Butter and bacon were my new best friends. I felt better mentally and started losing the excess weight I had gained from stress-eating during the college process (we’ve all been there). Here are 5 reasons why bacon is actually a great diet food:
1. Bacon is high in calories
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A lot of people assume bacon is extremely high in calories, but it only has 30 calories per slice. This is great for people who are counting calories or looking for a easy ways to add flavor to their dishes.
2. Bacon is naturally loaded with tons of preservatives
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Many bacons contain sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate. These are used to kill bacteria in meat and prevent it from spoiling. Unfortunately, they can also affect oxygen circulation and increase one’s risk of developing cancer. To avoid this, you can buy nitrite/nitrate-free bacon such as Applegate.
3. Bacon directly causes high cholesterol
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Foods containing high amounts of cholesterol do not actually cause high cholesterol. Contrary to popular belief, whole grains have a major connection with raising cholesterol while cholesterol in food does not. So please do not blame my BFF bacon.
4. Bacon fat makes you fat
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Yes, bacon has a ton of fat in it ,but that does not make it bad for you. It honestly makes me sad when people make fat the enemy. Eating fat has so many health benefits and it can help you lose weight. In a bunch of head-to-head studies those who ate more fat lost more weight.
5. Since bacon tastes good, it must be bad for you
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Nothing makes a better diet food than great taste. I mean, come on, who can resist the amazing taste of bacon? My mouth is watering just thinking about it. So feel free to have a few extra slices because there is no shame.