Your clean eating questions, answered

Clean eating is one of the latest diet trends. But what does it really mean? Is it healthy? And can it help you lower your cancer risk? We talked to Erma Levy, MD Anderson registered dietitian, to learn more.

What is clean eating?

Clean eating is a popular diet trend. There’s no concrete definition, but it often refers to eating a diet that does not include processed food. Some clean eating diets also eliminate added sugar, alcohol, grains, legumes and dairy.

Many clean eating diets require that participants follow these plans for a certain number of days or weeks.

What are the pros and cons?

Eating less processed foods may lower the amount of salt, sugar or fat in your diet. And this can help you lose weight.

Maintaining a healthy weight is a great way to lower your cancer risk. Obesity has been shown to increase risk for several types of cancer, including breast, endometrial, esophageal and colorectal.

Clean eating also promotes eating fresh fruits and vegetables, which are an essential part of a healthy diet. Eating a variety of fruits and vegetables can help you get the phytochemicals you need to keep your immune system strong and lower your cancer risk.

But because of the restrictions of some clean eating diets, you may miss out on some essential nutrients. Foods like legumes (beans and lentils, for example) and whole grains - foods that some clean eating diets restrict - are a part of a healthy diet.

Often when people complete a clean eating challenge, they lose weight, but keep craving the foods they eliminated. They might binge on those unhealthy foods as soon as the challenge is over and gain all the weight back.

It’s better to focus on sustainable change over a long period of time. Instead of cutting all processed food for one month, try to eat less processed food as a part of an overall lifestyle change. 

What’s the problem with processed food?

Processed foods often contain unhealthy amounts of fat or sugar that can lead to unwanted weight gain. In addition, some studies have linked eating large amounts of processed meats to increased risk of certain types of cancer.

It’s best to try to stick to a plant-based diet and choose fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables, or whole grains over processed foods whenever possible.

Can clean eating lower your cancer risk?

No single action or food can keep you 100% cancer-free. But eating a healthy diet can help lower your cancer risk.

Follow these tips to make sustainable changes:

• At meals, make 2/3 of your plate plant-based: vegetables, fruits, beans, lentils or whole grains.
• Make sure no more than 1/3 of your plate includes animal proteins.
• Avoid processed foods like crackers and chips that are high in calories and low in fiber. Instead look for brown rice, quinoa and buckwheat. 

Request an appointment at MD Anderson's Lyda Hill Cancer Prevention Center online or call 855-668-8897.