I am over the moon that more and more people are focusing on choosing lots of whole and minimally processed foods. I love that people are reading ingredient lists, cooking more from scratch, and thinking about where their food comes from. “Clean eating” has become a sort of shorthand for this way of life. Yet the more I hear it, there’s something about the term–“clean eating”–that bothers me. Three things, actually:
1. It can imply that some foods are “dirty”.
If whole wheat flour is a “clean” ingredient, is homemade bread made with all-purpose flour unclean? I’m especially concerned about using these confusing terms with children, who are prone to take things quite literally. Will your child worry that the canned beans at Grandma’s are filthy? Will your kid tell his classmate that his Lunchable is dirty?
2. It can give the green light to LOTS of foods.
The label “clean” is now placed on all kinds of foods beyond oats and organic apples. On Pinterest, you’ll find Clean Eating Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites and Clean Eating Peanut Butter Fudge. I worry that the “clean eating” label is giving these goodies a health halo, making people think they are wholesome foods you should eat all the time when they’re actually still…cookie dough and fudge (read: The Trap of Clean Eating Treats). Cutting back on ALL sources of added sugar is important, and swapping honey and maple syrup for white sugar in a recipe doesn’t mean the cookies are now on par with vegetables. Honey and maple syrup are still sources of added sugar.
3. It can makes a moral judgment on eating.
“Clean” is good, pure, virtuous. The opposite? Bad, impure, and wicked. I always encourage people to think about how food makes them feel physically (read My Number One Trick For Eating Right). But connecting eating to self-judgment can have a negative impact on your relationship to food, especially when you start thinking “I was bad because I ate this” or “I was good because I had that”. If you’re strictly following a clean eating lifestyle, what happens when you eat something that doesn’t meet the definition of clean? Will you feel guilty and consider it “cheating”?
Choosing mostly whole and minimally processed foods IS the smart way to go and plenty of people follow “clean eating” in a sensible and reasonable way.
But as with anything, it can also be taken to extremes and turned into a competitive sport. I’ve seen lists of clean eating rules that advise against eating “anything from a box, can, package, or bag” or the even more challenging “eat only foods with one thing on the ingredient list”. Eating shouldn’t come with a set of rigid, hard-to-follow rules. In some circles, those beautiful red raspberries in the photo wouldn’t meet the definition of “clean” because they’re not organic.
There’s even a concern that an obsession with clean eating can spiral into an eating disorder for some people. I shared this article “When Does ‘Eating Clean’ Become An Eating Disorder?” on my Real Mom Nutrition Facebook page recently and it resonated with many of you–check out the conversation.
How do YOU feel about the term “clean eating” and what does it mean to YOU?
Sign up for my weekly email and you'll receive a FREE e-book, "16 Game-Changing Tips For Feeding Kids".
Alysa (InspiredRD.com) says
I agree with your points, especially number 2. But I struggle with what to call it instead of clean eating…I guess plain old “healthy eating” is an option.
Sally says
Hey Alysa–I guess I don’t have a label for it. Sometimes I say that I try to eat mostly whole and minimally processed foods–or I try to eat in a way that’s healthy for me.
Anna says
Yes, and NOT giving it a label seemed to me to be exactly the point of your post – which I totally agree with, by the way.
Kristen @ A Mind Full Mom says
Sally, this really made me think. I often say “Clean Eating” or Whole eating or “Real” food. And that just means no overly processed foods for us. I can see how confusing this can be! And I really think that way too many people are obsessed with “clean” eating junk food (take the whole Paleo cookies, paleo cake, etc” Still needs to be looked at as a dessert!
Heather Mason @NuttyNutrition says
Yes, completely agree Sally. I LOATHE the term clean eating. Uhh, especially number 2, clean eating PB pie. Ok, I’m happy you made the pie healthier but is it really necessary to call it “clean?”
Sally says
Thanks Heather!
Jennifer @NourishedSimply says
I can’t state the label “clean eating”. It’s made up by people who have not idea what they are talking about anyway!
Sally says
Jennifer–Glad you liked the post. I think it was probably started by people who did know their stuff but I feel like it’s been co-opted by many people who don’t! 🙂
dixya @ food, pleasure, and health says
im guilty of using #cleaneating on my IG lot..you have some really great points there with the message we are sending to others. thank you so much..i like the use of word wholesome or minimally processed as well.
Sally says
Dixya–There’s no reason to feel bad or guilty about using that hashtag on your posts. The term means different things for different people, and a lot of people are inspired and motivated by it. It’s harder to make a hashtag out of #minimallyprocessed. 🙂
Jill Castle, MS, RDN says
I agree, Sally. I’ve been uncomfortable with the term since it came about a few years ago. Unfortunately, it’s sexy and many people make a good income off of capitalizing on it! I especially appreciate your first point about how kids interpret these terms, as they are quite concrete in their thinking, and literal–and they share those thoughts with peers.
Sally says
Thanks Jill. I think the term “clean eating” started with really good intentions and some people (including some RDs) have a very smart and realistic take on it. But as with so many things, it’s been co-opted by other folks who go to extremes or don’t know what they’re talking about when it comes to nutrition (or reality)!
Anne|Craving Something Healthy says
Sally I love this post and couldn’t agree more. It seems like when it comes to healthy eating people will only embrace it if they can take it to the extreme.
Amelia @ Eating Made Easy says
I have used the term clean eating occasionally, but never felt great about it either for these same reasons. Thank you for putting this so well! Whenever healthy eating becomes elitist, judgy or invokes a feeling of some foods/people being “pure” while others are “dirty,” I think we nutrition experts do more harm than good. Great post 🙂
Amy says
My goal is this year and probably next year is balance with everything. I try to eat healthy and select minimally processed foods but then again there are the days that I cave and we have something that is quick and ready to go. I try not to put too much pressure on myself but rather think about making the best choice I can at the time.
Coralie says
I agree. I’ve been sick of these terms for years. My mother just the other day said, you just swap the sugar for applesauce and the fat with avocado. I said your body doesn’t care if you use glucose or fructose, it’s still sugar and you’ve still made a cookie. Honestly, I consider eating this way “plain, unprocessed”. It is really. It doesn’t have to be boring, but for time sake, it often is.
Kate Love says
For me, it’s the moral judgments behind ‘clean eating’ that rub me the wrong way. This is coming from someone who makes the majority of my family’s food from scratch. I can’t abide with shaming and judging as a means to encourage people to do the best they can for themselves.
Thank you for this post.
Sally says
Kate–very well said! 🙂