10 New Weight Loss and Diet Myths and Facts

There is a lot of information out there about weight loss diets and exercises -- perhaps too much -- especially since a lot of it is conflicting. In the news, one week protein is king; the next, carbs have ascended the throne. In the supermarket checkout line every magazine's cover suggests that the solution to your weight loss woes is to be found in its pages. At the gym, well, of course, everyone's an expert.

So, what do you think? Do you know your weight loss stuff? Or could you be sabotaging your own weight loss and diet goals?

Skip to see if you can separate weight loss and diet myths from facts.

Some weight loss diet myths are ridiculous constructs we make up ourselves simply because we want to believe them. Ever find yourself not "counting" those pieces from broken cookies, the mac and cheese scarfed off of your kid's plate or anything you eat while standing up as having any caloric value whatsoever? Mmm-hmm. Join the club.

But what if what you actually believe to be fact is also a fantasy? We asked fitness and lifestyle consultant Ashley Borden and celebrity nutritionist Paula Simpson to help us wade through some of the dizzying information that's out there. We'll help you separate myth from fact and, better still, help you capitalize on the facts as you pursue your weight loss goals.

So, if you're ready to test yourself, let's go.

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Healthy Skin Diet: 6 Yummy Foods That Prevent Wrinkles

You covet your souped-up anti-aging creams and high tech serums, but what you put in your body might just give you the anti-aging boost you've been searching for. That's what healthy skin diets are all about.

We had a chat with dietitians Lisa Drayer, MA, RD, author of "The Beauty Diet: Looking Great Has Never Been So Delicious" (McGraw-Hill, 2008) and Tanya Zuckerbrot, MS, RD, creator of the F-Factor Diet, to help you learn how to maximize your body's wrinkle-fighting abilities through your diet with these foods that have some of the highest percentages of anti-aging vitamins, yet are still super-tasty.

See the six foods that prevent wrinkles.

"While topical creams can show some improvements in skin quality, the majority of ingredients just remains on the skin’s surface," says Zuckerbrot. "A well-balanced diet can ensure that nutrients are absorbed into the skin." So why not just pop a few pills to get the vitamins your diet may be lacking? Well, consuming a healthy variety of food is by far the best way to meet your body’s needs because food provides a number of benefits that a supplement can't -- basically, you get more bang for your buck. "Not only is turning to food a tastier option, but supplements don't contain all the vitamins and nutrients present in natural foods. Nor have they been shown to have the same disease-fighting benefits," explains Drayer.

Here we look beyond the creams, serums and supplements to share the top beautifying super foods you should fill your plate with in order to look younger and more radiant.

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Best Diets for Women: 8 Must-Eat Superfoods

While you won't find the definition of "superfood" in any seriously scientific textbook, in recent years the term has been bandied about by the media, nutritionists and women's diet gurus to describe foods (mostly fruits, veggies and seeds/nuts) that are rich in phytonutrient content -- in other words, foods that boast significant amounts of stuff that's good for you and should be included in your diet. "Stuff" like antioxidants (to help prevent cell damage), anthocyanins (to help cells block UV light), vitamin C (to help with everything from wound healing to oxidative stress) and dietary fiber (to help food move through your body more quickly).

Used to be that you could feel relatively confident that you were "eating well" if you munched on a couple of carrots, snacked on the occasional apple and steered clear of Big Macs. Not so much anymore. These days it's all about maximizing the nutritional punch of the foods you eat. The more they pack, the healthier you'll be -- and the better equipped your body will be to help fend off certain diseases (including type 11 diabetes and some cancers) and even reverse the aging process. Or so the thinking goes.

See the 8 superfoods you should be eating

On his website, Dr. Steven Pratt, author of several best-selling books including "SuperFoods RX" says that "These nutritional powerhouse foods are loaded with nutrients crucial to a healthy, long life," and notes that they're readily available in most supermarkets -- you just have to know what you're looking for!

Are you game? Let's find out which foods you should add to your grocery list. But, first, a little about why we need to eat these foods rather than just take a vitamin -- or 12.

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