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For an activity that most people do multiple times each and every day, eating is embroiled in confusion and controversy. Or rather, not the act of eating, but the choice of what to eat. With each meal and snack, you have an opportunity to give your body adequate and even extra nutrition. But many fall short of this goal.

To be honest, the cards are very much stacked against you. Food advertising is everywhere and it promotes the most profitable products, which are typically not one in the same with the healthiest food choices.

Processed foods in particular are literally designed to addict you and keep you eating more. At the same time, even public health guidelines on nutrition are entirely misguided – causing most people to shun healthful foods, like saturated fats, in favor of grains (which most eat far too much of).

The end result is nothing less than a nutritional disaster, evidenced by some of the most popular foods eaten by Americans on a daily basis. Worse still, many have been lead to believe that these foods are healthy when, in fact, they’re only going to drain your energy and make you fat.

Ditch These 10 Popular Energy-Draining, Weight-Boosting Foods

The first step to eating better is knowledge – knowledge of which foods you’re better off “breaking up with” starting today. Personal trainer and weight loss coach Traci Mitchell recently shared 10 such foods on Get Fit Chicago,1 and you know what? They’re right on track.

Take a minute to review your typical daily diet, and if the following 10 foods make more than a very occasional appearance, it’s time to do some major tweaking. These are 10 major food offenders that will only zap your energy and make you fat. You can eat better, get healthy, and feel great, and doing so starts with ditching these 10 popular foods.