9 Healthy Foods and Drinks You Shouldn’t Binge — and Why (2024)

Even nutritious foods may be harmful in large quantities.

A good deal of healthy-eating advice comes down to a simple premise: Moderation in all things. That’s true even for healthy foods, such as cruciferous veggies, fish, and avocados.

While most people can benefit from upping their intake of healthy foods, it’s possible to overdo it by eating certain foods over and over again, most days of the week.

Here are nine healthy foods you shouldn’t overeat — and why.

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Cruciferous Vegetables

“We always want to incorporate a variety of vegetables, a variety of protein options, and a variety of different fat sources,” saysHolly Klamer, RDN, a nutrition educator based in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

The2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americansfrom the U.S. Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Health and Human Services recommend making half your plate fruits and vegetables. And certainly,kale,broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and other cruciferous vegetables are loaded with nutrients like folate and vitamin K. But they’re also high in solublefiber, which contributes to excess gas production, as theMayo Clinicnotes. Eating too much of these vegetables, especially in quantities your body isn’t accustomed to, can causegastrointestinaldiscomfort.

Plus, cruciferous vegetables can interfere with how your thyroid uses iodine, Klamer says. Iodine helps your body makethyroid hormones, and plays a role in bone and brain development during pregnancy and infancy, according to theNational Institutes of Health.

Eating these vegetables in moderation is likely fine, Klamer says, but having an excess amount every day could be problematic for people who are iodine-deficient, according to a study. But note that cooking the cruciferous veggies lessens the effect on the thyroid.

People who takeblood thinnerslikecoumadin (Warfarin)should watch their intake and be sure to check with their doctor if they decide to add more of these vegetables or suddenly cut back, Klamer says, because the vitamin K can impact the medication’s effectiveness. “At least run it past your healthcare team first,” she says.

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Foods High in Healthy Fats

Avocados, nuts, and olive oil fall into this category. They’re high in monounsaturated fats, which can help improve your cholesterol and decrease the risk of heart disease, according to the American Heart Association (AHA).

Foods withhealthy fatsare good for you when eaten in moderation, but they’re packed with calories that quickly accumulate.

For example,one avocadocontains around 322 calories, according to the USDA, and1 cup of whole almondshas 828 calories.

Plus, many brands of packaged nuts are “salted with common table salt and sometimes even soaked in vegetable oil,” says Shannon Henry, a San Francisco–based registered dietitian who works with EZCare Clinic, an online healthcare service. That can lead to high blood pressure and increase the risk of heart disease, she says.

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Lemon Water

Lemon water is a low-calorie, low-sugar way to make drinking water more fun. But lemon is acidic, Klamer points out, and it can damage your tooth enamel and make you more prone to cavities.

“I actually have personal experience with this,” she says. “I went through a phase where I was like, ‘I’m going to start drinking a lot of lemon water,’ and I noticed it made my teeth more sensitive.” Limit other acidic fruits, including oranges, limes, and tomatoes, as well as acidic drinks like lemonade and orange juice for the same reason, advises the American Dental Association.

When sipping lemon water and other acidic drinks, use a straw and rinse your mouth afterward. That can help mitigate any side effects.

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Flavored Yogurt

Yogurt makes for an easily accessible, nutrient-packed snack, but some brands contain lots of added sugar, saysRachel McBryan, RD, who is based in Nanaimo, British Columbia. That tends to be especially true for lower-fat varieties, “making them more of a dessert than a snack,” she says.

One container of low-fat peach yogurt, for example, typically contains 10 grams (g) of added sugar, notes theUSDA. The AHA suggests that women stick to 25 g of sugar per day (which is about 6 teaspoons and 100 calories) and men consume no more than 36 g daily (about 9 teaspoons and 150 calories).

McBryan suggests opting instead for plain, low-fat yogurt and adding your own nutritious fixings, such as fruits and nuts. To take the yogurt itself to the next level, goGreek: This variety contains nearly 20 g of protein per 7-ounce serving versus about half that amount inregular yogurt, notes the USDA.

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Instant Oatmeal

Oats contain beneficial fiber, magnesium, and zinc, according to theHarvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Yet many brands of instant oatmeal go heavy on sugar, McBryan says. For example, a packet ofQuaker Instant Oatmeal Maple and Brown Sugarcontains 12 g of added sugars.

McBryan suggests instead making homemade overnight oats: Mix a half cup of plain, raw oats and a half cup of dairy or plant-based liquid, mix, and refrigerate. In the morning, top it with fruit or a tablespoon of peanut butter, she says.

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Fish That Contain Mercury

Fish can be a terrificsource of protein, vitamin B12, zinc, iodine, and omega-3 fatty acids, according to theU.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Ananalysis of 20 studiesthat involved hundreds of thousands of participants found that eating one or two 2-ounce (oz) servings of fatty fish a week reduced the risk of death from heart disease by 36 percent.

But if you eat too much of certain kinds, you may increase your risk of mercury poisoning.

According to the FDA, the best fish choices include catfish, flounder, haddock, salmon, scallops, squid, andtilapia. That’s because they contain the least amount of mercury. Canned light tuna is also a smart choice — it contains 3 times less mercury than albacore tuna, the FDA says. It’s okay to have all these types of fish two to three times a week in a 4-oz serving.

The FDA recommends having other types of fish (those with a medium level of mercury), such as bluefish, grouper, monkfish, and halibut, only once a week, again in 4-oz servings. On the other hand, avoid choices with the highest mercury levels, including king mackerel, shark, marlin, bigeye tuna, orange roughy, tilefish, and swordfish, the agency advises.

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Foods High in Fiber

Adequate fiber in the diet reduces the risk of coronary heart disease, according to theUSDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans.High-fiber foodsincludechia seeds,berries, black or baked beans, and lentils, theMayo Clinicsays.

But a word of caution: Eating too much too quickly can cause the opposite of the intended effect and lead toconstipation, gas, andbloating, according to the Mayo Clinic.

To combat this, slowly increase the amount of fiber you consume, and drink lots of water.

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Dark Chocolate

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Foods High in Beta-Carotene

Carrots, cantaloupe, winter squash, and sweet potatoes are all high in beta-carotene, according toMount Sinai. Beta-carotene is an antioxidant that may contribute to immunity and lower your risk of heart disease and cancer, the hospital says, and it plays a role in vision and eye health.

But foods high in beta-carotene contain pigments that can turn your skin yellow or orange, a condition called carotenemia. The discoloring typically happens on thick areas of the skin, like the palms of the hand and soles of the feet, according to acase study. It’s caused by “excessive” and “prolonged” consumption of carotene-rich, yellow- or orange-colored foods, which typically means more than 30 milligrams (mg) of beta-carotene a day, according to StatPearls. (The Cleveland Clinicreports that one carrot has about 4 mg of beta-carotene, so eating about eight carrots per day regularly may result in carotenemia.)

The condition is “unlikely to lead to any serious consequences,” according to thecasestudy. But the study authors noted it’s important to know about the condition so that it’s not confused withjaundice, a more serious condition that causes the skin and whites of the eyes to turn yellow, as theCenters for Disease Control and Preventionnotes.

As Klamer says, all these foods can be part of a healthy, balanced diet. “I’m not saying that no one should eat these foods,” she says. “You just want to avoid overdoing it on one.”

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