7 common metabolic myths: Busted by our experts

Metabolism is often discussed in the context of how “fast” or “slow” our bodies burn calories, and how this impacts weight gain and weight loss. 

While this is part of your metabolism, it’s actually a complex process that refers to all the biochemical reactions involved with how your body uses energy. This includes how we convert food and drinks to energy as well as how our body processes and stores glucose, amino acids, and fatty acids.   

People often refer to their metabolism as something they want to “boost” or “speed up,” typically with the hope of losing weight and improving body composition. Since this is a popular goal, there are a lot of common myths associated with metabolic health. 

Thanks to the rapid spread of disinformation online, a lot of these supposed “metabolism hacks” have gained traction, yet aren’t based in real scientific evidence. 

That’s why we’re here to help identify and debunk the biggest misconceptions about metabolic health using facts and research. 

Here are 7 common myths about metabolism and what the science really says:  

1. If you have a slow metabolism, you’re stuck with it forever 

This is a myth. When people mention having a “fast” or “slow” metabolism, they’re talking about metabolic rate. This is the amount of energy that your body uses over the course of a day. 

Having a “fast metabolism” or high metabolic rate means that your body uses more energy when at rest. 

Many things affect your metabolic rate. While some, such as age and genetics, are out of your control, others are within your power to change. 

Here are some lifestyle habits that can help increase your metabolic rate: 

• Eating enough protein^1,2 

• Building muscle³ 

• Getting quality sleep⁴ 

• Reducing and managing stress⁵ 

What our expert says: “If you could focus on one thing to boost metabolism, I’d recommend resistance training (aka strength training), which helps build muscle tissue. Muscle burns more fuel even when you’re at rest. Research shows adding a small amount of muscle to your frame can raise your basal metabolic rate by 5-7%, leading to meaningful long-term benefits.³  

“For an efficient workout, try compound exercises that work multiple muscle groups like squats, push-ups, bench press, or deadlifts.” – Brent Creighton, PhD  

2. Green tea and spicy foods can speed up your metabolism 

Claims that specific foods and drinks like spicy peppers or green tea could speed up your metabolism are misleading myths. 

Even though there is some evidence that your metabolic rate can rise a little after consuming these foods, the data doesn’t suggest that you can get any meaningful benefit specifically from eating them.^6,7 

So, if you’re wanting to increase your metabolic rate, you’ll need to focus on building healthy habits, like those outlined above, rather than relying on adding a “superfood” or supplement to your diet. 

What our expert says: “The notion that any one food can significantly ‘speed up’ metabolism is an oversimplification. While research shows that certain foods do have measurable ‘thermic effects’—the calories burned in digesting, absorbing, and processing these foods — it amounts to an extra 50-100 calories per day at most.⁸ That's equivalent to walking for about 10 minutes.  

“The real metabolic drivers are the fundamentals we already know work: building and maintaining healthy habits around diet, exercise, sleep, and stress management.” – Brent Creighton, PhD 

3. Weight loss is all about calories in vs. calories out 

This is a myth. While it’s true that you lose weight by burning more calories than you take in, this doesn’t mean you should just focus on calorie counting if you’re trying to lose weight. 

If you cut your calories too drastically, you could end up losing precious muscle mass and lower your metabolic rate.^9,10 

Instead, it’s much more effective to create a weight management plan that involves building muscle through eating enough protein and strength training. 

In general, the more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns at rest and the better your body will regulate your glucose levels.¹¹ 

It’s also important to note that your body responds to the calories in simple carbs in a different way to those in protein, fat, and fiber-rich carbs.¹² So, the quality of the calories is another thing to think about.^13,14 

What our expert says: “Research shows higher protein diets — typically 25-35% of daily calories from protein — are more satiating than higher carbohydrate diets. This leads to reduced hunger and calorie intake, which can aid in weight loss.¹⁵ 

“Keeping protein intake up has also been reported to help with adherence to following a reduced calorie diet over time, as well as positive changes to body composition, as protein preserves lean body mass.”¹⁶ – Andrea Givens, MS, RD, CSSD 

4. You should avoid eating ahead of a big meal to save calories  

False. If you’ve got a big meal later in the day — a summer cookout or a family dinner, say — you might think skipping food until then can help keep your daily food intake under control. But this approach could end up having the opposite effect.¹⁷ 

If you fast all day, you run the risk of being overly hungry and not making mindful choices when you load your plate.¹⁸ And if alcohol is involved, you’ll be drinking it on an empty stomach, which may accelerate the feelings of alcohol in your system. All this could lead to you eating more than you plan to.¹⁹ 

Overeating can lead to glucose spikes, or blood sugar spikes, during which glucose enters your bloodstream faster than your body can use it. 

While your glucose levels naturally rise and fall throughout the day, a sudden sharp rise followed by a crash can lead to hunger and increased cravings.²⁰ 

Instead of fasting before a big meal, try starting your day with a high-protein breakfast. Eating a meal with 30 grams (g) of protein can help keep your glucose steady and your hunger at bay,^21,1 which could support healthier choices when the meal comes around. 

Here are some high-protein breakfast ideas you can try: 

• Bacon and egg breakfast wrap recipe 

• High-protein overnight oats recipe 

What our expert says: “Metabolic health isn’t just about what we eat, but also when we eat. Starting your day with a protein-rich breakfast can help you approach a big meal or event later with more stable energy and a better ability to enjoy yourself without overdoing it. Eating a meal with protein earlier in the day may also help mitigate glucose spikes after the big meal later, which can support better sleep and feeling more refreshed the following day.” –  Sarah Koenck, MS, RD 

5. Avoid high-cholesterol foods like red meat for heart health 

This isn’t true. For years, dietary cholesterol had the reputation of being bad for your heart. But more recently, research has shown that it doesn’t have the negative impact on your blood cholesterol people once thought. 

In fact, there have been many recent studies and analyses finding a lack of correlation between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol.²² 

Foods that naturally contain dietary cholesterol like eggs can add lots of beneficial nutrients to your diet. The same goes for red meat, another food that people have wrongly viewed as being inherently harmful for your heart.  

Unmanaged high glucose levels over time risk damage to your heart.^23,24 So rather than cutting out foods like eggs, shellfish, and red meat, you can support heart health by focusing on:²⁵ 

• Eating foods with a low glycemic index (which your body digests slowly) 

• Cutting back on refined carbohydrates and sugars (which your body digests quickly) 

• Limiting the amount of ultra-processed foods in your diet 

What our expert says: “Dietary cholesterol isn’t the villain of your heart. Rather, studies consistently show a strong link between glucose health and heart health, even in individuals without diabetes.”²⁶ – Andrea Givens, MS, RD, CSSD 

6. Juice cleanses can help you lose weight and detox the body 

For all the claims that juice cleanses can help with weight management and “rid your body of toxins,” there’s little scientific evidence to support this theory. 

Your liver, kidneys, and digestive system are what will remove toxins and waste products from your body, and eating a healthy diet and staying hydrated can support these robust built-in detoxification pathways. 

Any weight loss that appears from following a juice cleanse is likely to be temporary, due to consuming far fewer calories than normal and having less water and stool in your body.²⁷  

Not only are juice cleanses unlikely to lead to healthy and sustainable weight loss, but they could also cause you health problems. A diet focused on juices is likely to be deficient in fiber, good sources of protein, and healthy fats that are vital for a balanced diet. 

Be wary of influencers promising fad diets to be quick and simple solutions to all your health questions. If something seems to be too good to be true, it likely is. 

What our expert says: “While vegetable-based juices (think: spinach, kale, celery) can offer nutrients with a lower glycemic load, most juices are primarily fruit, or sugar-sweetened fruit juice. And the portion size is often more than you would consume if you were eating the fruit whole, which ups the sugar content without the benefit of fiber, setting the stage for a large rush of glucose.” – Andrea Givens, MS, RD, CSSD 

7. All alcohol spikes your glucose 

This isn’t the case. While making alcohol requires sugar, drinking isn’t something that will automatically raise your glucose levels. Many alcoholic drinks are actually low in sugar. 

A lot of sugar used in the manufacturing process gets converted during the fermentation process. And when we drink, our liver prioritizes processing alcohol over other functions, such as producing glucose, which can affect how steady our levels are. 

Low-sugar alcoholic drinks that likely won’t spike your glucose include: 

• Pure liquor, such as vodka, gin, and rum 

• Dry wines, such as pinot noir and sauvignon blanc 

• Light beers 

• Sugar-free hard seltzers 

Drinks that could raise your glucose include: 

• Liquor with sugary mixers like fruit juice or soft drinks    

• High-carb beers, including dark beers 

• Liqueurs, such as advocaat and crème de menthe  

• Dessert wines, such as sherry and port 

However, even if you’re drinking low-sugar alcoholic drinks that won’t spike your glucose directly, that doesn’t mean you should overly indulge. 

Alcohol can affect your glucose in other ways by reducing your self-control and disrupting your sleep, which can alter levels of hormones that regulate appetite. These two effects can make you more likely to overeat while drinking and the day afterward.^28,29,30  

What our expert says: “Some alcohol, like red wine, has commonly been thought to have health benefits, but scientific evidence does not support this thinking.³¹ The World Health Organization has even published a statement: ‘When it comes to alcohol consumption, there is no safe amount that does not affect health.’”³² – Andrea Givens, MS, RD, CSSD 

A final note from Lingo 

Metabolism is a complex biological process that can be tricky to fully understand, which is why easy tips to help “boost” metabolism and lose weight can be appealing. This is also why these myths are so widespread. 

Wearing Lingo, which is a continuous glucose monitoring system, allows you to see the impact of your lifestyle habits like food and exercise on your glucose levels in real time and help you make healthier choices to support your glucose and metabolic health. 

That said, another common misconception is that the goal of wearing a continuous glucose monitor like Lingo is to prevent all glucose spikes. While research shows that reducing the severity and frequency of spikes can help improve your well-being,³³ it’s natural for glucose levels to rise when we eat, exercise, and become stressed. 

Instead, Lingo can help you become more aware of your body's unique responses to food and other lifestyle factors, and how this impacts your well-being. This can lead to healthy behavior change, steadier glucose, and a positive impact on your metabolic health. 

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