12 ‘Bad’ Foods That Are Now Good

Once someone has been seen in a negative light, people will rarely change their opinion—no matter how strong the rebranding effort may be. (Sorry Bieber, your music might be good now, but we don’t know if we can forgive you for that egging incident.)

And the reputations of foods are no different. Once something has been dubbed an “unhealthy” or “fattening” choice, many health-minded folks won’t think twice before leaving it in the dust. But not all foods deserve their bad reputations! (Or their good ones, for that matter—health halos, we’re looking at you.) With nutrition research emerging every day, there are a number of nutrient-packed eats that scientists are now finding won’t pack on the pounds, or contribute to a slew of health issues like we once thought

In fact, a number of foods that we’ve been told are “bad” can actually help the scale tip in your favor. Not only that, but they offer many protective health benefits that can help ward off the very disease they were initially connected to. Learn the truth about these misunderstood foods below, and cross them off your “do not eat” list.

And those 12 foods are