Do you feel like you can’t eat anything sometimes? Are you ready to rip your hair out because just when you feel like you have a handle on healthy eating you hear something new? It seems like there is always some food enemy to avoid. There are so many food words that get thrown around that can make it confusing to shop…organic, grass-fed, non-GMO. I know I feel overwhelmed. Here are 4 simple ways to get a better handle on your family’s nutrition without losing your mind…
Check Those Food Labels!
Get in the habit of reading food labels- not the numbers but the ingredients.
Most people have gotten in the habit of checking calories and fat grams. Shift your thinking from, “How many calories are in this breakfast cookie?” to, “What the hell is in my food?” The ingredients list is key.
You will see lots of ingredients repeated, often in seemingly unrelated foods. Sugar is in so many foods, not just cookies but many sauces and salad dressings, too. Many ingredients can also be called by different names. Sugar is another good example here! There are over 50 different names for what is essentially sugar.
So how do you start eating cleaner? I started with one particular ingredient- high-fructose corn syrup. When I went food shopping I checked all the labels. If any food had that ingredient in it, I wouldn’t buy it. My daughter actually thought she was allergic to it when she was little 🙂
The next ingredient I cut out was hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils, “trans fats.” These have gotten a lot of attention. So I would check labels and if they had high-fructose corn syrup or any kind of hydrogenated oil in them, I wouldn’t buy that food. Then I focused on another ingredient.
Wondering where to start? I would pick one from the list below. Vow to avoid it every time you go food shopping. Then start avoiding another one, and so on…
Avoid the Nasties…
While you’re reading those food labels watch out for these nasty ingredients that lurk in most processed foods:
- High-fructose corn syrup.
- Hydrogenated oils.
- Artificial Sweeteners.
- MSG (and Hydrolyzed Proteins)
- Artificial Colors. Many of these are banned in other countries. Some countries require foods with certain artificial colors to have a warning label.
Believe me, there are so many more ingredients to avoid. (Artificial colors and flavorings are kinda horrific, but natural flavors are pretty scary, too!) Starting with one and going from there makes it less overwhelming.
Start with one or jump in and avoid all of these as often as you can. Have another nasty in your head that you’d rather avoid first? Make your own list. The main idea here is to cut out something bad.
If you want to dig deep on food ingredients I highly recommend checking out the Food Babe blog. The Food Babe, Vani Deva Hari, is committed to uncovering the truth behind what’s in our food. I’ve learned a lot from reading her stuff. Just be warned…I remember reading something about an ingredient that’s derived from beaver’s anal glands and I haven’t been the same since. She is hardcore.
Eat Food Without Labels
Buy and eat foods without labels as much as you can. Vegetables, fruit, eggs.
Of course, then you have the organic issue to worry about. Is it organic, genetically modified, soaked with pesticides, locally grown, cage-free? You’ll have to make some decisions about what you want to do there. But going for foods without labels is always preferable to foods with labels!
There are guidelines out there about what is most important to eat organic. Lists like the Dirty Dozen and the Clean something-something. Google those and look into organic dairy and meat and all that. You’ll have to use your judgment about what you’ll buy organic and what you’ll buy regularly.
Cook at Home
What’s the best thing you can do to feed your family? Cook at home. All this ingredient stuff can be simplified when you cook at home. You’re not going to add BHT to your cookies or shake a little MSG into your stir fry.
Michael Pollan is an amazing author and food expert and that’s his number one piece of advice. If you’re only going to make one change- cook at home.
It might not be what you want to hear, but it’s gonna take some work. You have to make your health a priority in your life; just like you should make time to exercise each day you should also make time to prepare healthy food. There are ways to make it easier. Check out this post where I talk about batch cooking and meal prep.
Over time, eating more consciously becomes a habbit. What is the first change you’ll make?
P.S. Share this with someone who’s looking to eat healthier this year!
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