Everyday, grocery shoppers walk the aisles in search of their next meal. Sifting through the confusion of what to buy that's healthy can be a difficult task even for the cautious consumer. Shelves of prepackaged products greet you with their enticing labels of "fat free", "healthy choice" and "organic" hoping you won't carefully read the ingredients label. It's the classic bait and switch! Misleading labels prey on the unsuspecting and ignorant. The food manufacturers are counting on that to fool you into believing the food you're buying is safe and good for you. Think again!
Candy. Yup, it's labeled Fat Free, so that must mean its good for you right? These junk foods are loaded with refined sugar and carbs with next to zero nutrition.
Organic. Yup, it's labeled Organic, so that must mean its good for you right? Organic junk food is still junk food. Organic refined flours and processed powdered cheese are high in calories and low in nutrition. Steer clear!
Pure 100% Juice. Must be good if it's pure right? The cleverly disguised juice box and sports drinks are again loaded sugar and high calories. My idea of 100% juice is freshly squeezed or put through a juicer machine. No fillers, no added sugars, not processed, simply natural and whole.
All Natural Flavors. Oh this must be a healthy a choice! Just because a beverage switches from carbonated water to filtered water, replaces citric acid with natural citric acid and
calcium disodium EDT to natural potassium citrate does not make it a healthy choice. Watch out for the sweetener high-fructose corn syrup!
Healthy Choice. Thank goodness the food company has my best interests in mind!
While fat and calories are important considerations, don't ignore the fine print. Foods with such health claims often pull the bait and switch that may be low in fat, but to keep you buying it for the flavor, the sugar and salt are high.
No fat, no cholesterol. Well that certainly is a huge relief, better buy that product! NOT! Don't be taken in by these false claims and thinking you're doing your body a favor. Substitute fillers are usually more toxic. Flip the package and read the food label.
"Real" food. Really? It says it's real, so it must be right? Can you say gullible? The food company thinks you are and counts on it to boost their profits. The truth is there may be a very small amount of "real" food in the ingredients. However, upon closer examination you'll usually see other ingredients like modified food starch, soybean oil, food coloring and a host of other fillers void of nutrition. The fewer the ingredients, the better!
Zero gram trans fats. No, not really. A miniscule amount of anything that's unhealthy builds up in the body over time that can lead to poor health. Food companies can label their products zero trans fat when there is less than .50 grams per serving. .5 is not zero. That is simply false and misleading. Read the food label!
A sprinkle of salt and a taste of butter. Just a little is ok and won't harm me right? Watch out as you walk down the snack aisle. It's loaded with tempation of a little of this and a little of that. That "taste" of butter probably isn't butter at all. Bait and switch!
Whole Wheat bread. Everyone knows that "whole" is better for you. While the bread is labeled with "whole" and low fat, consider that the flour is stripped of the nutrients that make it healthier. Check the food label too for the additives, chemicals, fillers, sugars and preservatives. Better yet, make it yourself from fresh ground wheat, water and yeast!
Reduced fat. That must be healthier if it has been reduced in fat. Take something out is replaced by putting something in, like maltodextrin, a carbohydrate used as a cheap filler in many processed foods. Congratulations, you just doubled the amount of sugar! Go for the real stuff without any oils, fillers or added sugars.
With Sea Salt. Many people believe sea salt is a healthy alternative to table salt, but this is no longer the case. Refined sea salt is still refined, having removed the many vital minerals.
Lightly sweetened. Red flag alert! Think fruit loops, frosted flakes or apple jacks cereal. Lightly sweetened adds up to a whole lot of empty calories, sugar and no nutrition!
Good source of vitamins and minerals. Hey, that's great! Nothing to worry about then. Sure glad that company has got my back! Even refined flour has a miniscule amount of vitamins and minerals. But these were simply added back into the flour after it was processed and stripped of the nutrients.
If you want the straight dope on fueling your body with nutritious food and what to avoid, I'm here to help and it won't cost you a penny for the free advice based on my own experience and what has worked for me. I hope you'll follow my blog and provide me with some feedback on my posts. I'll be catering good choices that include both dietary and lifestyle changes. So if you could use a boost to your engine, buckle up for the ride of your life and let's get started!
Add this to the list!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.vancouvernutritionist.com/blog/free-range-eggs-real-definition/
Great blog and great post! You're doing an awesome job, as usual! Thanks for sharing what you've learned!
ReplyDelete"Ban soda pop from your home and replace with water or herbal teas." Banned!
ReplyDeleteThe next step is to get fluoride out of our water supply.
http://fluoridealert.org/fan.2010.review.html
There is no safe level of sodium fluoride, it is an unnecessary chemical waste product.
If you live in a city that fluoridates its water you can join with others to change this.
We should not have to pay to NOT drink, shower, cook with fluoridated water. Leaving it out in the first place is a better option.
When we feel the need to eat something, often it is a mixed up signal from our brains and what we really need is a nice long drink of pure water.
Nice website David.
Better add another one to the list under the "Real" foods category of deception and false advertising.
ReplyDeleteMcDonalds has introduced a mango pineapple smoothie that sounds like a refreshing treat to enjoy in the heat of the summer. Don't fall for slick and deceptive marketing practices. This is really just another chemical cocktail full of zero nutrition and empty calories!
You’ll slurp down a whopping 220 calories in this impostor fruit beverage. When you drink that kind of empty calories, you aren’t likely to feel full or satisfied.
The “fruit” smoothie also contains 49 grams of sugar, which is more than you’ll find in a can of Coke. Recent research has shown that that sugar consumed in liquid form is metabolized differently than sugar in solid foods, and may be more prone to convert to fat.
If you want a "real" fruit smoothie, buy the whole fruit and mix it up yourself at home in the blender with a little yoghurt and some added raw spinach!
http://blog.foodfacts.com/