Find Out What’s Really in The Food You’re Eating
You’re a typical American trying to do your best to eat healthy and help your family do the same. While browsing the grocery store aisle, you decide to pick up a box of Shredded Wheat Cereal.
“I know I am suppose to eat whole grains….” you think to yourself.
“..and this cereal even has blueberries! Blueberries are healthy. This will be a great choice for breakfast.” You put the cereal in the cart and walk away feeling satisfied knowing you have made a healthy choice.
…Meanwhile you are steadily gaining weight year over year, your doctor just informed you that your pre diabetic, and you feel moody all the time… Your frustration increases because you think you are doing everything right, but -unbeknownst to you- you are being tricked by food industry.
Below is a great video by Mike Adams, the “Health Ranger.” He is an award winning journalist who creates fantastic, easy to understand, educational videos. This video highlights some of the deceptive marketing tactics used by the food industry to trick consumers into thinking they are buying a healthy product when as you can see, the product is really anything but. Click here for more information on Mike Adams.
4 Common Ingredients Found in Processed Foods
Petrochemical Food Dyes: Synthetic food dyes can be found in many processed foods and beauty products and are linked to a variety of serious health concerns from hyperactivity to cancer. Be sure to read the ingredients list of any packaged food and avoid them like the plague! For a detailed report (and a dose of fear) check out Food Dyes: A Rainbow of Risks.
Modified Starch: Modified starch is added to most processed foods and from what I have read, isn’t something to be overly concerned about (unless you are against GMO foods- but that is a topic for another day). It is typically made from wheat or corn and can be used as a thickening agent, preservative, or stabilizer. While I prefer foods that require no label to begin with (like fresh produce), this is not something I lose sleep over.
Hydrogenated or Partially Hydrogenated Oil: This is the nasty stuff!! These are trans fats you keep hearing about. Like food dyes, if you see this on a label- drop it & run! Hydrogenation makes food less likely to spoil, allowing the food to have a longer shelf life. Trans fats make your heart disease risk skyrocket by raising both your LDL (bad) cholesterol & triglycerides. You will find trans fats in commercially baked goods (such as crackers, cookies and cakes), fried foods such as chicken wings, doughnuts, and even margarine!
Added sugars: High Fructose Corn Syrup, Maple Syrup, Brown Rice Syrup, Agave Nectar, Honey, Dextrose and Sucrose are all sugars that food manufacturers add to processed foods to enhance their flavor. Sugar in it’s natural state (for example the naturally occurring sugar found in an apple) is balanced with fiber and will break down slowly in the digestive tract. Added sugars on the other-hand break down rapidly. High consumption of added sugars is associated with an increased risk for obesity and type II diabetes.
As you can see, choosing healthy foods isn’t always as straight forward as you might guess, but with a little effort you can make the right choices. You may also be interested in a previous post: Reading Nutrition Labels.
Please SHARE this post [using the buttons below] to help spread the message of healthy living. Thank you for reading!
[reminder]
Photo Credit: ‘Ajnagraphy’ via Compfight cc
