Eliminating The Junk!

There is one goal that is so important to me that I haven't committed 100% to accomplishing just yet. That is removing  all processed foods from  my  diet. I  have made this a priority off and  on over the last two years. I feel  like it's so easy for people  to just believe  what the food companies  are telling us and  just ignore  the raw facts. The ingredients that are used to create processed foods  are  chemicals that our bodies weren't designed  to  digest  and  they contain no  nutritional value whatsoever. As a nation, we  are over-feeding  ourselves these chemically engineered foods and  starving our cells  of beneficial nutrients  by doing so. These products are designed  to look  and  taste good, keep you craving  more, while being able to sit on a shelf for months and even years.  In order for a food to be able to  do  that many un-natural chemicals  and  preservatives are  added in. Try saving a  piece of  fruit or  a vegetable for the same amount of time as  a boxed, bagged or canned  food. There  is no way it  would last even  a month. When you consume these foods  your  are ingesting  toxins  which lead to weight gain,  health problems,  disease  and  eventually death.
I think the best thing anyone can do is  educate themselves. Research  documentaries,  scientific studies  and articles  explaining  the  negative effects processed foods have on our bodies.

A  few tips I  have  for anyone  trying  to  eat a diet free of processed  foods...
1. Eat foods  as close to nature  as possible. 
2. Buy your groceries weekly and  stay away from  the center  isles.
3. Choose fresh or frozen produce instead of  canned.
4. Read labels, the less ingredients the better. If you can't pronounce it, it's not natural.
5. Google natural, homemade  alternatives to your favorite processed food items.

For example,  I really like coffee creamer but after I researched the ingredients labeled on my sugar free Coffee-Mate creamer I was disgusted!  I couldn't easily pronounce 99% of the ingredients on the label. Instead, I started using half and half with a teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa powder and stevia for a chocolaty flavor or I will add a  tablespoon or two of  my favorite  protein  powder.

To learn more about each ingredient, click on the ingredient. 

It will open an article in a new window.

 





Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil = Completely unnatural man-made fats created through the partial hydrogenation process cause dysfunction and chaos in your body on a cellular level, and studies have linked trans-fats to health problems ranging from obesity and diabetes to reproductive problems and heart disease. The genetically engineered (GE) variety planted on over 90 percent of US soy acres is Roundup Ready engineered to survive being doused with otherwise lethal amounts of Monsanto's Roundup herbicide (glyphosate). GE soybeans have been found to contain residue levels as high as 17 mg/kg, and malformations in frog and chicken embryos have occurred at just over 2 mg/kg.
Dipotassium Phosphate = Dipotassium Phosphate can act as a skin and eye irritant along with causing vomiting and diarrhea if consumed directly in quantities. Inhaling Dipotassium Phosphate can irritate the lungs and can cause distressed breathing.
Disodium Phosphate = Disodium phosphate is used primarily as a food additive for stabilization, emulsification and phosphate fortification. It can also be used for industrial purposes as a corrosion inhibitor, as a pesticide ingredient and in industrial and other cleaning products. Although it's safe in the form in which it's added to food products, disodium phosphate in its pure form can sometimes be toxic on contact or if ingested.
Mono- And Diglycerides = They promote inflammation and obesity; raise LDL, or bad, cholesterol levels; and lower HDL, or good, cholesterol levels. Made up in part of fatty acids, mono- and diglycerides may contain trans fats, either when manufactured in a lab or, if they come from an animal or vegetable source, when exposed to heat for processing into packaged and prepared foods.
Artificial Flavors = Artificial flavors have no nutritional value. Over consumption can cause obesity, high blood sugar and cholesterol. Those who are on strict diets may note that artificial flavors sometimes contain animal products, like glycerin and may also contain alcohol.
Carrageenan = Given its effect on gastrointestinal inflammation, Cornucopia urges anyone suffering from gastrointestinal symptoms (irritable bowel syndrome/IBS, spastic colon, inflammatory bowel disease, chronic diarrhea, etc.) to consider completely eliminating carrageenan from the diet to determine if carrageenan was a factor in causing the symptoms.

Conclusion: All along I have known  that these ingredients "weren't  good  for me"  but I  didn't  take the time to look into each  ingredient and  research their effects on  the body. In my opinion, it's not fair to myself to  NOT research it. At least now  I know what the consequences are if I do decide to choose flavor and  addiction  over my health. Now that  I  have  seen the truth  I  will  be much  more  conscious  when  purchasing foods  in  a  jar, can, bag  or box. If I can't pronounce  it easily and if  I  have  to  google the  ingredient,  I  don't want  it in  my body!