




05
We’re all well versed in what to look for on food labels:
Calories per serving
Fat percentages
Carbohydrate
Sodium
Vitamins/minerals
At a glance, we’re able to determine whether a food is good choice or not, and whether it will help us meet the daily quota for a particular food group.
Look further down the label to the “ingredients” list, however, and you see a very long list of ingredients – some of which are difficult to pronounce. “What is this stuff?” you may, and should, wonder. That is a very good question. The answer? Lots of stuff: chemicals, additives, flavoring, sweeteners, preservatives, moisture controls, nutritional supplements – some natural, some synthetic, herbicides (yes, I said herbicides), and pesticides. These “additives” do serve a purpose – they help food stay fresh longer, they are emulsifiers, texturizers, neutralizers, buffers, bleaching agents, clarifying agents…the list goes on. My point — there are many additives in food we regularly consume that our bodies don’t want, or need.
So how do you avoid consuming these food additives? Eat fresh. Buy and eat foods that are wholesome and natural (fresh fruits and vegetables) and organic, and try to avoid pre-packaged foods containing high levels of hydrogenated oils, nitrates and nitrites, and MSG.
If you see an ingredient listed on a food label and want to know what it is, find out on www.nutritiondata.com. This site lists most food ingredients in their database, and also has tools for analyzing recipes, so plug in your favorite dish and find out what you’re really eating. Another super site is www.foodadditivesworld.com — here you’ll be able to look up the ingredient in questions and find out other names for that ingredient, as well as what it is made of. This site also has information about the glycemic index and the effects of processing on food.
30
Spring is well under way, which means more fresh produce will be “in season.” For something different this season, why not try buying from local farmer’s markets?
Here are 5 good reasons why you should give it a try:
1. Fruits and Veggies that are grown locally and picked when they are perfectly ripened taste better than the store-sold varieties.
2. Buying from local farmer’s markets helps the local farmer who is forced to compete with the Super Walmarts and Kroger Marketplaces of the world.
3. Many times, market prices are better than those at commercial grocery stores.
4. When produce is picked at the peak of its season, nutrients will be more abundant.
5. It requires a lot of resources (gas, packaging, transportation, marketing, etc.) to put grocery-store products on the shelves. On average, food travels 1300 miles to get from its origin to your kitchen! Seems rather inefficient, doesn’t it?
Where to buy the best fresh produce:
Co-op members pool their resources together to purchase fruits and vegetables at a lower cost. Go to
Co-op directory to find one near you.
Two great resources for finding a local market:
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