Think back to what you had for dinner last night. Try to remember everything on your plate -- the protein, the carbohydrates and the fat. Now ask yourself -- where did it all come from? If you had a vegetable, do you know if it came from a farm near your house or perhaps did it travel hundreds, even thousands of miles to make it into your grocery store? If you had chicken, do you know if it grazed outdoors or was locked up? If your food came from a box, did you read the label first and if so, did you understand all the ingredients? The fact is most of us either don't know or don't want to know where our food comes from. To many of us, food is something that can be found in a box, thrown in the microwave and consumed in front of the TV. Two questions I encourage everyone to ask when they sit down for a meal or snack are: 1. Where did my food come from and 2. Is it a whole food or is it processed?
What is food and where is it coming from?
Celebrated author Michael Pollan once said that if food came from a plant, eat it and if it was made in a plant, do not. Although humorous, this phrase sums up the current state of our food industry. Pollan's advice actually has widespread implications and examines the very question: What is food? A strong argument could be made that even though processed foods may begin as whole food, it is altered in such a way that the end result does not even resemble food.
Advances in science have allowed the food industry to evolve -- making food easier and cheaper to grow and with more desirable characteristics in terms of shelf life and freshness. These advances sometimes cost you as well. Consider the average cracker on the market today. It has on average eight or more ingredients, several of which are additives for taste, color or shelf life. Additionally, the cracker is most likely made with refined non-whole grains and will cause a rapid rise in blood sugar and insulin followed by a rapid fall. This rise and fall may cause you to be hungry again soon and overall less satisfied. It also may contribute to inflammation if foods such as the cracker are typical in your diet.
Finally, that cracker may be loaded with saturated fats, trans fats (hydrogenated oils) and a whopping amount of sodium. All of these put you at risk for heart disease, stroke and hypertension. Think about it, that's just your cracker -- what else are you eating throughout the day that has numerous ingredients, many of which you don't have a clue even what they are?
The Encyclopedia Britannica defines food processing as the following: Any of a variety of operations by which raw foodstuffs are made suitable for consumption, cooking or storage. Food processing generally includes the basic preparation of foods, the alteration of a food product into another form (as in making preserves from fruit), and preservation and packaging techniques.
White bread is made by taking a fabulous piece of wheat and stripping it of the bran and the germ; two components responsible for providing fiber and B vitamins. What's left is the endosperm. In this example, food (wheat) has been stripped to make something else (white bread).
The loaf of white bread and box of crackers are just two examples of many where food has been processed to the point where it does not even resemble the original form. Other than boxed or bagged whole grain pasta, rice or bread, try to get all your foods from sources that are minimally processed or better yet, have undergone no processing at all. In other words, try and consume whole foods as much as possible.
"Whole" foods are foods that have not been processed or altered prior to "packaging" and may include meat, poultry, fish, fruits, vegetables, legumes, seeds and nuts. Meat, poultry and fish that are considered "whole" are those that were provided natural feed (grass as opposed to corn for a cow), provided amble space and humane living conditions, and void of antibiotics, hormones or coloring. Plant-based foods are the most easily identifiable whole foods available for consumption. For example, I like having a handful of walnuts every day. This whole food provides a great source of ALA omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium and phosphorus. In addition, walnuts provide four grams of protein and two grams of fiber per serving. These benefits are produced in nature, by the plant -- not in a plant.
Decoding the Current Food Label
Many of us are concerned about how many calories we are consuming and we sometimes get so fixated on those calories that we begin to lose sight of the quality of those calories. In addition, the aisles in the grocery store are filled with confusing health claims, often making the food label a foreign language. First, foods that do not have a label are usually the healthiest. Your local produce section would top this list with all of its cancer fighting phytochemicals. None of the items here will have a label. The more ingredients a food has, the higher the chances that it has been processed.
Additionally, I take my Lifestyle 180 participants to the grocery store and show them how to shop. I ask them to avoid food that lists any of the following among the first five ingredients:
The grocery store can be a confusing place filled with front of package claims meant to disguise foods high in fat and sugar as "healthy." Following these simple tips may help you on your way toward being a more savvy food shopper.
Follow Kristin Kirkpatrick, M.S., R.D., L.D. on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ClevelandClinic
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Shopping mainly from the outer surround of the grocery store is a great way to increase the quality of what you're bringing home and eating.
We are aiming to be supermarket free in the next few years.
I don't have any problems with it personally.
But its correct, that some people are so sensitive they must avoid foods like mushrooms, tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese b/c they can induce a response. I have an MSG sensitivity, but have not had a problem with these foods.
I never told anyone that. I told you that just b/c you have an MSG sensitivity you are not necessarily going to react to naturally occurring glutamates (I don't). I never even addressed the the other posters. I also never mentioned the word salt, so I don't even know what that is all about.
The only points I have ever tried to make, is that MSG and free glutamates are not the same thing, nor do the metabolize similarly in the body. That's true...and
"MSG is manufacturÂed in a factory by autolizing (sp?) yeast that has been geneticallÂy modified" it does not come from tomatoes, ect....also true.
Just correcting facts. I am making no political, moral, or ethical statements either.
When I was first diagnosed it was a crushing blow. I remember walking through aisle after aisle of the grocery store looking at all of the things I couldn't eat, not to mention eating out! But as the years have rolled on and I have come to see my condition as a blessing rather than a curse. I feel like it gave me the keys to escape the American diet. It's not always convenient to prepare every meal from scratch, but the benefits have been far reaching.
I now grow about 30% of my own food and what I can't grow I try to buy local and organic. I often hear people complain that they don't have time to cook or read labels... But it's not really a matter of having time or not, it's a matter of making it a priority in your life. I know I was forced into this lifestyle, but I can honeslty say that I wouldn't have it any other way. After all, what's more important than what you put into your body?
I have cut out industrial foods from my diet, have a garden of my own, and even a few chickens in the yard for fresh eggs. Your right, its about making it a priority in your life. People ask me how I can afford to eat "organic" and I say how can you afford NOT to? I don't like doctors and I don't want to get sick, the best way to avoid it, is to eat well...plain and simple. I always tell people, if they were really serious about their health they would find that extra money in their budget. When I suggest cutting out the Starbuck's, they cringe. Peace
The MSG is an interesting thought, although I doubt that it would explain my allergies since I react to plain celery and on a skin prick test I swell up like a sweet potato when exposed to any of those herbs. But it is yet another reason to avoid MSG!
No and I strongly suspect the FDA, the USDA, and the rest of those regulatory agencies know either.
Probably chemicals and growth hormones. No wonder we're getting fatter.
http://www.glycemicindex.com/
LOL - Apparently salt makes your funny bone grow... -[;-)
I have only one comment... Bologna!
Lawson Meadows
However, even if you attach a PHD thesis to a bag of potato chips, many people would still substitute it for dinner. The problem, it seems, is that few people care what they put in their mouths.