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Lately I've been wanting to learn more about organic foods and eating healthier. I really struggle when I shop because I don't know if I should be looking for foods that are low fat, low calorie, low sugar, or low carbs. I think the only thing that qualifies in all of those categories is water. And I'm pretty sure you can't build a healthy lifestyle on water only. The body is weird like that. So which one of those is more important? Which one should I be the most concerned with not eating?
Last night I bought some Silk milk (which I've never had. is the vanilla weird?), organic yogurt, organic pita chips, gluten-free waffles (I honestly have NO idea what that means, but they were in the organic section and on sale, so I bought them) and I've eaten organic hamburger by mistake. But it seemed ok. I would love to hear thoughts on the best things to buy whether that be organic or otherwise.
Please share.
8 comments:
I would try to focus on buying the foods that would best benefit you. Does diabetes run in your family? Go for low sugar. Do heart problems run in your family? Go for low fat. Just be aware that with low fat, many times there are more instances of sodium and other nutritional-bad food additives.
The best foods to buy are natural. Lots of fruits and veggies. It's a really elementary concept, but it's true.
Yeah, I have heard that low fat is not always the best for you. I agree that lots of fresh veggies/fruits and stuff mixed in with your regular food is good for you.
As for organic, I am still not convinced yet that the organic food is the best. I think there are pros and cons to it.
I will say that T&I are considering this summer of getting some beef from a guy who T. knows who raises his cows practically organic. I mean this guy takes care of his cows better than most people take care of their pets and feeds them good food with no hormones or chemicals. He does give them some antbiotics, but very few. When it comes to meat, I can see the benefit to having it organically or pretty darn close to organically raised.
I like the vanilla soy milk! Regular soy milk and regular skim are disgusting!
As far as organically grown produce is concerned, there are certain foods that are worth it and certain that are not.
Worth it:
- apples & pears: the pesticides they spray pool in the top of the apple (at the stem).
- peaches: very thin, soft skin, so pesticides can get in easily and soak throughout the fruit
- strawberries and any other low growing fruit: if the fruit is close to the ground and the pesticides they spray pool on the ground, no thank you.
- Potatoes and any other root veggies as well as lettuces, etc: same reason as low growing fruit, the ground soaks up a lot of pesticides
- I'm sure there are more.
Not worth it:
- bananas, avacados or other fruits/veggies that have a thick outer skin: the pesticides will not soak through and if you're still concerned, wash them before you peel them.
I truly believe in buying meat that has no antibiotics or artificial growth hormones in it as well as milk.
I have enough hormones, I don't need any artificial ones through my cows, chickens and eggs. And, although I know pesticides have been used for awhile, they are not the most natural thing in the world, so if I can avoid them, great! :)
just a tip - if you are in the freezer section by the faux (soy) meats and see an orange/yellow box - label Quorn - it is amazing. its has the look/feel/taste of real chicken. it's amazing.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Hi, I linked to your blog from two pretzels.
Basically everything dri said I would have said. I think everything in moderation is good. But for sugar, I would stick with real sugar, no artificial stuff. Artificial sweetner is the number one item the FDA gets complaints about and have huge lists of side effects. The book skinny bitch is a good quick read. It is about a vegan diet but has many other good facts.
They say if you sre going to swith over to organic the first thing you should change is dairy and meat. Also soy milk is fabulous. Each brand tastes a bit different so if you don't like Silk try another. You will grow a taste for it. My husband (who jumped on the Soy milk wagon long after I did)just said, "why would anybody dring regular milk when they can have soy?" I would much rather have plain soy that cows milk too. Kroger's private selection organic cows milk is the cheapest.
Dont eat low carb just eat healthy carbs (whole wheat, oats, barley, quinoa) in correct portions. Your body needs carbs to function.
Buying organic for shelf items is good because are sure you don't have trans fats or high fructose corn syrup. Gluten free just means wheat free. Ive had these they are good. But I always buy my waffels organic because regular have about 5g trans fat. Yikes!
Just some of my thoughts. Hope they are of some interest to you. Good luck on your healthy quest!
CNG and Dri - Thank you both very much for that info! That is very helpful information and is EXACTLY what I was looking for. So, thank you for commenting!
I'm gonna have to Google quinoa though. I have no idea what that is :)
Mmm...quinoa. It has become a staple in our house. I make it as a side dish regularly. It's kind of like cous cous or rice, except more flavorful. And it's packed with protein, fiber and iron.
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