I know a lot of folks talk about eating healthy, but the question is do we know how to eat healthy. Have we done the proper research to even know where to begin? Probably not, and it may have to do with the fact that you simply don't know what to look for, especially if you've been eating a certain way for the most part of your life to the present now. Well, I totally understand that, and so I took the time to compile a great list, a guide if you will, that you can follow to point you in the right direction.
So, without any further adieu, here's a quick list of foods and/or categories that you want to avoid:
- Unhealthy sugars and sweeteners of all sorts. For example: Equal and Nutrasweet aka aspartame - very deadly and found mostly in sodas by popular brands like Pepsi and Coca Cola (see my blog post, Aspartame: The Skull And Bones Death Delivery Artificial Sweetener for more indepth info on that). Others are high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), refined agave, Saccharin bka SugarTwin and Sweet 'N Low, Sucralose aka Splenda, Neotame, and Acesulfame potassium bka Sunett and Sweet One to name a few.
- All white/bleached foods, like white sugar, white flour, and white rice. They have all been severely processed and are therefore, depleted and void of all nutrients (vitamin, minerals, fiber, enzymes, etc.). So, they are not of much use and are doing you more harm than good. You'll want to elect for the more natural form of those foods, whole wheat flour, raw honey, stevia, coconut palm sugar, and whole wheat rice. Most brown sugar is essentially the same as white sugar that's been sprayed with molasses and are welcome party for feeding cancer cells and suppressing your immune system. Nonetheless, the white color of flour, sugar, and rice is indicative of the fact they have been bleached/refined, meaning taken from their natural and whole state of being into a unhealthy one. Rice, flour, and sugar were brown in color or whole wheat or whole grain to best describe them. So, you'll want to reach for them in their natural state when out shopping at the market.
- Additionally, you definitely want to avoid all foods that are labeled refined, processed, and genetically modified ingredients that are GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms). Foods labeled as such or that have come to be known as such should be avoided at all cost. For GMOs, they are the worst, as they have been genetically engineered in a laboratory where they crossbred natural food seeds/cells with that of animals, like snakes, scorpions, rats, and all sorts of beasts, etc. Research has been conducted that shows that GMOs are known to cause digestive disorders, cancer, and infertility in many. As for refined foods, they have gone through a rigorous heating process where the cellular structure of the food has been broken down, unrecognizable to the body's digestive system. It's very much like what is done when you microwave your foods. Again, heat processing of foods leaves them void of vital nutrients, maybe not all but definitely some of those nutrients. So, it really all depends on what you're using them for and if the ingredients that make up the products are healthy, then I really don't see a threat with that exception. For example, fractionated coconut oil vs. raw organic and pure virgin coconut oil. The difference of the two is that fractionated coconut has been refined through the process of heating to have a more lighter finish (less oily) to be used in cosmetic products as a carrier oil that has a indefinite shelf life. It is an extraction process where you're now receiving part of the whole coconut, meaning you're not getting all of its benefits and therapeutic properties had it been virgin/raw - cold pressed. It's acutally not bad if used without chemicals or additives during extraction. Remember, heat processing destroy some if not all nutrients within foods.
- Sodas, sports/energy drinks, juices, and junk foods, like chips made from GMO corn - non organic are detrimental to your health. They are comprised of unhealthy ingredients. Sodas like Pepsi, Coco Cola, Sprite, Mountain Dew, Red Bull, Gatorade, and many other are really bad for you because of the unhealthy sweeteners and ingredients used to make them. If they don't make you fat because you may have a high metabolism, they're sure to leave behind their unhealthy residue from bad ingredients used and that over time from continuous consumption of them, will cause serious damage to your health, and with that, one can develop terminal illnesses/diseases like cancer, tumor, fibers, nervous system issues, etc., etc. The list goes on and on. Energy drinks, like Red Bull are loaded with just that, "bull cr*p" ingredients and artificial sweeteners, like aspartame that are deadly and that can cause your blood sugar levels to spike, and thus, eventually result in some form of diabetes, kidney and/or liver dysfunctions and/or failure, and Gatorade is one of the worst of all the sports and energy drink out there - yah, not good at all. It's loaded with most unhealthiest of all ingredients. One of the main ingredients in energy drinks is caffeine. It's part of the overall formulation that make-up many of the sports/energy drinks out there today. Caffeine is acidic. Therefore, leaving the body prone to all sorts of diseases when in such an acidic state. Not only that, but "Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system giving the body a sense of alertness as well as dilates blood vessels. It raises heart rate and blood pressure and dehydrates the body." As important, most juices and beverages are loaded with sugar and the worst kinds as mentioned above too. So, you'll want to stick with healthy brands that you may be aware of or simply invest in a juicer or blender and make your own juice and beverages - better safe than sorry. Don't you think?
- All GMO infused foods are to be avoided. You simply don't want to fill up and overload your body's system with genetically modified organisms aka genetic engineering (GE) and genetic modification (GM). They are a serious threat to our health. Again, those sort of foods are engineered in labs by mad scientists who've crossbred food gene with that of animals, like scorpions, monkeys, snakes, rats, alligators, swamp things, l o l, but everything that should not be mixed together, they've done it. It's really sick and debased thinking about it - how someone could be so disturbed and cruel in intent to do such a thing - unbelievable, just evil if you ask me. Some well known GMO foods and brands are: U.S. papaya, tomatoes that are non-heirloom, corn for sure, cottonseeds, canola oil, alfalfa, sugar beets, milk, and aspartame, to name a few. The GMO brands are: the monster producer of GMO of course - *Monsanto*, Kraft, Nestle - boo, Enfamil, to name some of them. See here a more comprehensive list of GMO Companies. Here's also a great link to a resource that can serve as a great guide to buying non-GMO foods, The Non-GMO Project and the The Non-GMO Shopping Guide.
- Certain cooking oils are really bad for you, especially partially hydrogenated and trans fat oil. Why? Because they have been heat processed or refined with harsh chemicals and additives, that leaves the oils depleted of their nutrients and also lowers the level of HDL (good) cholesterol and raises the levels of (bad) cholesterol, LDL. For instance, oils like canola oil are made from GMO corns, that, as we should now know, are really detrimental to our health. Vegetable oil aka partially hydrogenated oil is another poor quality oil and one that you should avoid. Those oils will clog your arteries and pores when they go rancid and subsequently produce free radicals that do further damage, like causing pre-mature aging and heart diseases and diabetes. If you're going to use oils and fry or cook your foods with them, it's best to use organic/raw/virgin coconut oil. It's loaded with many healthy properties and benefits. See my previous posts about coconut oil, Why Coconut Oil & What You Should Be Looking For To Identify It As Being A Good Brand To Buy and Are You Cuckoo For Coconut Yet?. Other oils, such as pumpkin seed oil, flaxseed oil; of course, raw-virgin coconut oil as mentioned before, avocado oil, extra-virgin olive oil, to name some of them that are the better of the bunch out there on the market. Be sure to always look for terms like extra-virgin, unrefined, and/or organic when selecting your oils to use on your body or to cook with.
- Non-Orgnaic Dairy products are so bad for our immune system. It really beats the fight out of our bodies defense stystem. Foods that are known as dairy products are cow's milk and cheese and all foods made from them, like pizza, yogurts, pastries, bread, etc. It's best to find healthy dairy alternatives or substitutes, such as almond, hemp, or coconut milk and non-dairy cheese to make your favorite foods, like pizza and those irresistible pastries: cakes, muffins, cookies, and the likes. If you're having trouble gaining a bloated stomach, yeast or fungus infection, you may want to look more at the dairy and gluten products, like breads that you are perhaps consuming on a regular basis. Making healthier choices with those types of foods will help alleviate any ailments that you might be experiencing. As you may or may not know, dairy products are loaded with growth hormones used to make the cows bigger for greater production, and cheese, comprised of the same harmful hormones, causes inflammation within the body. It pretty much swells and expands while going through the digestive system, never really being fully broken down for proper assimilation through the body's system. If you're going to buy dairy products, you'll want to look for those brands that are labeled organic, free of harmful preservatives and hormones, etc.
- Hormone raised meats of any sort, whether beef, chicken, mutton, lamb, turkey, and/or fish or shell fish. It's utterly important to get the brands that are free of growth hormones, wasn't fed pesticide infested foods, or infused with harmful chemical ingredients and preservatives. Therefore, look for labels that read "Free Range", hormone/pesticide free, etc. The more fresh and pure the meat or fish the healthier it'll be. For fishes, wild caught and deep sea are best, except for shell fishes and shrimps that are loaded with high wattage amounts of cholesterol and they are scavengers of the sea - enough said there - ugh, the things they eat - yuck. You simply don't want to know but maybe you do.
- Last but certainly not least, you'll want to *be cautious* about foods that are labeled "Natural". There are no strict guidelines or regulations by the FDA, like that of Organic (USDA) that ensures that those foods that are labeled natural are actually so, free of pesticides, hormones, harmful preservatives, and GMO ingredients. So, it's wise to conduct your own research before buying a particular non-organic food labeled as natural. Those products with such labeling are often times loaded with harmful ingredients and are deceptively marketed to the public as being in a pure form - natural.
Well folks, that's all. Remember, when in doubt, research, research, research, and Google does it best.
Peace + Love + a Long Healthy Life! Take care, until next time. Chow! xoxo :-)
Cited sources:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/artificial-sweeteners/MY00073
http://action.greenamerica.org/p/salsa/web/common/public/signup?signup_page_KEY=7608&gclid=CIfC9p6EursCFeYWMgodzxoA-w
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2013/08/what-are-gmos-and-why-should-i-care
http://www.womansday.com/health-fitness/nutrition/are-cooking-oils-good-for-you-123273
http://www.caffeineinformer.com/energy-drink-ingredients
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