I am probably the most annoying person to grocery shop with. I go by myself for this particular chore with the express purpose of being very selective about the items I'm buying for our meals. I look at the ingredient list with the thoroughness of a copywriter looking for typos. I suppose it's no surprise that there are loads of ingredients lurking in our food that are artificial, linked to illness, and often banned in other countries and yet we eat them either without knowing or without caring. And we wonder why the American population is sick and getting sicker.
A few examples:
- potassium bromate - if you look for it, it's going to be present in about 90% of the sliced bread and baked goods sitting on a grocery store shelf. It's a stabilizer that allows bread to keep its shape through transportation and weeks of storage. Unfortunately, this particular chemical is very highly linked to kidney and thyroid cancer.
- natural or artificial flavors – again, if you go looking for this "ingredient" you're going to see it in everything from Goldfish crackers to Corn Flakes. What is included in "natural or artificial flavors" is a mystery. The FDA has allowed companies no need disclose exactly what is in that ingredient and it can encompass everything from dyes to chemicals. And natural does not mean it's better than artificial – it just means at one point it was a real ingredient.
- sunflower oil, safflower oil, corn oil, canola oil, vegetable oil – some of the most refined and processed substances on the market. It's a hard task to find chips, snacks, even popcorn that doesn't contain one of these inflammatory oils. Because of the heavy refinement of this ingredient it's not too much better than cooking food in petroleum. Excess consumption of these oils cause inflammation in the body and chronic or extended inflammation leads to autoimmune diseases.
I've been reading a lot about how sick American's have gotten in the past 50 years. We have autoimmune issues cropping up in children. Type 2 Diabetes is on the rise. Unhealthy living and eating is leading to heart problems, lung problems, immune issues, gut issues and the list goes on. But, unsurprisingly these issues can almost always be linked back to consistently unhealthy food choices. Sure, genetics plays a role in your specific health aliments but it's actually less of a role than previously thought. We have new illnesses because we have new, terrible ingredients in our food.
Brands That I Trust Enough to Eat
Thankfully, all hope is not lost in the grocery store shelves. It's ultimately about finding the brands that have a commitment to keep their ingredients clean and free from unnecessary additives. A few of those brands include:
Siete – I've tried almost everything from this brand and am always SO impressed with their options and ingredients. If I want potato chips I buy them from this brand – they're only 3 ingredients: potato, avocado oil (an anti-inflammatory oil) and salt. Incredible!! Their Cassava flour tortillas are my favorite gluten-free tortillas and I use them for lunches all the time. Even their grain-free hard shell tacos are amazing. 10/10 for this brand for both their taste and clean ingredients.
Lesser Evil – a snack brand with great ingredients. Their popcorn is now the only popcorn I'll buy because it's one of the only brands on the market that don't pop their popcorn in an inflammatory oil. They use organic coconut oil (again, anti-inflammatory) and non-GMO corn. I haven't tried any of their other snacks because they're hard to get hands on, but I'm curious about them.
Elmhurst Milks – a line of plant-based milks - which if you're dairy free or prefer to limit your dairy intake I would highly suggest you look at the ingredients in most almond, oat, and non-dairy milks.
A popular brand like Silk Original Almond Milk has the follow ingredients: Gellan Gum, Sunflower Lecithin, Locust Bean Gum, Ascorbic Acid (to protect freshness), Natural Flavor.
Elmhurst is the only brand I've been able to find in our local stores that only contains real ingredients. Their Almond milk contains filtered water and almonds. Two, simple ingredients exactly how it should be.
Kite Hill – if you're looking for a dairy-free yogurt or sour cream, Kite Hill is one of the better ones on the market. It's made with coconut and almond cultures and has a mostly clean ingredient list - at least better than the alternatives.
Obviously, there's nothing like making food yourself with whole, wholesome ingredients where you control the amount of sodium, you control the spices and seasonings and obviously lack of artificial ingredients. Snacks are the hardest for me to keep on top of. It takes a lot of time and is a bit more of a monetary investment to find and buy clean ingredient items. But, for a healthier, better quality of life. It's 100% worth it!
I'm not telling you to throw away everything in cupboards and pantry, but if you're interested in this concept, go through your kitchen and pull out all your convenience, pre-packaged, and snack foods. Take a look at the back label. Most people's eyes will be drawn to the calorie count. That's basically unless information.
Look down to the ingredient list, do you see Fully Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils listed on your Jiff Peanut Butter? How about Canola Oil listed as the second ingredient in "healthy" Triscuit crackers? Malt Flavor ( a combination of dye, sugar, and corn syrup) is the second ingredient in Corn Flakes.
If you want to be fit you count calories, if you want to be healthy you read the ingredient label of the foods you buy.
And there's so much I didn't touch even touch upon. The entire protein world, energy drink world, pre-packaged coffee world, frozen food world is enough for me to fully stay away from because they're doing more harm than good. If you're struggling with your health and need to take control or if you're just needing a change, start by taking a hard look at your food and take control of your physical and metal wellbeing.