My story, and why
I’m so conscious about what I eat.
During the last few years I have become extremely interested
in the food that I consume. Unfortunately,
the food we eat today is very different than what our parents and grandparents ate
growing up. I always considered myself a
“healthy” person. I ate what I thought
was good for me (which looking back was not necessarily the best) and never had
any health issues. This changed in the
early 2000's when I suddenly started to have allergic reactions. One incident left me in the hospital on
Christmas Day during one of the worst snow storms the East Coast. It was scary, and I started to really wonder,
why all of a sudden am I having these problems?
The hospital recommended I get an allergy test, and I was
quite surprised by the results. I found
out I had numerous allergies that I did
not have growing up as a child.
Some of the food related allergens included nuts (tree and peanut),
peas, carrots, avocado and coconut. I
didn’t understand how I went from someone that could eat whatever they wanted,
to someone that now had to worry about how the foods were prepared and exactly what
the ingredients were. It was a tough
time for me, and I actually started to develop a bit of anxiety every time I
ate out. I was so afraid that I would
have another allergic reaction. I had a
few incidents, but thankfully did not end up back in the hospital.
My health continued to suffer. I never really felt good and was constantly
trying to maintain or lose weight. I got
sucked into the trap of eating a lot of so-called convenient and “healthy”
processed foods (think of the healthy options that you can find in the freezer section)
and low calorie/no and low sugar alternatives.
I was frustrated, confused and really didn’t know how to make the
situation better.
I remember the day when I started to understand what was
happening to me. I found a research article that talked about the rise in
allergies and other sicknesses being connected with the increase of genetically
modified products. It ALL made sense now
- the timing…the food…the allergies. The
food I was eating was making me sick, and it was time to change. I was on a mission to get back to a healthy
place.
Click here for an article that talks about the research and the potential
effects of GMO products.
I’m still trying to figure it all out, but I’m in a place
now where I’m feeling better than I have in a long, long time. I try to stay away from processed foods and eat
real, nutritious organic foods. I’m also
happy to be able to share this information with others, in the hopes they can
avoid some of the problems I've had to deal with.
Genetically
Modified Organisms (GMOs)
GMOs are organisms that have been genetically altered or
changed. Genetically engineered (GE)
seeds were introduced commercially in 1996 to develop “Round-up Ready” crops,
meaning they are developed to survive the chemicals that are sprayed on
them. In addition, some of the crops are
engineered to produce toxins that kill pests.
“According to the California Department of Food and Agriculture, 70% of
processed foods in American supermarkets now contain GE ingredients” (cited
from OrganicItsWorthIt.org). GMOs are heavily found in corn, soybean and cotton
crops.
Natural Vs.
Organic
Natural does not have a defined and enforced regulation
(except for meat/poultry/eggs, where there are some loose guidelines), while
organic does. So called “natural”
products may indeed be processed, contain hormones, antibiotics and artificial
flavors.
Check out this definition of “natural” from the USDA site:
Natural. As required by USDA, meat, poultry, and egg
products labeled as “natural” must be minimally processed and contain no
artificial ingredients. However, the natural label does not include any
standards regarding farm practices and only applies to processing of meat and
egg products. There are no standards or regulations for the labeling of natural
food products if they do not contain meat or eggs.
So basically this is telling us that “natural” means
absolutely nothing in regard to produce/crops.
In regard to meat, poultry and eggs, a farmer could in theory inject his
animals with hormones and feed it GMO feed, but process it in a certain way and
be labeled and marketed as “natural”. What does this tell us? Be VERY leery of the
natural labels. I’m not saying every
“natural” label is going to be a bad product, but every “natural” labeled
product isn’t going to be good either.
Another thing I will point out is it is very expensive for a
farmer to gain the USDA Organic seal. So
there are many farms that are doing the right thing in terms of growing/producing
their animals and crops, but don’t have the money to become certified
organic. There is another
non-governmental program called “Certified Naturally Grown” where
smaller scale farmers can certify that they are using truly natural methods.
Here is a great guide from the USDA to better understand
what the various labels and marketing tactics mean. It is up to us to educate ourselves, because
there is a lot of deceptive marketing happening.
Organic means the production of the food was heavily
regulated and they followed the farming or production practices created by the
USDA. Here is the definition from the
USDA website:
Organic
is a labeling term that indicates that the food or other agricultural product has
been produced through approved methods. These methods integrate cultural,
biological, and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote
ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity. Synthetic fertilizers, sewage
sludge, irradiation, and genetic engineering may not be used.
If something has the organic seal, it should also be
non-GMO. Here is an article from the
USDA that explains this.
Hopefully this helps you to better understand the
various types of food that are available and what you should be looking for. It is so important to be educated about what you are eating, because not everything is good for you.
Sources:
If you have any questions, please email me at TeamFitini@gmail.com.
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