Shopping for Health

I was thinking today about something I heard once ... maybe it was Weight Watchers, but I'm not sure. The advice was to stick to the perimeter of the grocery store for food. Great advice!

I mean think about it...

1. The produce department should always be the first stop in the grocery store. Grab your fruits and veggies, preferably organic. Maybe you can even find locally grown. The healthiest part of the store! You can often find veggie meats and tofu in this department, too.
   
   
   
2. The meat department is next. Unless you are a vegetarian. Many grocery stores are now carrying more "natural" meats, but buyer beware. Know what you are getting and read the fine print. Natural just means no artificial additives. You may still being buying grain fed and factory farm raised and it may still have gone through a large meat processing plant. However, choosing the lesser evil is still better than buying that Smithfield vacuum packed meat. 
3. Next you have the frozen food department. If you stick to healthy foods like fruits and veggies this department isn't so bad. It's actually full of healthy choices. And frozen fruits and veggies retain more vitamins and minerals than canned ones. Just don't cook them in a big pot of water. Many of the nutrients leach out into the water. Buying prepared foods in this department is not such a good idea, however. Typically, they contain tons of additives and preservatives and are highly processed.
4. Last but not least is the dairy department. This department is full of protein and healthy fats. Remember that non-fat versions often have other added ingredients to enhance flavor so read labels carefully for carbs and artificial ingredients if choosing low-fat or fat-free. Whole milk, cheeses, and butter are good for us in moderation. I prefer to choose organic and choose free-range whenever available. In health food stores you may be able to find local raw milk in the dairy section, which is what we drink.  The taste cannot be matched by supermarket milk. 
5. Then there's the rest of the store. Think about this: the shelf life on some of that stuff is years. That's not natural. Food spoils. If it doesn't spoil fairly quickly, be suspicious. Most of the center store is NOT healthy and DOES contain artificial ingredients like preservatives and sweeteners. Most of it is highly processed and much of it is high in saturated fats and low in vitamins and minerals. This is the icky part of the store. Not convinced? Download the app Fooducate and try scanning some items in the center part of the supermarket. You may be shocked at what you discover! And remember that these overly processed foods have negative consequences for your health and the health of the planet.

Of course, I still recommend and personally prefer buying from local farms. We are in a small-ish city and I am able to get fresh, local, organic products including free-range grass-fed meat, sustainably farmed veggies and fruit, raw or low temp pasteurized milk, eggs, and even honey, jams, and jellies. We also could get grains but we don't eat many grains. I buy soap from a local farm, too! 

If you aren't sure where your local organic farmers are, check localharvest.org. 

Questions or comments? Please leave them below! I love to read them! Find this information useful? Share it using the buttons below for Facebook, Twitter, or Google+ and let your friends in on it!

Short, Fat, and Proud to be an American

Did you know that in 2010, America was the world's fattest country? Our people are ranked 9th in the world in height. So we are all getting to be short and fat. Great. 

I watched the United Stats of America tonight on the History Channel. (I happen to love this show. I rarely turn on a TV, and when I do there are only a few shows that I will sit and watch. This is one of them.) Tonight's numbers really hit home hard. Tonight's episode focused on obesity in America, which I have blogged about previously. Not only am I personally working to change the fact that I fit into the obese category, but more than 30% of Americans are right there with me.

In the United States, unhealthy food is easier to get and often less expensive that healthy food. The government subsidizes major factories that produce processed foods and corn growers who sell to major factories for over-processing. It isn't natural! 

The most popoular food in America is french fries! And the average American eats more than 4 pounds of potato chips per year! Many Americans don't even know how to cook a potato at home! Fast food burgers often contain enough calories meet a persons caloric needs for an entire day! A wide variety of foods eaten in their basic form made early Americans the tallest and healthiest people in the world. A diet of fast food and overly processed food has made modern Americans the fattest people in the world!

The average male waist was 33" in the early 1900s, but today it's 39.7"! But we changed the way we eat starting in the 1950s with the advent of fast food restaurants. Also,  people started working less actively. Technology has reduced the number of farmers to 2% of the American population and 80% of Americans now work in offices. In 1790, more than 90% of Americans were farmers! They ate healthy food and got tons of exercise. 

America has adapted, though. Instead of calling attention to the problem, since the 1980s furniture has gotten wider, movie theater seats have gotten wider, dinner plates have gotten bigger, and even standard coffin size is now wider!

I am learning to eat fresh, made from scratch, and homemade. When I do all of this, I eat healthier! And guess what? I've started losing weight! I have a long way to go, but I am finally learning that when I make healthier choices I can eat more food without gaining more weight. When I get more exercise, I work up more of an appetite. But I can eat more because I burned more calories. 

Sounds simple but it's harder than you think to put into practice. Why? Because unhealthy food is easier to get and less expensive! You can't get steamed spinach at a drive-thru. But you can get potatoes dipped in sugar then deep fried in oil and tossed with salt for only $1.19. No wonder our nation is short and fat.

If you liked this post and others on Mama Making Changes, please clickhere to go to Circle of Moms and vote for me as one of the top eco-friendly mom blogs. Just click here, then click the thumb to vote. You can come back to vote every 24 hours. Thanks for the support!