What You Should Know about FOOD DYES

GUARANTEED you have something in your house with artificial food dye in it. And it's probably Red #40. Go google it, and you'll read articles about how it is linked with hyperactivity and ADHD symptoms in children. I have listed food color additives below, and I dare you to look them up and educate yourself. It's pretty scary. Another reason to eat "clean and real".

The US FDA divides food colorants into two categories: Certifiable Food Additives and Exempt Food Additives.

Certifiable Color Additives are derived from petroleum distillates or coal tars and are essentially synthetic chemicals created in laboratories. These are often referred to as "artificial" colors.

Exempt Color Additives are derived from plant, animal or mineral sources which have been processed in some way. The layman might call these "natural" colors because of their origins, though it's likely they've come out of a factory or chemical plant just like certifiable colors.

Let's really quick talk about one of the "exempt" colors. Carmine. Insects people. The color is extracted from the shells of certain insects (Dactylopius coccus costa) that live on cacti in South and Central America. It's harvested from the female near egg laying time when their shells turn a deep red color. They are then dried and dissolved into a solvent.

Umm...no thank you I would not like my food served with dried insect shells. Disgusting.

Let's compare the idea of artificially coloring "food" to make it more appealing to the wonderful idea of eating actual real food. Naturally, ripe delicious food doesn't need any convincing...and it just so happens that Mother Nature turns her sweet offerings a wonderfully deep and beautifully vibrant color... to let us know Her food is ready.....and there's nothing aritficial about it!! There really is beauty in eating clean and real!

Also, check out this article on Food Dyes: Food Dyes Linked to Allergies, ADHD and Cancer: Group Calls on US to Outlaw Their Use
By the way, In Britain certain food dyes are not used anymore. If you bought a Strawberry sundae from McDonalds here in the US, it would contain Red #40, but if you bought the same thing at McDonalds in Britain, it WOULD NOT contain synthetic dyes.

Post Vacation Blues

What is it about a good 'ol Vacation that throws you right off the bus.......all of a sudden Sugar becomes "the friend" instead of "the enemy". No I will NOT post my food journal for today.
Give me a couple more days.
Also, I really do feel like crap when I eat crap. So why isn't it easier to eat great--all the time?

Just keepin it Real!!!!!!!

My Trainer Has a Website

I tell my husband all the time about "Amie" my trainer. I've heard people say things before about people having a certain "energy" about them. Like an actual something that emulates from being in their presence. I've really just thought that to be kinda crazy until I met Amie. You walk into her workout classes an immediately feel motivated to give everything you've got. But since I've been able to have one on one sessions with her....I truly believe she has such a strong "energy" about her. Like she lets off beams of motivation and inspiration from her body. I'm serious. I don't know what "it" is...but she has "it". Everytime I've worked out with her I feel more motivated, and feel better about myself the way I am than I did before.
So, I'm excited to share "My Amie"!

http://www.myamie.net/

She now has a website with polls, discussions, and you can become a member and have access to recipes, workouts, tips and tricks, etc.
Take my word for it, she knows what she is talking about.

My Excuse & Eating Food

First off, I'm so sorry for the lack of posts lately. My life is always busy, so I can't use that excuse........but I will use this one: I've been scrambling to get everything ready, so I could come here:

While I've been here, I've been able to finish my book, In Defense of Food. I know I cant' force everyone to read it (although I think it should be a requirement to everyone who eats food), so instead I will just share some knowledge!

I really liked the following advice given by Michael Pollan:

*Pay More, Eat Less: More energy is going towards price and quantity rather than quality. One supermarket even has a slogan, "pile it high and sell it cheap". (I wish I could copy the whole chapter here, but I'm going to have to sum it all up) So, yes you can find high quality food, but it is more expensive. So, if you can afford to buy more high quality food, do it. You are also more likely to eat less of high quality food as well. And when you are feeding your body food that is made up of 15% actual food and 85% fillers, addivitives, and preservatives, well it's not going to fill you up, so you'll tend to eat more. So, really, are you saving money by buying cheap food....or are you spending more money to get more quantity of crappy "food".

Is it just a coincidence that as the portion of our income spent on food has declined, but spending money on health care has soared? In 1960 Americans spent 17.5% of their income on food and 5.2% of national income on health care. Now...income spent on food has dropped to 9.9%, and health care 16%. Think about where you spend your money. Has anyone had thoughts...hmm...it is so hard to spend X amount of money on food...and then later had the thought....Oh, we can get all these channels on our TV for only X amount of money. How come we can find money to pay for Internet, TV, but have a hard time justifying spending more money on better food. I like how Michael Pollan says, spending more money on better food is less a matter of ABILITY than PRIORITY. Think about that. We spend a smaller percentage of our income on our food than any other industrialized society.
Spend more money on food, so you can spend less on health care. Something to think about.

The "eat less" part, is easier said than done. Especially if you live in a culture where you eat cheap and abundant calories and have no set rules to curb overeating. Other cultures, however do have rules. The French have their modest portions and taboo agains eating "seconds". The people of Okinawa, one of the longest-lived and healthiest populations in the world, practice a principle they call hara hachi bu: Eat until you are 80% full. Kind of hard to follow that rule though if you eat like most Americans. (who eat faster than your brain can actually send you "i'm full clues") In fact in a recent study, Americans actually tend to rely on visual cues that it's time to stop eating: the plate is empty, the package is empty, the TV show is over, etc.

*Eat Slowly. This is where my European admiration and envy comes in. They actually have a Slow Food Movement. An Italian-born movement dedicated to the principle that "a firm defense of quiet material pleasure is the only way to oppose the universal folly of Fast Life." Oh, and it started in Rome during the 80's when the American fast food era started. How embarassing. To eat slowly, in the Slow Food sense, is to eat with a fuller knowledge of all that is involved in bringing food out of earth and to the table. To have actual "food experiences". (which I will have to talk about later, because I'm excited to, but for right now, I need to go lay out on the beach and read more!)