Day 83

I’ve become alarmingly aware of food since starting this food journey. By that I mean I notice so much more about food than I ever have. I notice what other people have in their carts at the grocery store. And so many times I just want to ask them if they really know what those products have in them. I want to tell them if they looked at the ingredients they would see that most have been produced in a science laboratory. They are loaded with chemicals and manufactured for profit, not health. They are filled with fat, sugar and salt because those are cheap. Added chemicals keep these cheap ingredients brightly colored and tasty for a long shelf life. I don’t say anything because they would think I’ve lost my mind but I have to wonder how many of them are just as concerned about their food choices as I am. J I notice they have “diet” drinks and “low fat” options and I wonder if they are trying to make ‘healthy’ choices in doing so. I notice when small children are munching on deep fat fried chicken bits as their parents shop. (this happens a lot at Walmart by the way) Every time I see that, the image of mechanically separated chicken comes to mind and I get nauseous. J I notice what others believe is a “good-hearty meal” and I immediately run through the ingredients that are in it, knowing that if they really knew and understood what they were putting in their bodies, they might think twice about eating it. I notice that REAL food rarely comes from a box.

  I notice that people say eating REAL food is too hard to do. Cooking from scratch will make you a slave to your kitchen. It’s too time consuming. If you don’t become obsessed about it, you can do it. Many times people take an all or nothing approach to it. They either make all their own bread, only shop at farmer’s markets, think everything has to be organic or they go the other route and eat all microwave meals. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. It can be whatever you can do. Go to the store and buy actual food. Stay away from shiny packages. Don’t buy a frozen pasta meal when it takes just as long to boil water and sauté a few vegetables. Always know what you’re eating and where it came from.   

*Thought for the day*

How we spend our days, is of course, how we spend our lives – Annie Dillard