We live in a fast-paced world and nothing shows us this as much as the food we eat nowadays. As lifestyles have become busier, we rely more and more on fast food, and convenience foods. The problem with this is a lot of these foods contain additives and preservatives. These are the things that are put into the food to make it last longer, maintain the state it was made in, and generally last longer on our shelves and in our freezers.
Unfortunately, processed foods and healthy living don’t go together. These foods can actually be the culprits for a lot of health issues including gut health problems, digestion issues and hormonal imbalances. We have to get educated on this stuff because it can impact us and our families significantly. The tricky thing is that it’s not always easy to tell which foods are highly processed and which ones aren’t. Here’s a quick guide to some of the processed stuff you should be looking out for.
Some of the so-called breakfast cereal you eat is really nothing more than a candy-packed dessert. Considering the fact that they don’t actually even resemble whatever grain they derive from, that should tell you how many preservatives are added to it. Not to mention a lot of these cereals have artificial coloring, which is another way they bring additives into it. Trade your box of rainbow cereal for oats and you’ll do your body a lot of favors.
In order for vegetables to not just go from farm to table, but to farm to grocery store shelf to table a lot has to be done to can and preserve them. This can make a lot of these foods very high in additives and preservatives so you have to learn to read food labels carefully. Opt instead for frozen vegetables and packets and just keep them in the freezer till you need them. With cans you can never know what you’re eating along with the vegetable on the label.
Traditional Beef Jerky
Beef jerky is high in protein and low in fat, but because it’s packaged for longer periods of preservation, it does have additives and this is something we have to watch out for when we are buying it. Luckily nowadays you can find healthier alternatives that are made from 100% natural ingredients and contain no additives. It’s better to buy those instead of the stuff that’s sold more commonly. It might be a little extra effort, but it is worth it.
Bacon is great, we all love it and it’s probably one of the greatest food inventions in the world, BUT it’s actually highly processed. Think about what it takes to turn a piece of pork into a flat, tasty ribbon bacon, some of those processes require additives, and for it to be packaged, preservatives are pretty much necessary. Now this isn’t to say you should completely cut out bacon because that might not be that easy to do. Just learn to eat it in moderation instead or find alternatives with less additives.
The greatest rule to go by when it comes to food is if it’s not from an animal, the ground or a tree, don’t eat too much of it. By sticking with a lot of natural, organic foods, you actually skip out on highly processed food. Another thing you can do is find preservative-free alternatives to the processed foods you like. Nowadays, it’s actually very easy find things like preservative free foods like nitrate free jerky and bacon, and vegetable products without a lot of additives.