Beware Organic Food Labels

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It may seem strange to tell you to watch out for  organic food labels in a post on a health food blog.  But there’s a reason for this madness.  It’s all about those misleading labels.  Don’t believe the myth that just because something has an organic food label on it, the food is automatically healthy, good-for-you eating.

You see, the food industry watches the trends in buying, and they’re in business to make money, obviously.  So when they notice that foods that have organic food labels on them are becoming more popular, they want to slap that label on as many things as possible.

That’s not just in the regular grocery stores either.  There are a lot of foods in health food stores with that organic food label that are really nothing more than organic junk food.

Organic white flour is one example.  So the flour was grown organically, then all the nutrients stripped out of it in the process of making it white flour.  Presto!  Organic junk food.

Organic donuts and waffles?  Just because they have organic sugar and organic white flour, do you really believe they are healthy food?  Nope, organic junk food.  The best you can say is they’re a tad better than the non-organic variety, but that’s stretching it.

Look at the labels.  You want to buy whole foods.  Foods with as little processing as possible.  If the food is full of sugar and / or fat, or otherwise highly processed, chances are it’s just organic junk food.

And junk food isn’t healthy food, whether it’s organic or not.

Post from: Health Food Made Easy

Organic Junk Food

Busted – The Low Fat Diet Myth

If you’re looking for a healthy low fat diet, don’t waste any more of your time It turns out that a low fat food diet isn’t so great after all.  It fact, is becoming increasingly clear that a low fat diet is in fact, BAD NEWS.  In reality, your body needs fats in your food. 

Some of the necessary functions of fat include:

• Allowing your body to absorb the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K, thus preventing deficiencies of these vitamins.
• Providing energy.
• Preventing fatty acid deficiency.
• Helps taste of food, and keeps food in the stomach longer, providing a greater feeling of satisfaction from the foods eaten.
• Helps your body produce endorphins and prevents essential fatty acid deficiency.

As you can see, it is really important to include fat in your diet.  Fat is part of every cell membrane in your body.  It helps transport nutrients across cell membranes.  It can provide back up energy if blood sugar supplies run out.  It helps transmit nerve impulses, while surrounding and insulating the nerve fibers.

Forget The Low Fat Food Diet And Eat The Right Fats Instead

While a low fat food diet isn’t good for you, just eating any fat you want is just as bad.  You need to chose the right kind of fats to include in your diet.

Avoid saturated fats and trans fats.  These are as bad or worse than no fats.

You should also avoid too many omega-6 fatty acids, which are found in polyunsaturated oils such as corn, safflower, soy and sunflower oils.  Too much of these types of oils tip the balance of omega-6 fatty acids in your diet, making them pro-inflammatory.

Instead of the 2:1 ratio we should have in our diet of omega-6 fatty acids: omega-3 fatty acids, Americans are generally consuming 20-50 times more omega-6 than omega-3.  And that’s what tips the balance, and the omega-6 fatty acids are then pro-inflammatory.

This is bad because doctors and scientists are discovering chronic inflammation is likely the root cause of many health problems, such as cancer, heart disease, metabolic syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, and type 2 diabetes.

Instead, most of the fats you consume should be sources of omega-3 fatty acids, as found in monosaturated fats.  These types of fatty acids are ANTI-inflammatory, and good for you.  It’s important to include them in your diet, because your body cannot create them on its own.

Some good sources of omega-3 fatty acids include:

• Flax seeds
• Walnuts
• Salmon and other fatty fish
• Olive Oil

Easy Healthy Eating Tips

 1. Stop using vegetable oils like cottonseed, corn, safflower and soybean oils. 

 2. Switch to olive oil instead.  Or use some lard or coconut oil.  They’re better than using too much of the omega-6 rich vegetable oils. 

 3. Stick with the omega-3 rich oils and foods!

Post from: Health Food Made Easy

Low Fat Diet Dangers

Healthy Eggs!

If you’re looking for one of the best health foods that’s also economical, look no further than the super health food eggs.

Eggs Aren’t Evil

For a long time, eggs got a bad rap. Their consumption was accused of doing terrible things to your cholesterol levels. While it’s true eggs are high in cholesterol, with the average egg containing 212 milligrams, only a small amount of the cholesterol from food actually passes into the blood.  The real villains are saturated and trans fats in your diet, as they have a much bigger impact on blood cholesterol levels.

So it’s another one of those health food myths that eggs are bad news. They’re one of the best natural foods around, and actually quite good for you.

Build A Better Body With Protein

Your body needs proteins to supply the amino acids for building healthy cells. Eggs are full of high-quality protein with about 5.5 grams of protein per egg. Even better, they are an economical source. Compare the cost of eggs to just about any lean meat, and you’ll see what I mean. If you’re looking for cheap high-grade protein, eggs are just the thing.

Eggs are Full of Natural Food Goodness

Not only do eggs have protein, but they are also a good source of

• selenium,
• vitamin B12, and
• vitamin D.

Yes, eggs are one of the rare natural foods containing vitamin D.  (Other sources are fish such as salmon, tuna and mackerel.)  Most foods sold with vitamin D have it added artificially.  Eggs are undoubtably of the cheapest natural food sources of vitamin D.

Calling All Choline Suppliers!

Eggs are also a good source of choline, which is very important for gene regulation, brain function, and heart health. So instead of eggs being bad for your heart, they are actually one of the best natural foods to eat!

Choline is also important to maintain levels of B vitamins, and it helps reduce inflammation. Considering more than 90% of Americans are choline-deficient, eggs sound like a good natural food to add to your diet!

Phyt For Sight - Phytochemicals Help Your Eyes

Eggs also contain the phytochemicals lutein and zeaxanthin. These carotenoids may reduce the risk of cataracts and macular degeneration.

What’s more, the natural lutein found in eggs is as bioavailable, or even more so, than the forms of the nutrient offered in purified lutein products. In other words, eggs are as good or better a natural food source of usable lutein than supplements.

But Weight! We’re Not Done Yet!

Would you believe studies have shown that eating eggs for breakfast can help you lose weight? Yes, some studies have shown eating eggs for breakfast helps curb the appetite for the rest of the day.

What’s Not To Love About A Natural Food Like Eggs?

Eggs are cheap. They’re loaded with good-for-you ingredients like protein, vitamins, choline, phytochemicals and more. They may even help you lose weight. So it turns out eggs aren’t evil after all. They’re good for you and a real star on the Superfoods List!

Post from: Health Food Made Easy

Eggs: Natural Food, Great Health Food Benefits