This site contains affiliate links to products sold by selected self improvement partners. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.
In the previous article we looked at some possibilities with regard to healthy choices we can make when it comes to food, as well as a couple of gotchas to watch out for.
In this article we are going to look at those foods we really ought NOT be putting into our shopping carts.
And I do mean NOT.
We’ve all been there.
We go the checkout stand, put our groceries up on the checkout belt, and a minute later we glance back at what the person behind us is buying.
Oh, they’re loading up on sugar…
Wow, that’s a lot of soda and dessert items.
Or maybe: Gosh, they’re buying a lot of produce and organic foods…while it looks like I’m throwing a junk food party.
Do you do that? Or is it just me?
I find myself embarrassed and wanting to explain to the cashier that it’s for a birthday party.
It’s amazing how much unhealthy food we can purchase at the store. And of course, there are many healthy choices too.
We have more options available than ever before. In the same store, you can buy packaged food that’s high in sugar, bad fat, and salt, or you can choose organic fruits and vegetables and free range meat.
Supermarket design
Remember what we said about supermarket layouts in the last article?
When we stick to the perimeter of the store, it’s easier to make healthier choices. That’s where we find produce, meat, and healthier foods.
The interior aisles contain packaged foods.
Some of those might be healthy, but there are many “healthy” foods with hidden dangers.
You might wonder why they’re for sale, and why no one is warning consumers, but the people who make these products also work with government agencies to decide what’s safe to eat.
This might surprise some, but the government doesn’t decide what’s healthy. It checks if things cause immediate danger.
If something checks out (by tests possibly conducted by a company with biased interests) the item is “generally considered to be safe”.
That’s not really a promise or much of an endorsement.
The health claims on food packages aren’t backed up by rigorous testing either.
It’s best to be educated and check into the foods we eat.
Here’s some that might be making you sick.
#1: Frozen/microwave dinners
We have a row of freezers full of quick and easy meals.
Some are better than others, but how do you tell?
I probably don’t have to go into this one too much, because if a frozen dinner costs 99 cents…you really have to wonder what’s in it.
#2: Produce
I’m not saying to skip produce!
But it’s easy to take it home and eat it, either without washing it or giving it a quick rinse under the tap.
There’s wax on most fruits. The government has declared that generally safe, but they haven’t studied what happens when you eat it for 50 years.
You can remove wax, pesticides, and germs by soaking fruits and vegetables in water with baking soda for 15 minutes.
#3: Soy products
Some people drink soy milk if they have trouble digesting dairy, but you might want to pick another dairy alternative.
Processed soy which you will find in many processed foods, throws off hormones in both males and females. In males, it causes gynaecomastia, or the enlargement of the male chest through added fatty tissue.
In females, processed soy can hurt your fertility and cause hormonal imbalances, leading to other problems.
Typically, a female might feel like she has a thyroid problem (feeling sluggish, gaining weight, exhausted all the time…) but the medical test will come back negative.
The problem is compounded because processed soy is in most packaged foods like protein bars, snack bars, protein powders and mixes, and anything else that needs cheap filler or something to make it chewy and smooth.
Check labels and you’ll find processed soy hiding in many things. You will want to avoid these processed foods as much as possible or limit your intake.
#4: Processed and bleached grains
Humans haven’t been eating grains at the level we do now until the last 50 to 70 years. So our bodies haven’t evolved to digest grain.
If you look at the rising levels of grain consumption, it correlates to the rising numbers for obesity, diabetes, and inflammation diseases.
The grain we eat is often bleached, white bread foods which turn to sugar in our bodies.
Grains today have been bred so they are very different from the grain people have been eating the last few hundred years.
And after all the cross-breeding, many are genetically modified.
On top of all that, most grains have pesticides in them when processed into food.
So if you want grains in your diet, go for whole, organic grains that are processed as little as possible.
#5: Margarine
Once upon a time, about 20 years ago, advertisers told us that margarine was a healthy alternative to butter. It was also cheaper, and came out when people were scraping the bottom of the barrel for grocery money.
It’s softer than refrigerated butter and therefore easier to use. But it’s not worth the health risks.
Margarine is marketed as a healthier, low fat butter, but it’s loaded with bad (trans) fats and increases your cholesterol, hurts your heart, and makes it more difficult to lose weight.
Please tell me you are NOT still buying this stuff! Apparently insects such as ants avoid it like the plague and go for butter instead!
#6: Liquid Food
It seems like grabbing a canned shake is a good idea if you’re running out the door.
But drinking a supplement drink will spike your insulin levels much more than eating actual food.
That can make you develop insulin insensitivity and lead to many different health problems.
These drinks are not only loaded with sugar.
They also have lots of chemicals in them. Just take a look at the very long ingredient list.
One of those chemicals you might find is carageenan – a known cancer-causing chemical.
Nutrition shakes can help the elderly or sick get their vitamins and minerals, but these shakes aren’t a good meal plan in general for the long term.
#7: Juice
The WIC, or Women, Infant, and Child program has been giving families food vouchers for milk, cereal, and juice.
We’ve seen a sharp increase in obesity in toddlers, and it’s from drinking more juice and eating sweetened cold cereals.
Juice has fructose but no fiber, and our body needs the fiber to properly digest the fructose.
We end up with inflammation and other problems due to ingesting fructose alone.
#8: Grain-Fed Beef
Cows are not meant to eat grain. In fact, cows must have medicine and antibiotics if they eat grain, which basically keep them alive long enough to butcher.
Grass-fed beef, or free-range beef, actually has a completely different fat makeup. So the fat content in grass fed beef is healthy instead of bad for you.
You can compare the products in store: you’ll see a huge difference in how grain and grass fed beef looks.
You’ll also taste a big difference, and then feel a big difference in your health.
Yes, it’s more expensive. But if you limit your red meat intake, as you should, it’s not that much more money for a few of your monthly meals.
#9: Lab-Created Foods
So this is a group of food—a rather large group of food products that are causing ridiculously high numbers of disease in our country.
There are many, many ingredients in our foods that do much more harm than we realize.
Research is showing the GMO food is not healthy, but it goes beyond that.
Limit your consumption, or avoid, foods that aren’t natural.
Artificial sweeteners might be zero calories, but the body still reacts as if you’re eating sugar. They’re also linked to cancer and diabetes.
Preservatives and food dyes are linked to a long list of diseases. Other countries, for example, European countries, ban ingredients that the U.S. allows, so check labels! Buy organic instead.
If you don’t understand what ingredients are, you can’t know what it’ll do to your body.
You might think that it’s safe because it’s on the shelf of a store, but look around at the general health of Americans.
#10: Diet and healthy snacks
Many diet problems sell a line of foods products to help you lose weight.
The idea is that you’ll have a few shakes and then a few snacks during the day.
That’s a problem because the products have huge ingredient lists that are full of artificial ingredients.
Many cause insulin spikes, so you’re extremely hungry after eating them.
You might end up eating all the diet food in the plan, and then other unhealthy foods because you’re craving carbs more than ever.
We also have health foods like protein or granola bars. These, too, have artificial ingredients, lots of soy, and other things you don’t want to eat.
We’re trying so hard to be healthy…but we’re confused by these packaged foods.
You can feel better and lose weight if you eat lean meats and lots of fruit and vegetables.
The next time you load your groceries onto the checkout belt, use this list so you can feel good about what you’re buying.
It doesn’t take that much more time to read labels and buy whole foods, and it’s so worth it for the health benefits!
Go here to discover how the American Diet is making us sick.
It’s a life-changing series of videos that will redefine everything you thought you knew about eating right and staying healthy for good – CLICK HERE to watch it now.
In the next article, we will have a look at sweeteners.
Image by Tumisu, please consider ☕ Thank you! 🤗 from Pixabay
This site contains affiliate links to products sold by selected self improvement partners. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.