Month: April 2018

Sorry everyone, I have been out of town and have gotten a little behind…oops! I’m back though, and ready to rock n’ roll!!  This week we are going to talk about where to buy this healthier food…..

While going to health food stores would be more ideal, sometimes we only have the conventional stores close by, so what do we do??  First…whip out your “dirty dozen list.” You can find it here on the Environmental Working Groups’s Website.  This list contains the top 12 foods that contain the highest levels of pesticides based on annual testing.  These are the foods that I highly recommend that you find an organic replacement for!  If you start your switch there, you are getting the most bang for your buck; healthy nutrient dense foods that are less contaminated by pesticides when purchased organic. There is also a “Clean 15” list which contains the the 15 least contaminated foods.  These food items can be purchased conventionally. Many of these foods contain thicker skins/rinds that the pesticides cannot penetrate, leaving the flesh on the inside pesticide free.

2018 EWG Dirty Dozen

1. Strawberries
2. Spinach
3. Nectarines
4. Apples
5. Grapes
6. Peaches
7. Cherries
8. Pears
9. Tomatoes
10. Celery
11. Potatoes
12. Sweet Bell Peppers

 

So, Where do you go to purchase higher quality lower pesticide contaminated food????  Locally, I have several options….I have Farmer’s Markets, “Pick Your Own” Farms, Local Small Farms, and CSAs.
Let’s start with the Farmer’s Market. Our local Farmer’s Market is open spring, summer, and fall on Saturday mornings from 8:30 to noon.  I absolutely LOVE my farmer’s markets!  I love strolling through the stalls on a Saturday morning, buying the fresh products (many picked fresh that morning) and visiting with the vendors.  I ask questions and they are usually more than happy to tell me all about their farms and growing practices.  It’s wonderful conversing with the people who actually grow your food.  The prices are reasonable as well!  Be mindful though, sometimes you have vendors that ship in produce from other areas of the world or country that are not locally produced or in season.  I usually steer clear of these stalls.  After all, I am looking for local fresh produce that is in season!

 

Another great option is the “Pick Your Own” Farm . These farms are so much fun and can be an exciting outing and learning experience for your kiddos.  We like the local blueberry farm! By choosing to pick your own, you are sharing in the workload and can stock up on enough blueberries to freeze and use throughout the year for a fraction of what you would pay at the grocery store! Berries are the most common “Pick Your Own” product, but there are other fruits and vegetables out there as well.

Small Local Family Run Farms are almost everywhere and offer so many local organic options.  Many of these farmers use farming, planting and harvesting practices passed down for generations, way before the introduction of GMO’s and heavy chemical pesticides!  Visiting these farms allows you to see, first hand, how these farmers care for their farms and gives you the confidence to know that what you are buying for your family’s consumption was grown and raised with love!

 

CSAs are, hands down, one of the best ways to purchase directly from a local farmer.  CSAs or a Community Supported Agriculture agreement benefits both the farmer and consumer through the purchase of shares from a farmer though a predetermined season.  This partnership gives the farmers confidence that they have buyers for their produce and gives the consumer confidence that they are being provided locally grown healthy food weekly or monthly for the growing season.  There are so many different types of CSAs available these days!  They have come a long way!  Now you can join Summer CSAs which usually run from spring through fall, Herb CSAs that provide herbs or herbal preparations, Winter CSAs for

 

hearty winter vegetables, and for meat lovers there are also Meat CSAs.

With so many local options, it’s super easy to use your local grocery store as a place to run just for emergency last minute supplies!  Eating healthier is much easier than one could possibly imagine and very cost effective once you know where to look.  So go ahead and start searching your area for local farms, farmer’s markets and CSAs.  You’ll be pleasantly surprised just how many of these little gems you might find…and the food tastes so much more amazing when it’s that fresh!

In order to enact real change, we need to start eliminating processed foods from our diets. We need to, in turn start buying ingredients to make real food. I know, I know…quick easy prep meals make for less time in the kitchen, but processed foods are full of junk! To make matters worse, if you try to replace the conventional processed foods with organic processed foods, the prices seem to skyrocket. Here’s a secret, while organically processed foods don’t contain the pesticide laden ingredients that can be found in conventional processed foods, they are still devoid of many nutrients the body needs. So, processed foods in general should be avoided.

Making this change can be really frustrating in the beginning.  At times it seems as though the grocery store has very little in the way of food when you eliminate processed pre-made or easy prep meals. Start buying the ingredients that you need to make your favorite meals. Preparing these foods at home is actually healthier and eliminates the nasty additives that are needed to preserve prefab meals. Not only will this change benefit your health, but it will also save your pocketbook cutting back substantially on your grocery bill!

So where do you start? Look at your current prepackaged meals. Read the ingredients and start writing them down. For example instead of buying pre-made cookie dough, choose instead to write down chocolate chips, butter, eggs, flour, sugar, vanilla extract…. You can actually make large batches and freeze for later use. The savings over the long term are significant!  You can also read the packages of your favorite remade pizzas, pastas, far east inspired meals, and many other boxed dinners.  Write down the ingredients lists that you will need to make these healthier options.  You might actually be surprised at how much better the food will taste!

Another change that should be made on your next grocery list, is the elimination of non-beneficial items.  Items such as sugary drinks and snacks with no beneficial nutrients.  Sodas, flavored milks, and juices should be the first to go.  Instead, replace these items with good clean water, whole fruit and veggie smoothies, and herbal teas.

As you work towards healthier options, slowly start refining your grocery lists to contain more ingredients and less premade meals.  Work to remove quick sugary pick me ups with fresh fruit (to lengthen shelf life just freeze them).  Baby steps help you not only make the changes but stick to them!