Wow! This is hard! I keep reading online all the free cereal that is available this week and it's killing me to not go get it! I was having lots of fun stocking up free or near free boxed cereals and then I was doing some reading one day and the cereals I "thought" were healthy, really aren't if you look closely at them, so I am quitting dry cereal. It takes a lot of willpower to NOT go get the free cereal because free food helps keep the budget down!
Some people may think this is "extreme" but I started thinking about it. Many times I hear people say - "A little bit isn't going to hurt you. Having it once in a while is OK." Really? I don't think I can agree with those statements. I would never say - "A little cigarette smoking is OK. Drinking a little poison isn't going to hurt you." Some of the ingredients in processed foods aren't far from these- chemicals foreign to the human body and preservatives made from crude oil. I can't say it's OK to put these into my sweet children's bodies. I feel I have to teach them how to eat from a young age so they can have a good start and enjoy health throughout their lives.
The other day while taking my chewable calcium pill (trying to be healthy here!!) I noticed it had some nice Red Dye # whatever in it!!!! Acckkk! Why does that need to be in there? Because I won't take it if it isn't "pretty"? Yikes. Now I have to find a new source for my calcium supplement.
The following is a link to several articles on preservatives in food. After clicking here scroll down to the bottom of the page to get to more articles. They are informative. This one especially gives some good information. Remember also that additives go by many names. Things I thought were harmless on labels like "natural flavorings" actually aren't harmless. I've had to do a lot of reading to educate myself on the different things to look out for in food. Do I believe everything I read? No. But I research for myself and dig deeper and look for substantial information with sources or studies to back it up. It's a continual process to stay informed.
I am enjoying your blog. It seems we have been having some similiar thoughts and experiences lately. I was making some spaghetti sauce using canned tomatoes today (trying to avoid some of those "extra ingredients" but not going completely from scratch) when I realized my tomatoes had High Fructose Corn Syrup in them. I usually buy the plain once that are just tomatoes but had bought some garlic ones or something. Aggh!
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