Read the Ingredients

Forget the Nutrition Facts we are so commonly geared to look at, look at the ingredients. It doesn’t really matter how many calories, fat content, fiber, etc. what matters is what is in it?

 One guy states in the movie Food Matters that “we really are what we eat!” If we eat wholesome (God-made) food we will be healthier, but if we are eating High Fructose Corn Syrup, Monosodium Glutamate, chemicals and other ingredients like these on this label, (that you can hardly read) wouldn’t it be a no brainer for people to think that the more we eat them the more likely we are to be sick?
That is not the case, people don’t think like that, including us 5 years ago. When I use to go grocery shopping I bought what looked good, what box was appealing to my eye, and what label had less calories, more fiber. I didn’t even read the ingredients. I truly thought like so many people, if they sell it at the grocery store, it can’t be bad for me. 
But those (most of them) ingredients ARE bad for me and my family! Today, the grocery is still full of those same ingredients I use to buy. The ingredients I did not even look at including MSG, food dyes, artificial flavors, many preservatives and tons of other things I can’t pronounce. Our family isn’t perfect but we try to avoid this list of 9 ingredients as much as possible and read why you should avoid them here.
  1. Artificial Colors
  2. Artificial Flavorings
  3. Artificial Sweeteners
  4. Benzoate Preservatives
  5. Brominated Vegetable Oil
  6. High Fructose Corn Syrup
  7. Olestra
  8. Shortening, Hydrogenated and Partially Hydrogenated Oils

So the best thing we can do is to read the ingredients!
*tip: if you can’t read it, don’t eat it!

What does your family do when it comes to grocery shopping?

day2day joys

Healthy 2day Wednesdays 1st Link Up! So glad you’re here! Thank you for stopping by! and if you are participating in Healthy 2day Wednesdays, a special THANKS to you! Hope you’ll take a second to read some of the other entries! I hope we will all learn something to help make our families healthier!

Healthy 2day Wednesdays Link Up: I know there are many of you out there that are “going green,” organic, turning away from the medical model of America and are really taking time to be aware of what you are putting in and on your bodies, etc., So, let’s share our tips!  

Rules for this Link up:

  • Share an idea, tip, recipe, things to avoid, something new to try, etc. that will help us to remain or become more healthy!
  • Comment on someone who linked up before you
  • Add button or link back to that days link up
  • Spread the word so we can learn more ideas on keep our families healthy! If you’re not participating today, I hope you’ll come back & join in!
  • Ideas: homebirths, natural remedies, an interesting article, something eco-friendly, a review your doing, natural cleaner, How to’s, the list goes on & on!
About Rachel

Rachel is a mother to four children and a wife to a wellness doctor. Her passions are faith, family, and health. You can find her writing about her family adventures and inspiring you to make healthier choices for your family.

Comments

  1. Great points! We are working on doing more and more whole food cooking these days. I am reading lots of labels…one step at a time, we will get where we want to be. Sure feel better as we do! Thanks for visiting my blog tonight! I learned a lot from yours today!

    Building Home with Him,

    Mary Joy

  2. Thanks for the invite! I’m following back — so nice to find like-minded bloggers. 🙂 Blessings, ~Lisa

  3. This is going to be a fun link up:)

  4. we are avid label readers here too and it amazes me what they put into food and call it food. We try to stick to single ingredient items but if we can’t pronounce it we won’t buy it. We have ourselves to about 90% whole food now and our health is steadily improving.
    On the link up note, i finished my post though it’s a lengthy one, on the benefits (and the processing side) of Milk.

  5. Rachel, so nice to meet you! Thanks for the invite!
    What a wonderful link-up idea! I shall be back again! :0)

    Much Love & Blessings,
    ESTHER
    Our Simple Country Life

  6. Thanks for finding me! Love the topic of this link-up!

    I do most of the shopping for my family, and I use about the same guidelines you do. We don’t do refined carbs either (well, not usually! But I have some goldfish in my pantry right now….)

  7. Thank you for the link party!Thank you also for your visit to my blog! I am your newest follower!

  8. Thanks for the link invite!

  9. Thanks for the invite, Rachel! I’m sharing a plastics and BPA article as well as a new post on MSG and the (40!) hidden names for MSG in our food. I work with a lot of clients making the very same changes that you are right now, thanks so much for getting the word out! We vote with our forks and our dollars every day, and if we all work together, we CAN change the system.

  10. Thanks for the invite! I shared the chicken nugget recipe using REAL ingredients, and a healthy fat to fry it in.

  11. Thanks for inviting me to your link up. I’m glad I found your blog and your great post about reading ingredient.

  12. Thanks for the link invite. This looks like a great linkup!

    Annie Kate

  13. Ladies, I am so excited you all have joined in and/or are leaving a comment about thie link up! I hope this link up will encourage us all to make better choices for our families and learn something we might not have known about otherwise. Thanks for being apart of this new adventure!

  14. Hello Rachel! I enjoyed your post… good reminders ;o) Also, thank you for linking up at Simple Lives Thursday, but we want to remind you that you need to link your post back to us… rule number 2. Looking forward to what more you have to share with us at Simple Lives Thursday!

  15. Marillyn, you have a great site! And I’m hoping to learn more & more through you & the people who link up about food on your site! I wanted to let you know your link to your website is under my signature on this post. (it’s in smaller font so you might not have seen it)

  16. Thanks for inviting me!

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  1. […] you simply begin to read the food labels, you will be making a step in the right direction, you will get familiar with “fake […]