Good morning! I hope all of you Moms and those who help Moms in any way had a great Mother’s Day. 🙂 (Does anyone else have an awesome sister in their life, either with no kids or grown kids, who are gaga about your kids and help you all the time?! My sisters are awesome like that.) And as always, my heart goes out to those who wish they were Moms. (Have you seen this information on dealing with infertility?)
We're making grassfed T-bone steaks for Mother's Day, thanks to Stan and his book, Tender Grassfed Meat: Traditional Ways to Cook Healthy Meat, now I have confidence cooking expensive grassfed meat again! (Have you read Stan's Real Food miracle story yet?)
- Thanks to my friend Bob, who sent me this article on food additives: Are you enjoying your daily chemical cocktail? Here’s an excerpt: “Typically, a client will say something like, “I eat a bowl of cereal with low-fat milk, have yogurt for a snack, and a Subway sandwich for lunch.” While this sounds relatively harmless, here's what it might actually look like based on some popular “health food” items: —One serving of Kellogg's Fiber Plus Antioxidants Berry Yogurt Crunch contains more than 13 different additives, preservatives, and food dyes, including Red 40 and Blue 1, which are known to cause allergic reactions in some people and mutations leading to cancer in lab animals. It also contains BHT, monoglycerides, and cellulose gum. In addition, conventional milk often contains residues of artificial bovine growth hormones, known endocrine disruptors as well as antibiotics used in industrial milk production. —Dannon Light & Fit Peach yogurt contains more than 11 different additives including Red 40, aspartame, potassium sorbate, sucralose, and acesulfame potassium. —A Subway sandwich of turkey and cheese on nine-grain bread with fat-free honey mustard, peppers, and pickles contains more than 40 different additives, preservatives, and dyes. The pickles and peppers have Yellow 5 and polysorbate 80, the bread has 10 different additives including dough conditioners, DATEM, and sodium stearoyl lactylate, and the turkey contains 10 additives as well. The person in this example has consumed more than 60 food additives eating breakfast, a small snack, and lunch alone, to say nothing of dinner, dessert, further snacking, and drinks. Consumers Union's Dr. Hansen told me, “I wouldn't be surprised if it were up to 100 additives or more that people are taking in on a daily basis.”
- Can anyone guess why this article, Marketing junk food to kids: government to crack down on unhealthy food ads, has me ticked off, when you’d think it would make me giddy? You probably feel the same way, but just in case, here’s your clue: “The government is pressuring food companies to cut back on marketing unhealthy foods to children, releasing guidelines Thursday that could phase out advertisements on television, in stores and on the Internet if companies agree to go along with them. Under the voluntary guidelines, companies would be urged to only market foods to children ages 2 through 17 if they are low in fats, sugars and sodium and contain specified healthy ingredients. The proposal sets parameters that are stricter than many companies have set for themselves. If companies agree, children could see much less of the colorful cartoon characters used to advertise cereals or other gimmicks designed to draw their attention. If the food manufacturers wanted to continue that advertising, they would have to reduce unhealthy ingredients in their products.”
- See if you agree with my niece. She told me that this shot of my omelet looks disgusting, so I found a new one that looks much better and it's up at that post now.
- One from the archives: Here I shared about an embarrassing fungal infection.
- Have a great week!
Arlene says
In Quebec, we don’t allow any advertisement aimed at kids under 12, for food (good or bad) or toys. I think its a great initiative.
However, all kids here watch lots of American and rest-of-Canada TV, so not sure how effective it is.
Emily says
Yes, I agree with your niece. 😉
As for tender grass-fed meat…I always kind of chuckle when I hear people complain about the learning curve in making GF beef taste better, b/c I’ve never had any trouble with it. Only ever made crockpot pot roast, and that always turns out as tender as anything.
Beth says
The link to the marketing crack-down article didn’t work for me. My question is: What if the companies DON’T agree? I strongly disagree with the gov’t dictating and influencing our food choices; yet stongly agree with them safeguarding our children from UNnatural additives and poisons. Why can’t they just regulate the fake non-food inedible additives and let us parents make either wise or unwise decisions regarding the actual food choices? Sorry, I’ll jump off my soapbox now!
KitchenKop says
I just fixed the link, sorry about that!
ValerieH says
Many times when my kids watch a commercial I ask them questions.
child: I want that!
me: what are you watching? is that your show?
child: No, it’s a commercial.
me: What are commercials for?
child: to sell you stuff.
Breaking into the television trance engages their thinking. Kids dont’ have the same filters as adults. Their brainwaves are in super-learning theta waves until about age 7. They need this guidance about all kinds of advertising. I didn’t realize it until I took a college course when I was 19.
Food commercials are insidious. Ads for restaurants fill the whole screen with delicious looking food. It zooms in slowly, building desire. I call it food porn. (I don’t say that to the kids). It is important to watch how commercials present the product, then watch your reaction inside your mind (also check your mouth and stomach). Advertisers are very savvy. They fund psychology research to better understand how our minds process information.
My husband has fewer concerns about television than I do. He is with them after school while I work full-time. I’m sure they are bombarded with lots of advertising. I’m also concerned about the messages in the shows they watch. My older ones are watching pre-teen shows, like iCarly.
KitchenKop says
I love those questions, I’m going to start doing that, too. (My kids will love it, especially Kal who is 18, *NOT*, LOL!!)
Kate @ Modern Alternative Mama says
Hey, less sugar and refined sodium is great. Less fat? Not so much. Then again since the fat they’re using is rancid vegetable oils, maybe that’s not so bad either?
Regardless I’ll continue NOT feeding that junk to my children. 🙂
jenna Food WIth Kid Appeal says
thanks for pointing out bob’s article.
i’m with you kel, i doubt the new marketing guidelines will actually protect kids. the items they sell to kids may be lower in fat, sugar and sodium, and contain some kind of “nutrient” but they will also contain plenty of chemical additives and nothing to certify that the ‘nutrients’ included are actually the kind of food the body recognizes as fuel instead of more foreign substances to detox. too often eaters fall prey to the “enriched” food that marketers are selling.
if you shop for meat, and produce grown the way nature intended you’ll fuel up just fine. there is no need for enriched food-like substances to feed kids or adults.
Rebecca in Michigan says
I must have missed the original post on your omelet. I looked at the picture and was thinking, why in the world would she put carmel on the top of her omelet. Glad it was melted cheese instead. I love taking pictures of my dishes, but also don’t do well with the results. Oh well. Thanks for sharing.
I also read an article on vaccination today that will boil your blood. I know it did mine. https://www.naturalnews.com/032330_vaccines_iPod.html
Elisabeth says
I’m new to your site but am looking forward to reading more of the inside scoop on what’s done to our food. It’s really quite shocking how much food manufacturers mess with our food. No wonder cancer is everywhere..
Elisabeth