It has taken me a while to figure out what to write about next, however, my travels within my own community inspired me.
Shopping in the hood
As I sit and chat with many of my friends who are also mothers, the one theme that arose again and again, "where has all the food gone!" Aisle to aisle you see packages, cans, boxes..etc OK, so food items have to be preserved as they travel, right, you want a nice looking product at the end.
This is when the real work begins. So you pick up a package/can/box and you smile, say, "I have what I want", then drop the food item into your cart. While you are contemplating how you will use this food item, you forgot to use the first rule of food shopping, READ! You are what you eat, remember.
When I was a teenager, my mom would send me out to the market. She would always say," Don't forget to look at the can/box etc., if you bring me the wrong one, I'll send you back" motivation to do it right the first time (miss those days, lol) It took me several times to get it right according to my mom. Today I not only Look at the label, I Read them too! Mom is very happy about this!!)
As you pick up that package/can/box, READ the ingredients. If you can read the words and understand them that's a keeper! If the label is full of unpronounceable additives, PUT IT BACK! This is for the beginner, until you become familiar with reading labels, just make life easier for yourself. Here's an example of a box of pasta I would pick up below.
There are only two ingredients (vit/min too) listed on this box. This would be a keeper! I can read with understanding, yes.
Resources
Very early on my journey, I began to collect resources to aid with food shopping and reading labels. I used articles from the Internet, yet it was not complete. I picked up pamphlets from health fairs and worked with a nutritionist. Still needed to piece together this healthy living "thing'. I became a member of the Feingold Association (www.feingold.org) for a year. The book contains so much information, I did not purchased another book for years. I would recommend purchasing the Feingold Handbook if you can or visit their website.
Nowadays, you can download books and/or look at YouTube videos. If you want to dive right in, go to this site: www.enoughmovement.com #TruthAboutFood. I also have a book to recommend for an easy read, the youth edition, "The Omnivore's Dilemma: The Secrets Behind What You Eat", By Michael Pollan Last year I purchased an ebook by Chef Ahki, "Electric: A Modern Guide to Non-Hybrid & Wild Foods". Her recipes are so creative, I also appreciated that the first several pages are dedicated to the understanding of Food and Nutrition.
READ my peeps!
Thanks Again for Dropping By
Passionfruitju
Challenge
I know some of my readers may be on to the next stage, deciphering labels. Here is a photo of Flour by two different name brands. Which one would you pick up and why? You can leave your answer in the comment box.
Picture A Picture B
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