Eating healthy

Recently I’ve been on a healthy eating tear, especially after reading Michael Pollan’s terrific book, In Defence of Food, and watching the DVD “Food Inc.”  Both tell of the perils of eating a western diet rich in refined carbohydrates, processed foods and additives, and how that is leading to chronic diseases and all-round bad health. 

So I decided to eat healthy from now on.  No processed foods (such as canned food, hams, etc.) and no refined carbohydrates (white rice, pasta, etc.).  No eating anything that comes with a list of ingredients you cannot pronounce. 

But it’s hard.

For example, I saw an ad on TV for Campbell’s Select Harvest soups, claiming “made with real ingredients.” So I went ahead and bought some.  Turns out it still has non-natural ingredients: modified corn starch, soy lecithin, mixed tocopherols, potassium chloride, ascorbic acid (why did they have to add Vitamin C?), mono and diglycerides.  The only difference is, on this can of Campbell’s soup they explain what some of the ingredients are: “There are many types of salt in food…Potasium Chloride is just one type used to add flavor.”

Pity, it means canned soup is still out.

So, what I learned to remember when trying to eat healthy include:

Cook your own meals from natural produce.

Eat more fruits and vegetables.

Buy organic, buy local.

Avoid refined carbohydrates. Eat whole grain.

Refined carbohydrates are, for example, those found in sugar, white breads, pasta, crackers, and cereals. Whole grain foods include dark bread, whole-grain breakfast cereals, popcorn, cooked oatmeal, brown rice, bran, and other grains like bulgur or kasha.

Avoid processed foods.

Avoid trans fats.

Limit your salt intake.

When your body takes in more sodium than it needs, it retains fluid simply to dilute the extra sodium in your bloodstream. This raises blood volume, forcing your heart to work harder; at the same time, it makes veins and arteries constrict. The combination raises blood pressure. Your limit should be 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day, about the amount in three-fourths of a teaspoon of salt.

Avoid high fructose corn syrup.

Research is beginning to suggest that this liquid sweetener may upset the human metabolism, raising the risk for heart disease and diabetes. Researchers say that high-fructose corn syrup's chemical structure encourages overeating. It also seems to force the liver to pump more heart-threatening triglycerides into the bloodstream. HFCS is in almost everything we consume today, including bread, beer, bacon, soft drinks, spaghetti sauce, ketchup.

Here’s a great article that explains all of this well. Some quotes from it are pasted above.