Welcome to the Healthy Food Detective! I am by no means a "health nut" but I mostly cook at home. I am not perfect and I do eat processed foods, but I'm trying to improve by searching for more foods with simple, natural ingredients. I'm on the hunt to compare products and share food swaps and recipes that are easy to incorporate into your lives!
Let's stop putting artificial ingredients in our bodies!
Extra fiber, whole grains, 100 calories, low carbs...almost everyone is on some sort of diet food bandwagon. But did you ever check out the labels to read the ingredients that are used to make the products that way? Most of these products have artificial food additives and preservatives to give your "healthy food" its nutritional value or to make it taste better. The busier (or lazier) we get, the more apt we are to buy packaged foods on the go. And why not get some "healthy" processed foods while we're at it? Believe me, I was a victim of the Fiber One Bars and Lean Cuisines. I barely had any time to cook when I got home, so why not make a microwave dinner that was only 320 calories? However, these easy fixes were putting chemicals in my body.
My Stonyfield Farms Wake-Up Call
I love Stonyfield Farms yogurt. Not only are they an organic, family-operated company, they are also dedicated to helping the environment AND giving back to family farms. What an amazing company! Many people probably avoid Stonyfield yogurt because it is more expensive than other brands like Dannon and Yoplait. I was even a victim of the "Light & Fit" yogurt craze a few years ago. Then I compared labels and I was amazed....
A 6oz. container of Stonyfield Strawberry Fat Free Yogurt has 110 calories, 0g fat, and 6g protein.
Ingredients list: CULTURED PASTEURIZED ORGANIC NONFAT MILK, ORGANIC STRAWBERRIES, ORGANIC
SUGAR, PECTIN, ORGANIC BEET JUICE CONCENTRATE (FOR COLOR), NATURAL
FLAVOR, VITAMIN D3.
Wow! Low calories, no fat and all natural and ORGANIC ingredients! These guys at Stonyfield are genius!
Let's compare labels with my old friend, Dannon Light&Fit Strawberry.
A 6oz. container of Dannon Light&Fit Strawberry has 80 calories, 0g fat, 5g protein.
Read the ingredients. I feel sick.
Ingredients: NONFAT YOGURT (CULTURED GRADE A NONFAT MILK, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, FRUCTOSE, KOSHER GELATIN, VITAMIN A PALIMATE, VITAMIN D3), WATER, STRAWBERRIES, FRUCTOSE, CONTAINS LESS THAN 1% OF MODIFIED CORN STARCH, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, SODIUM CITRATE, ASPARTAME, POTASSIUM SORBATE (TO MAINTAIN FRESHNESS), MALIC ACID, ACESULFAME POTASSIUM, SUCRALOSE, RED 40.
I thought yogurt was made from milk! Artificial flavors? Sucralose? Aspartame? Red #40!? What in this yogurt is actually coming out of the earth (or cows)? All I see are additives, thickeners and 3 different kinds of artificial sweeteners.
Are Americans really so blind that they would rather eat these chemicals in order to save 30 calories? I know I got roped into the craze. With all the nutritional information out there, why we are still falling for these tricks?
It is my goal to spread knowledge to as many people as I can. I will be finding safer alternatives to these "health" fads and share my wisdom. Many products and recipes I already use in my life. But I am always seeking out new ones and will share them along the way. Let's work together to fight these companies and eat healthier, less processed, natural food! Of course, the best thing you can do to avoid processed foods is to cook a meal yourself!
~Angela, The Healthy Food Detective :)
To find out more about Stonyfield Farms, visit:
http://www.stonyfield.com/
