Photo by:  tim tolle

• Just want to talk about a few things I noticed the other day when I forced myself to look at some processed foods at the store.
• I saw a commercial about adding fiber to children cereals.  That didn’t sound too bad but when I saw the cereals the commercial was promoting that’s what bothered me.  The one cereal in particular is Apple Jacks.  I went to the store to read the label and was floored.  On the front of the box it says “now provides fiber.”  The amount of fiber it provides is a measly 3g per serving.  There are much better cereals out there, for instance oatmeal, that provide a larger amount of fiber and are much better for us.

• Another thing that bothered me even more then the lack of fiber was the fact that even Apple Jacks cereal had food coloring in the product!  I found every cereal that had some sort of rainbow color on the front of the box (Trix, Fruity Pebbles, Crunch Berries) to be loaded with food coloring.  I have written about coloring being bad for our body and how it can cause cancer.

• People we need to wake up!  With the high cost of medical insurance why not take control of your health and become concerned with what you are feeding your body?  We need to stop feeding our body’s with the junk that is on the grocery shelves!  Fresh foods (fruits and vegetables) are the healthier choice.

• I started looking at other items on the shelves, like strawberry poptarts.  Okay, we all know this is a “quick” food to grab on the way out the door.  There are healthier choices to make.  Some people may think because it says strawberry it is good for you.  Well, again I found there is red food coloring in the product….after I read the label.  Why, I asked myself, do they feel the need to add coloring if they are using strawberry?  There is nothing good about a poptart.

• I then looked at Nutri-Grain yogurt bars.  Again there was a huge list of ingredients I couldn’t even pronounce, along with many coloring agents.  I am thinking most people seeing the name Nutri-Grain might think this product is somewhat healthy.  People!  If there is a list clear down the side of a box you might as well forget about ingesting that product.  If you don’t know what the ingredients are why would you want your body to be fed something like that?  Processed foods are going to be loaded with crap ingredients to preserve the product, to make it taste good, and look colorful.

• I must tell you I was shocked at what I was seeing as I read the labels.  I don’t shop at traditional grocery stores because I refuse to eat this junk.  If I do buy a processed item I make sure there are only a handful of ingredients with no additives, preservatives, and coloring.  Yes, there are products out there that meet this criteria.  I don’t eat hardly any packaged foods, but like I say when I do they are not loaded with the junk.  I am taking control of my health.  And guess what, I don’t get sick and have to run to the doctor all the time.  I don’t have any health care cost.  My health care cost is in what I buy and enjoy eating from the health food store.  I take pleasure in spending the money on what I enjoy, good tasting healthy food.

Happy Healthy Eating!

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