When my daughter was a baby, I received a Baby Bullet from my mother-in-law. I had never thought about making my own baby food before but it got me thinking about food in a new way. I thought how old is that banana in the jar of baby food at the grocery store? And what did they have to do to it for the expiration date to be 2 years away?!?! I sort of became obsessed with food labels. I saw ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, Red 40, and Artificial Flavor. What is Red 40 anyway? It is a challenge in our modern world to distinguish between what is good for us to eat and what is crap. Labels on packaged food do not help with this problem because they are misleading. For example, “non-fat” and “sugar-free” usually mean full of chemicals. Making matters worse, healthy foods are becoming increasingly expensive, while unhealthy processed foods are cheaper and easier to buy. You can find a cheese burger for $1 at a fast food restaurant but a salad will set you back $5. The safety of Genetically Modified Foods (GMOs) has been a hotly controversial topic. The scarcity and contradictory nature of the scientific evidence regarding GMOs prevents conclusive evidence of their safety or lack of safety. I am undecided on my feelings for GMOs because of the lack of data regarding long term effects on human and animal consumption and the environment. I also have a mistrust of big food companies because profit is their number one concern. Diet and nutrition are now the biggest risk factors for people's health across the globe. The best way to avoid harmful additives and the poor nutrition in processed foods is to buy whole foods like fruits and vegetables. My rule of thumb is that if a food product has an ingredient that I do not know, I don't buy it.
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