Let's Talk About Food...

Well hello stranger….sorry it’s been so long! I’ve been commuting and it’s been long days and nights and I no longer want to look at a computer after 6 PM. But I have things to talk about….I’ve been making mental notes for my blog so I am going to pile it on.

First up…you are what you eat. I am sure I’ve said that before on this blog and I will reiterate it! I am sure most of you have heard of the documentary Food Inc. I bought it a few months ago and finally sat down to watch it a few weeks ago.

I knew what I was in store for and I had to be in the right frame of mind to deal with what was coming at me. But it was an eye-opener. Although I knew some things, I wasn’t’ aware of a lot of them.

Trying to get pregnant and the thought of bringing new life to this planet is an exciting yet scary thought. I changed the way I ate over the past three years. It was a progression that moved to the forefront of my mind as time elapsed and I still was not pregnant. I stopped eating most meat (except fish) and felt better although my doctors and acupuncturists, etc have asked me again and again to just eat a nice piece of organic, free range chicken or beef once in a while.

In the last few months I started doing just that. I feel good and I know where my meat is coming from. I am not buying it at the supermarket; I go directly to the farm. I am fortunate enough to live near great farms. I talk to the farmers and see their animals and what they are eating and how they are living. This isn’t mass produced meat where animals live in terrible conditions and have high levels of bacteria in them like E-coli that ends up in the meat case at the super market.

Here is one large piece of info you need to know the next time you are looking at meat at your local supermarket. It may look nicely cut and clean but most likely; it did not come from a pretty place. Most cows nowadays are given hormones and antibiotics along with food that consists of mainly GMO-corn - that means it’s genetically modified and that all gets passed to you.

What is happening is that since these cows are not grass-fed, like they should be because that is their natural way, they are developing a situation where they cannot fend off bacteria like E-Coli. More of the bacteria is being passed onto consumers.

And here is how the beef industry is attempting to counteract that – not by changing the ways they feed these animals but by adding filler to your ground beef that has been washed in ammonia. Sounds appetizing doesn’t it?

This isn’t just a documentary – it’s a wake up call. If you don’t want to see it because it will “ruin” the way you eat and your next dinner, then you shouldn’t read on. This is about knowledge and getting a better understanding of how the world works. This will affect you and your children and grandchildren and their children.

So think about it. Watch it. Being better informed is a good thing so you can make decisions based on that.

The movie is hard to shake, you will continue to think about your food and where is came from. If you don’t know what the ingredients are….maybe next time you will pass up a cookie with unpronounceable ingredients and go for something that your grandmother or great-grandmother can pronounce like apple or pear!

Yes, one person can make a difference and set in motion of chain of events that make an even bigger difference.

Below is a list of 10 simple things YOU can do to change our food system:

1. Stop drinking sodas and other sweetened beverages.
2. Eat at home instead of eating out.
3. Support the passage of laws requiring chain restaurants to post calorie information on menus and menu boards.
4. Tell schools to stop selling sodas, junk food, and sports drinks.
5. Meatless Mondays—Go without meat one day a week. (An estimated 70% of all antibiotics used in the United States are given to farm animals.)
6. Buy organic or sustainable food with little or no pesticides.
7. Protect family farms; visit your local farmer's market.
8. Make a point to know where your food comes from—READ LABELS.
9. Tell Congress that food safety is important to you.
10. Demand job protections for farm workers and food processors, ensuring fair wages and other protections.

For more info visit: http://www.foodincmovie.com/