Mystery Food Revealed

Tammy, you must be a label-reader!  You were aware enough of ingredients that you guessed correctly!  It was a Coffeemate creamer, Amaretto to be specific. That is fantastic.  We all need to be as label-savvy as you.  :)

 

Here are those ingredients again -

Water, Sugar, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and/or Cottonseed oil, and less than 2% sodium caseinate (a milk derivative), natural and artificial flavors, dipotassium phosphate, disodium phosphate, mono- and diglycerides, cellulose gel, cellulose gum, color added, carrageenan.

 

Let’s see, we have water, not bad, then sugar, not good, but not as bad as number three–the big, bad hydrogenated oil we talked about last month!  Given the choice between good old-fashioned cream and this pseudo-cream substitute, I’ll take the cream please.

 

But what about the fat?!?  Cream contains a high-percentage of butterfat (around 40%).  This fat actually contains vitamins A, D, E and K; antioxidants, selenium, CLA (conjugated linoleic acid–an anti-cancer nutrient), and lauric acid (an antimicrobial fat–a germ killer), and more.

 

But soybean and/or cottonseed oil can’t be that bad?!?  This pseudo-cream substitute contains a man-made hydrogenated oil (read trans fat) that causes cancer, type II diabetes, heart disease, infertility, obesity, hinders the immune system and a lactating mother’s milk.  In a pregnant woman, trans fat can cross the placenta and hinder brain development of the child.  In a nursing mother, trans fats will be present in breast milk and can interfere with the child’s neurological and visual development.

 

So you can see why I choose cream.  I’ll take vitamins and a strong immune system any day over cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and infertility!  We don’t even have to go into the details of the rest of the ingredients, that third one is so bad.

 

Remember, if God created it, it is healthy; if man has messed with it, it is not!

 

Read more here:

All About Trans Fat – a very informative brochure.

Butter Is Better – another short brochure, both are must-reads.

October Challenge

Are you ready for another challenge?



This month, the challenge is to cut out hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils for 7 days. Check your labels, you might be surprised to learn what foods contain these oils.



Partially hydrogenated oil is the same thing as trans fat. The problem is that a lot of packages claim 0g of trans fat per serving, but it really is anywhere from 0 to .49g. The FDA allows the manufacturer to claim 0, if it is less than .5. Well, half a gram doesn’t sound bad, does it?



Let’s think about it this way, though. When was the last time you just ate 1-oz. of chips. If you have a scale, try weighing out 1 ounce. It isn’t much. Most of us eat more than one serving of most foods at a time. The manufacturer makes that serving size so small so that they can hide how much trans fat and/or sugar the item really has. So, then you are really eating possibly 1.5g of trans fat, every time you enjoy those chips. Studies show that even 2 grams of trans fat a day are dangerous.



If you normally cook with Crisco, use butter instead. Butter is a very healthy fat. It has had such a negative connotation for far too long. Click here to read about that.



Click here to learn more about hydrogenated oils.



I will check back in at the end of the 7 days and report my results. See you then!

Omega 6: Are You Overdosing?

I just read an awesome article in this month’s issue of Prevention magazine.  I have read about Omega essential fatty acids before, but this article brought some new things to light.

We’ve heard of Omega-3 essential fatty acids, but what about Omega-6?  We hear we should eat fish to get Omega-3s, but is it found in other food?



Please read here and then you can read my notes.

The Vanishing Youth Nutrient by Susan Allport



Notes-

The author makes an excellent point that we need to get back on grass-fed meat and dairy, like our great-grandparents.  Here are some sources:

In the Tulsa, OK area – Swan Brother’s Dairy

Also for Oklahomans – Oklahoma Food Co-op

In the Tulsa area – Natural Farms (two locations–4th & Utica or 91st & Yale)

Also check out Eat Wild for a list of sources in your area.

Or you can order from US Wellness Meats

(I have not been paid to promote any of the above businesses.)



We see in this article that a big portion of the Omega-6s in our diet come from vegetable oils, soybean, cottonseed, corn, etc.  If you will remember from my earlier article, But Isn’t It Natural?, that these oils are very difficult to extract from the beans/seeds.  Chemicals are involved, as is high heat, both of which damage the oil tremendously.  If we would just eat these seeds in their whole form, we wouldn’t be overdosing on Omega-6.  Remember–If God created it, it is healthy, but if man has adulterated it, it isn’t.



I cannot agree with her recommendation of Canola oil for two reasons.  Canola oil has a 2:1 ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3.  This means that for every gram of Omega-3 you’re getting, you are still getting 2 grams of Omega-6.  I don’t see how this helps anyone.  We are supposed to be getting a ratio of 1:1 of Omega-3s and 6s.  Chances are, if you are using Canola oil, you are still eating some packaged food, so you are still getting too many Omega-6s.  The other reason is that the oil you buy in the store is already damaged, like mentioned above, by the heat and chemical process.  Ingesting damaged oils is toxic to your system.  But let’s say you are going to buy expeller-pressed Canola.  Then what?  If you are heating it, you are damaging it.  If you want to drizzle it cold, on your salad, I suppose it would be okay.  I, myself, will stay away from Canola.  Want more information?  Click here.



On page 115 (in the magazine) and page 6 (online), I take issue with point #6.  Butter is not bad.  You can read my article on that topic, here.  And did you know that butter has antioxidants in it?!?  Click here to read more.



So, overall, the information in this article was great and I hope it helps you.  It basically just comes down to the fact that if we were all eating food that hasn’t been processed, we would be getting plenty of the right Omega-3s and Omega-6s, in the right ratios.

I Had NO Idea!

I have heard that most honey sold in the stores is cut with corn syrup, but I had NO idea that olive oil is often adulterated, too!

 

I read this post by Cheeseslave, that details how olive oil manufacturers are cutting their oil with other oils, possibly soybean oil, hazelnut oil, and who knows what other oils.

 

One way to test your oil is to place it in the refrigerator and see if it solidifies.  A true olive oil should become solid.  If your olive oil doesn’t solidify, it could mean that it has been cut with other oils, OR had the waxy portions of the olive oil removed.  Read the post by Cheeseslave and also the comments, too.  Someone mentioned that Bragg brand didn’t solidify when cold.  I think that Bragg is a great brand overall and they are probably selling pure olive oil, but they are just removing the waxy portion of the oil.  (I personally want my oil as unadulterated as possible, including all the components of the first pressing.)

 

I started buying Star brand from Walmart because it was labeled “organic”.  Well, I put it in the refrigerator and it did not solidify.  I knew it had to be too good to be true.  It was such a great price.  I will be looking elsewhere now.