Saturday, November 23, 2013

Healthy Eating ~ how in the world am I going to feed my family?

 "Food Matters" a documentary to watch
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwZY1jaw2EM
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
4 Harmful things hiding in your meat 

"If you are accustomed to reading current events, visiting Natural Society, or any of the other natural health websites out there, you already know there are things hiding in your meat–things like antibiotics, bacteria (MRSA, E. coli.,etc.), hormones, and the occasional Mad Cow disease. But there are less-publicized and equally scary things in your meat you may not know about. These contaminants or intentionally-included toxins deserve some attention, particularly if you are a meat-eater.
In addition to antibiotics, hormones, and all else mentioned above, here are 4 other things that could be tainting your meat:
1. Asthma Drugs - Ractopamine is a cardiac-stimulating drug that’s been used in meat production since 1997 – despite known risks. It’s label even states, “Individuals with cardiovascular disease should exercise special caution to avoid exposure. Not for use in humans. Keep out of the reach of children.” The drug and others like it cause stress and hyperactivity in cattle. Researchers published in the journal Talanta suggested it was “not appropriate because of the potential hazard for human and animal health,” not to mention water contamination through run-off.
2. Carbon Monoxide - Carbon monoxide is used in the process of packaging meat. It’s not done as a food safety measure, rather solely for aesthetics. The gas keeps the meat from losing its red color. As a matter of fact, it can keep meat looking deceivingly fresh for up to a year! Even the USDA and the European Commission’s Scientific Committee on Food have expressed concerns about its use. Check out Mike Barrett’s post to see a video and an image showing the difference between treated and untreated meat.
3. Cleaning Chemicals - Remember the uproar about a year ago concerning the use of “pink slime” in meat production? It’s still being used. It and other cleaning products are added to meat in an effort to kill bacteria. Ammonia, chlorine, and others, are often ineffective at keeping meat safe and unnecessary when you understand that these bacterium can be killed during the cooking process.
4. Heavy Metals - The USDA itself says the level of heavy metal contamination in U.S. meat is unacceptable. Their 2010 report (pdf) found high levels of several metals including copper and arsenic—both of which can cause negative health effects.
As I recently reported, the USDA is looking to pull more of their inspectors out of the U.S. meat producers, hoping to replace them with inspectors from the producer’s staff—an exercise in misplaced trust if I’ve ever seen it. For that reason and more, it’s crucial you know what is in your food and make proper decisions based on the information available, not the information they would have you believe."
Compelling reasons to buy locally grown... all pasture raised Organic meat
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


What's your BEST budget friendly tips and recipes- staples you keep in your house?
**WE ARE IN DESPERATE NEED OF A FOOD MAKEOVER!** .... NOT a lot of fundage at all$$ But my son seems reactive to the typical processed foods etc that are easy to just throw in the cart...and I have multiple jobs/roles that I need to keep my energy up for- I tend to use coffee too much perhaps.....TIPS please!
Like ·  · Unfollow Post · November 18 at 12:35pm near Hilton Head Plantation, SC
  • bulk bulk bulk and produce produce produce
    bulk will save you lots of money. See if you can find a hf store in your area that has bulk grains etc. What I found was that the bulk organic was LESS expensive than conventional bought at walmart!
    Farmers Market... Food Co-op... clnf.org unfi.com Frontier co-op
    smoothies. Tinkyada brown rice pasta. long grain brown rice. Yellow Split Peas. Adobo Seasoning (Frontier). Red Lentils.

    Bob was telling me just yesterday that he can FEEL the difference from when we ate beef/chicken from the store to what we are getting now which is totally pastured/grass feed beef and pastured grass/bug non-gmo feed chicken.
    It is WELL worth paying a little more for a higher quality. You are FULLER faster and have MORE energy. Eating Clean Food is a LOT better in Many Many Ways.
    At first we didn't realize it, but looking at our consumption rate we can see a definite difference. I wouldn't say it is a wash $ wise as yet... but honestly... the $ we are spending on this cruelty free LOCAL meat is a lot less than I had expected we would be spending based on our previous consumption/needs. Maybe a 1/4 more than we spent before on a weekly basis. Same goes for eggs. We are definitely getting more/better quality nutrition in a smaller amt and it shows. 
    we get our raw cheese through the produce group I run (that is something you might look into to see if there is a group in your area... like a buying club)
    hmmm
    recipes... I tend to make stir fry a LOT
    or baked chicken (from frozen) or a roast with carrots and potatoes made in graniteware in the oven. 
    For lunch we are having a bit of leftovers. I made red lentils w/ long grain brown rice for dinner with Adobo seasoning blend. We had bread generously sliced and buttered with og cultured salt free butter (we do not buy salted butter... never know the kind of salt used... instead we use the unsalted and sprinkle some real salt on if we are wanting that.) I made a HUGE pot with intentions of creating lunch today with it.
    today I browned a pound of ground beef and then added the lentils and rice. Warmed on the stove and Lunch is served. 
    I think that is the biggest hint I could give you. Make extra when making dinner so you have lunch or leftovers to make another meal with the next day. It can be a great time saver. And doesn't have to be the exact same meal. Rice and lentils are so easily moved from one flavor to another by different seasonings. We could have also had 'tacos' with what I made for lunch by adding taco seasoning to the mixture. 
    Have fun!
  •   Thank you!!!
  •   I definitely second the bulk stuff. Buy produce in season and freeze what you can, learn how to preserve, dehydrate, go ahead and cook some into dishes you can then freeze and keep stored. Locallygrown.net is also a good resource for finding co-ops. Amazon can be a good source for bulk items too. I've heard good things about Costco. Having a chest freezer has helped us a lot because we can freeze a lot of stuff. If you are going gf, ignore the packaged gf foods unless you find them on super clearance and they're just use as a treat lol. Stick with whole foods that are naturally gf. And remember, it's not all or nothing. If you can only replace a little at a time, or you can only switch to something that's better but not best, it's ok. Be patient with yourself and remember that it's a huge change and it's ok to make mistakes
  •   Thx!! Such great advice y'all 

No comments:

Post a Comment