Monday, March 29, 2010

Sugar is a Spice that Isn't Too Nice!

Ok, I know sugar isn't really a spice, but it rhymed for the the title.

Seriously, sugar directly affects your power levels-and not in a good way. Oh sure, it pops you up quickly, but it also lets you down even quicker. The average American consumes roughly two-three pounds of some form of sugar each week; it’s easy to see why when you consider that sugar lurks in breads, breakfast cereals, mayonnaise, peanut butter, ketchup, spaghetti sauce, and the list goes on and on. We have an epidemic of sugar addictions and cravings in this country. It seems, when we feel stress in our life, we often consume more sugar. When other aspects in your diet or life are imbalanced, such as purpose, connection to others or movement, it shows up in sugar cravings; when we are not happy with another aspect of our life, sugar seems to fix it all, temporarily.

Your Diet Soda is Making Your FAT!!
A University of Texas Health Science Center survey in 2005 found that people who drink diet soft drinks may actually gain weight; in that study, for every can of diet soda people consumed each day, there was a 41% increased risk of being overweight.

Other forms of sugar are carbohydrate both simple and complex. Made up of sugar, simple carbohydrates are completely stripped of all fiber, minerals and nutrients, such as candy, pasta, bread, cookies, and processed boxed foods. It’s like a pure injection of sugar in the body, with a spike in blood sugar then a sudden drop. When you eat sugar, it pulls on the nutrients and mineral reserves that are currently in your body, which really pulls your power from you. If a product can sit on a shelf for a long time, it most likely will have sugar in it. Also, the more advertising a food has, most likely there is sugar in it. When was the last time you saw an ad for carrots or broccoli?

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

12 Safest Non-Organic Foods



The Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit organization that advocates for policies that protect global and individual health, produces the Shoppers' Guide to Pesticides in Produce. It is based on the results of nearly 43,000 pesticide tests.

Organic fruits and vegetables are by definition grown without the use of pesticides. But some find the expense of organic foods prohibitive.

Of the 43 different fruit and vegetable categories in the Guide to Pesticides, the following twelve foods had the lowest pesticide load when conventionally grown. Consequently, they are the safest conventionally grown crops to consume:

* Broccoli
* Eggplant
* Cabbage
* Banana
* Kiwi
* Asparagus
* Sweet peas (frozen)
* Mango
* Pineapple
* Sweet corn (frozen)
* Avocado
* Onion

Sources:
* DrWeil.com July 30, 2008; * FoodNews.org Printable Shopper’s Guide