Low Toxicity Eating
Unfortunately these days food just isn’t what it used to be. Fresh fruits and veggies come wrapped or boxed in plastic, salads are prepackaged with dressings that contain all sorts of additives and preservatives, and many people struggle to cook the basics because they have been conditioned to purchase prepackaged, so-called convenient alternatives. So what is the big issue?
Well, lets think about this…
Your packaged product, whether it’s pasta sauce, sundried tomatoes, bread, or even frozen fruit, gets produced in a factory somewhere away from the supermarket you eventually purchase it from. So in order for it to get to you, it needs to be produced in the factory, packaged, transported to often a middleman warehouse, then stored again for a period of time, then transported to your supermarket and put out on the shelves for you to buy. This process would take anywhere from 1 day, up to 1 month or more depending on the product and how long its shelf life is determined to be.
So, how can they make a product last so long?
Ordinarily, these products would go off in this timeframe, or at least deteriorate in quality.
To stop this from happening these products have additives and preservatives added to them. These are often synthetic chemicals that serve to increase the shelf life of products. The downside of these additions to our food is that they can wreak havoc with our bodies, affect our moods and even harm our health.
There are many people fighting to get these chemicals removed from our food but until that happens we need to take our own health into our own hands.
Here is what you can do to reduce the toxins you consume in your food:
Always read the labels
Look out for any numbers, colours, flavourings and extracts, as these generally suggest hidden additives and/or preservatives. If you don’t know what an ingredient is, then chances are it is something you should avoid.
To find out exactly what an additive or preservative number means, refer to the FedUp website.
Make some of the pantry basics yourself
Check out the pantry recipes on our website and explore beyond by doing a simple Google search. You will find there are some pretty simple recipes out there to replace all of your sauces, dips, spreads and more. You can make them in bulk and freeze them, that way you know exactly what is in them.
Give these few a try…
Guacamole Dip
Spicy Peanut Sauce
Plant-Based Mayo
In fact, check out our whole Snacks & Staples section!
Practice mindful eating
Don’t just eat for the sake of eating. Stop eating on the go – and that includes while working or browsing Facebook.
Make eating about enjoying food again. Enjoy the taste, texture and how it makes you feel. Talk about it with your family members and get a feel for what types of flavours they enjoy. It may open up a whole new world of food to explore.
Redefine what you call a treat
Foods that can cause harm to your body, mind or spirit are not treats. Anything that is GMO, filled with additives, preservatives, and colours are not treats, so stop referring to them in that way. Consider the more natural alternatives that make you feel good and refer to them as your treats. For example, one of my treat foods is now baked muesli with nuts and seeds, coconut yoghurt and fresh fruit. It’s delicious, never makes me feel sluggish and I know it is all natural.
Try the Carmen’s Blueberry Coconut & Almond Crunchy Clusters
Or make your own…
Fig, Apple, Apricot & Nut Muesli
Crowd out your plate with fresh fruits, vegetables, and salad AND always eat them first!
This one was a game changer for me. I found that when I loaded my plate up with the veggies (at first I certainly wasn’t reducing the other components) and I ate it all first, I soon realised that it was really enjoyable. Over time, I reduced more and more of the not-so-healthy and more often than not processed extras.
Explore new foods and how to cook a little differently
Often the biggest hurdle is learning how to cook a little differently. We are fortunate these days to have access to a wealth of information online as well as new and interesting ways to flavour our foods. Check out these upcoming events we are co-hosting with Jo from Additive-Free Lifestyle – if you want to attend, and live in the Perth area, be sure to book as they are not-to-be-missed and likely to sell out quickly.
These workshops will include a wealth of information about getting back to the basics, additive free eating and using essential oils in cooking.
Perth: Additive Free Cooking Workshops featuring Jo from Additive Free Lifestyle
The Source Bulk Foods
Clarkson
Tuesday 4 September
7.00pm
The Source Bulk Foods
Floreat
Wednesday 5 September
7.00pm
The Source Bulk Foods
Floreat
Sunday 9 September
5.30pm
