| Nearly everyone is riding the health train these days. | | | | the list of undesirable and unhealthy ingredients. It is |
| Unfortunately, good intentions can get lost in the | | | | best to choose food with a short list of ingredients, as |
| supermarket amid colorful, deceptive packages that | | | | they tend to be somewhat healthier, and you are not |
| beg us to take them home. Their voices have | | | | feeding your body anything you do not want it to have. |
| particular strength as they tout health benefits | | | | Find these ingredients in processed package foods |
| prescribed by the medical community. One needs to | | | | and snacks. Be especially careful when buying |
| be a nutrition detective to weed out the unhealthy | | | | anything calling itself "lite." Check the label carefully for |
| ingredients in some foods. | | | | added sodium and sugar. Check the labels on canned |
| It is important that everyone take responsibility for his | | | | vegetables as these can contain an unhealthy amount |
| or her health by learning to read, understand, and | | | | of sodium. Processed packaged foods, hot dogs and |
| discern package labels. The manufacturer's job is to | | | | many brands of sausage contain these ingredients. |
| lure their products to your table for you and your | | | | When buying breads, English muffins or crackers, be |
| family to consume, and then buy more. You need to | | | | sure that whole grain is the first ingredient on the label. |
| decide what is best for your health, well-being, and that | | | | If whole-wheat flour, or stone ground whole wheat |
| of everyone you feed. | | | | flour are the first ingredients on the label, the product |
| Skip the front of the package, as this is the | | | | contains whole grain nutrition, and has at least two |
| manufacturer's window dressing, advertising, and bait. | | | | grams of dietary fiber. |
| Instead, go directly to the nutrition label, and check all | | | | When choosing pasta, choose the whole wheat or |
| the ingredients. The first on the list is always the | | | | whole grain variety, as these have not been as |
| largest, and is the prevalent ingredient in the package. | | | | processed as their white flour counterparts have. |
| Breakfast cereals contain mostly sugar and along with | | | | Choose brown rice over white and for additional high |
| snacks, cookies, candy, and some canned fruits fall into | | | | fiber nutrition, mix it half-and-half with whole grain |
| this category. Beginning your day with these will almost | | | | barley. A product whose first ingredient is simply |
| certainly sabotage your healthy eating plan. | | | | wheat contains more refined and processed |
| Hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup | | | | ingredients, as well as hydrogenated oils, artificial |
| indicate highly processed foods. Your body does not | | | | coloring, sugar, sodium and other preservatives. |
| need these, as they are very different from the whole | | | | Eating healthy is not difficult, but with the huge amount |
| foods from which they began, and can cause or | | | | of packaged convenience foods containing |
| aggravate many unhealthy conditions such as obesity | | | | questionable ingredients available to us, it pays to |
| and diabetes. You will find these ingredients listed on | | | | become a nutrition detective. Buy fresh or frozen fruits |
| cake and cookie mixes, chips, and snack labels. | | | | and vegetables, stick to whole grain rice, bread, and |
| Salt, sugars, artificial coloring and artificial flavors add to | | | | cereal, and remember to read those labels! |