Setting the Record Straight on Debilitated Foods

Hello, New Tampa Patch followers! 

I hope this blog post finds you doing well! I really enjoy blogging for NTP and I am really excited to be bringing useful info right to you. Most of the thoughts in my life have come from people dropping little "tidbits" and I was left reflecting on them days later. No matter how you process this information, just process it. It could save your life and I promise you ... if followed, you WILL see a huge change in you and your children! 

I want to talk about the debilitation in our food supply. Now, I know that with all of the info and research out there that this post could go for days. I am going to provide a simply, easy to follow outline for which to follow. My goal is to inform and educate in a way that is not overwhelming. 

What do we need everyday to survive? Water ... yes. Clean air... yes. FOOD ... ? Of course. Now, with stress levels skyrocketing, the cost of living going up while the pay is going down. We take our stress out by EATING and in order to feed our growing families we spend money of food that is cheap. Food that is not really food. It is a vicious cycle. 

We spend money on foods that are filled with chemicals and food colorings. Research has tied many of the common ingredients in our foods today to diseases and ailments ranging from diabetes to cancer as well as a number of learning disorders and hyperactivity disorders in children.

What are some of these foods? 

Just look to the right or left as you checkout of any store. Candy bars, candy and junk. Twinkies, Twix, Snickers, chips and soda pop. The list goes on. Now ... food companies KNOW that we are getting wiser. The consumer is starting to speak up so what do they do?

They FOOL us into believing our foods are healthy. "NO TRANS FATS!" "HEALHTY WHOLE GRAINS" etc. are splashed on the colorful packaging just begging us to buy. Many of us do purchase not knowing that there are still tremendous amounts of preservatives and junk hidden in the food. These very foods are full of GMO ingredients and so on.

Enough about the problem. We must fight back. Food is the biggest generator of profits for the big gurus sitting at the top who really do not care if it is the very cause of the cancer that could be forming in your body. How do you fight back? 

Especially when these foods are becoming highly addictive at alarming rates? 

Here is a simple step by step guide to helping you become informed and gain knowledge. Knowledge is power and after all.. we are responsible for what we do KNOW. So when you learn and you UNDERSTAND.. hopefully your purchasing habits will start to change.

1) BECOME AN INFORMED CONSUMER. START TO ENGAGE in a lesson in labels. NOT JUST FOOD LABELS BUT INGREDIENTS. Take an afternoon and pull out some of the top snacks you and your family consume. Write down the ingredients that you are unsure of or unfamiliar with. Research them on. Pay CLOSE attention to food dyes and colorings in food. 

2) Familiarize yourself with GMO and what it is. Here is a good link from a popular well known website ... I spend much of my time researching and reading through this site and it is highly recommended by me. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/05/20/most-evil-company-on-planet-soon-allowed-to-police-itself.aspx

3) After you have the knowledge gained above.. call a family meeting. Teach them some of what you have learned and get everyone on board to healthier living. Explain that as the parent it is your responsibility to teach them well and you will no longer be purchasing these health destroying items. Start a family challenge and engage them in the PROCESS. This is important!! Do not do it for them. The more engaged they are- the more they will learn and process this info. Before you know it you will be sitting around the table enjoying healthy meals together. Start the COOLER PROJECT. Everyday have each family member throw in ideas for healthy lunches and snacks and take turns making them.

4) STOP MAKING EXCUSES- do not go backwards using excuses such as time, stress or money. Simply re-evaluate your priorities and spend more money on the things that matter (like the HEALTH of your family) and less time and money on the things that do not matter.

5) Be patient - changes take time. If you mess up.. pick up RIGHT AWAY and keep proceeding in a positive direction. Those who succeed are driven and determined. Those who succeed are those who can mess up and not let it wreck everything. You have much riding on it. 

6) The next time your kid asks for the candy bar or you crave that bag of chips, think about this post. Every day and every moment we make choices and those choices either build us up....or destroy us.

Yours in health,

Ashley Poptodorova