Day 13 - Eating Clean Mini Challenge

Day 13: Nothing artificial – Avoid all artificial ingredients including, but not limited to: sweeteners, flavors and colors.

Artificial flavorings are derived from chemicals made in a laboratory and offer absolutely no nutritional value and are a magnet for processed foods. They show up in almost everything today, including bread, cereals, flavored yogurt, soups mixes, and cocktail mixers, so they can be hard to avoid. Every single artificial flavor in the food industry has some kind of detrimental health effect. These include neurotoxicity, organ, developmental, reproductive toxicity and cancer.

Food colouring is a tactic the food industry has used for decades. From those marshmallows floating in your bowl of milk to brightly colored orange cheetos, even the most common household foods contain ingredients such as Red #40 (the most widely consumed artificial dye) and Yellow #5.

However, the dangers of artificial dyes are often an issue in food safety, with many claiming them to be toxic and a factor to the rise of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) in recent years. Curiously enough, many natural colors previously used to color food contained toxins such as mercury, and at the turn of the 20th century, companies began to create synthetic solutions to replace harmful natural dyes.

There are several food colourings still on the market linked with cancer. 

Blue 1 and 2, found in beverages, candy, baked goods and pet food, have been linked to cancer in mice. Red 3, used to dye cherries, fruit cocktail, candy, and baked goods, has been shown to cause thyroid tumors in rats. Green 3, added to candy and beverages, has been linked to bladder cancer. The widely used yellow 6, added to beverages, sausage, gelatin, baked goods, and candy, has been linked to tumors of the adrenal gland and kidney.

Another food additive to look out for is "MSG" which hides behind dozens of names, such as natural flavoring, yeast extract, autolyzed yeast extract, disodium guanylate, disodium inosinate, caseinate, textured protein, hydrolyzed pea protein and many others. Currently, labeling standards do not require MSG to be listed in the ingredient list of thousands of foods.

One quote from Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food pretty much says it all:

One of the problems with the products of food science is that, as Joan Gussow has pointed out, they lie to your body; their artificial colors and flavors and synthetic sweeteners and novel fats confound the senses we rely on to assess new foods and prepare our bodies to deal with them. Foods that lie leave us with little choice but to eat by the number, consulting labels rather than our senses.

Another issue with artificial foods is that, just like other highly processed foods, they’re relatively new and therefore we don’t know exactly how their consumption affects the body long term.  Remember how margarine was touted as a healthy alternative to butter when decades later we learned the dangers of hydrogenated oils?

There have been recent studies on the effects of artificial dyes in our food especially for kids.  Think about how your kids react not only when they have had the dreaded SUGAR but when that sugar is tied to artificial colourings!  Usually this combination makes kids crazy, causes melt downs and the like!  Not fun!!  

This mini-challenge reminds me that I’ve been wanting to share the difference between “natural” and “organic” food products. Packaging and labels can be very confusing these days! When a product says it is “natural” it just means that the ingredients come from something naturally created like a plant or an animal. If a product weren’t “natural” it could contain artificial ingredients like Red Dye #40 that’s chemically created or “invented” by food scientists in a lab somewhere. Sound appetizing? 

“Organic” food is a whole different story and refers to products that have not been treated with synthetic fertilizers or chemical pesticides, which is a good thing.

For the record, whether you are buying food that is “all natural” or “organic” it does not mean those products are whole grain, low in sodium, or lacking loads of sweeteners like sugar. To put things in perspective, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is actually a “natural” ingredient since it is made from corn. But that doesn't mean it's an ingredient I'm ok with if I come across it on the back of a package!  However if given the choice I would much rather consume HFCS over an artificially created sweetener like Splenda. With that being said, natural products are a far better choice than artificial ones although we would by no means automatically deem them as being “real food.”

So I'm sure this is all a bit confusing but the beauty of all this is that with the Facebook group we can all talk about what we come across and I can help clean things up for you.  Packaging can be SO tricky!!!  But I am hoping this Challenge won’t be too difficult because I'm not asking you to go full force with “real food,” but instead to just avoid the items that are basically fake. And hopefully this experience will be eye opening for you as far as how many products contain these fake, artificial additives. 

Even most cough syrups, children’s Tylenol products, and throat lozenges contain artificial ingredients! So be on the lookout next week and avoid all additives that were “invented” within the last century and instead stick to those trustworthy ingredients that our ancestors have survived on for thousands of years!  Remember Great Grandma?  If she would recognize it than it's ok!

INGREDIENT	WHY IT'S USED	WHY IT'S BAD
Artificial Colors	Chemical compounds made from coal-tar derivatives to enhance color	Linked to allergic reactions, fatigue, asthma, skin rashes, hyperactivity and headaches
Artificial Flavorings	Cheap chemical mixtures that mimic natural flavors	Linked to allergic reactions, dermatitis, eczema, hyperactivity and asthma Can affect enzymes, RNA and thyroid
Artificial Sweeteners (Acesulfame-K, As-partame, Equal®, NutraSweet®, Sac-charin, Sweet’n Low®, Sucralose, Splenda® & Sorbitol)	Highly-processed, chemically-derived, zero-calorie sweeteners found in diet foods and diet products to reduce calories per serving	Can negatively impact metabolism Some have been linked to cancer, headaches, dizziness and hallucinations
Benzoate Preservatives (BHT, BHA, TBHQ)	Compounds that preserve fats and prevent them from becoming rancid	May result in hyperactivity, angiodema, asthma, rhinitis, dermatitis, tumors and urticaria Can affect estrogen balance and levels

Day 8 - Eating Clean Mini Challenge

Today's Clean Eating Mini Challenge is all about 100% Whole grain – All grains consumed must be 100% whole-grain today and for the rest of this challenge (and hopefully from now on).

Whole grains can be one of the most confusing and hard-to-find food products in the supermarket. From misleading buzz words like “multi-grain” and “wheat” to health-claims on the front of food packages that aren’t backed up by the ingredient list, it sure is treacherous out there.

For the most part all grains (wheat, corn, barley, rice, etc.) consist of 3 parts: the bran, germ and endosperm. The bran and especially the germ are where you’ll find most of the grain’s nutritional value. When a grain is highly refined into a product like white flour or white rice both of the most nutritional parts are removed leaving you with only the endosperm. The endosperm is basically a “big packet of starch and protein” that is high in calories and low in nutrients (similar to sugar).

In order to make up for the lost nutrients they have stripped away from the grain, refined grains are often "enriched" or "fortified" with vitamins thought to be lost. Wouldn't you rather just eat them in the first place?

Did you know that one of the main reasons products like white flour were manufactured is because when the key nutrients are stripped away, the flour ends up having a much longer shelf life and is less interesting to bugs since they are looking for nutrients and don't have much interest in refined grains.....

So here is where to start:

** If the front of a food package says it contains “whole-grains” or “whole-wheat” don’t be fooled…always verify by reading the ingredient label to see what a product is really made of. Packages often advertise that a product contains whole-grains even if it is only 20% whole-grain.

**If a product is labeled as “multi-grain” it by no means guarantees those grains are whole-grains. It could be a bunch of different refined grains mixed together. Again, you must read the ingredient list to know for sure what’s in a food product.

**If the ingredient list on a product contains any portion of “wheat” or “rice” then it is not 100% whole-grain. White flour is still technically made from the wheat plant (a refined version) so it is often labeled as “wheat.” It must say something like “whole-wheat” or “brown rice” to be a whole grain ingredient.

**Whether you are shopping at a supermarket or eating at a restaurant, most food products that are labeled as whole-grain are rarely 100% whole-grain. They often contain some percentage of refined grains as well.

**Since it is so hard to find 100% whole-grain foods it is best to avoid grains all together when you are out to eat at a restaurant (unless you can see the ingredient list yourself). Servers and other restaurant employees are often misinformed and will tell you the bread is “100% whole grain” when it is not.

**Finding good 100% whole-wheat sandwich bread is one of the biggest whole-grain challenges of them all. Some stores bring in freshly made bread products from a local bakery. Other stores have a few decent options in their freezer section. Your best bet is to find a local bakery that makes their dough fresh daily (unlike grocery store bakeries that typically bake pre-mixed dough) or make it yourself!

I did a blog series last year on 5 Breads that passed my test at the grocery store and how they tasted, check it out here if you are looking for a place to start today!

Dark Chocolate Whole Wheat Brownies

Ok not the best photo of this brownie but I'm telling you it's delicious! I promise you that.  And this brownie isn't any old brownie it's a DARK Chocolate brownie and boy is it!  I used a combination of recipes I found on different blogs (all which had much better photos than I do of their brownies) and made it my own.  This is the type of brownie that doesn't kid around, you want a hot cup of tea with this bad boy!  

But you know what's awesome about this brownie?  It can be made in no time!  And it's considered clean/real food because the ingredients are all pretty healthy for ya!  Gotta like that!

Dark Chocolate Whole Wheat Brownie Recipe

1 1/2 cup whole-wheat flour 
1 cup unsweetened cocoa, you will have much better results if you use “dark” cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup coconut oil
1 cup maple syrup (or honey )

2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3 to 4 eggs
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

1. 
   
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 8X8 inch square glass baking dish with oil or butter.
3. Whisk together the dry ingredients in a bowl including the flour, cocoa and baking powder and set aside.
4. In a small pot on the stove melt the coconut oil together with the maple syrup and vanilla extract.
5. Once the coconut oil is melted whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Add the egg and keep whisking until it's mixed together thoroughly. If using nuts fold them into the batter with a spatula.
6. Pour the batter into the baking dish and bake for 16 - 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 
7. Cool and Top with Dark Chocolate Frosting
8. Eat or store in an air-tight container at room temperature - enjoy!

Dark Chocolate the frosting

¼ c dark chocolate chips
2 tbsp Almond milk
¼ c plain nonfat Greek yogurt
3 tbsp dark cocoa powder (also called “Dutched”)
1 tbsp Honey

1. In a small pot add in Chocolate chips, Almond milk and greek yogurt.  Wisk until chocolate chips are melted. 
2. Once melted, add in Cocoa powder and Honey and whisk until smooth. 
3. Spread on top of cooled Brownies. 

Homemade Taco Seasoning

I haven't purchased taco seasoning from a package in years.  It all started when Gord and I wanted to make nachos one night and we had no seasoing mix in the cupboard. So he googled the recipe for Taco Seasoing and we made a batch of it.  For a while after that we still purchased the seasoning packets here and there but if we ran out we would just make up another batch. 

Once I started really started reading ingredients labels and becoing more concerned with what was in our food I switched us over to our home made seasoing and we haven't looked back.

Because there are some ingredience in a package of Old Del Paso Taco Seasoning that I can't pronounce and there are preservatives and anti Caking agents so it's not something that will be going into my body or my families bodies either!

Ingredients in Old Del Paso Low Sodium Taco Seasoning
Maltodextrin, Chili Pepper, Onion Powder, Corn Starch, Garlic Powder, Spice. Contains less than 2% of: Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Yeast Extract, Silicon Dioxide (anticaking agent), Sunflower and/or Cottonseed Oil, Spice Extractive, Ethoxyquin (preservative)


My Taco seasoning recipe

1/2 cup Chili Powder
1/4 cup onion powder
1/8 cup cumin
1 TBSP Garlic powder
1 TBSP paprika
1TBSP sea salt

With my Taco Seasoning recipe, we just put all the spices into a mason jar and give it a shake. The recipe is taped to the outside of the jar so I can refer to it easily when we need to remake it.

Our family loves most any tex mex type recipe so we go through a lot of Taco Seasoning that's for sure!  On the menu this week was a  Yummy One Pan Burrito Bowl and Oh my gosh was it yummy and made great left overs for lunches too!!! 

Easy Layered Enchilada Bake

We made this tonight and I was able to get a nicer photo of this dish for the blog!  Yay!  Previously the photo was not so great but my hubby had taken it out of the oven and dug right into it before I could do my thing!  

BUT seriously this recipe is quick, can be prepped the day before for a quick dinner the next night and it tastes SO good!!! It's our go to Lacrosse practice night meal.  We make it the night before and then heat it up when we get home the next evening after practice.  

I got the idea for this one from a Kraft Canada Magizine years ago and tweaked it to my liking (made it cleaner).  Got rid of all the junky kraft products they called for and made it my own. 

We make this one once every couple weeks and even our 5 year old LOVES it! 

Makes: 8 servings

Ingredients

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
2 cups Salsa
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed
2 Tbsp. Homemade Taco Seasoning
4 Whole wheat tortillas
1 cup Sour Cream or Greek yogurt
2 cups shredded white cheese

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400ºF.
2. Brown meat with onions in large skillet on medium-high heat; drain. Stir in Salsa, Black beans and taco seasoning.
3. Spread one layer of meat and salsa mixture onto the bottom of a deep pie dish. Cover with one tortilla wrap and then another layer of meat mixture, Greek yogurt/sour cream and cheese. Repeat layers until you reach to top of the pie pan; cover and either refridgerate until needed or bake.
4. Bake 40 min. or until casserole is heated through and cheese is melted, uncovering after 30 min. Let stand 5 min. before serving.

 It's Delish!

Little Push 5 Day Challenge: Real food Day 2

Snacking is the biggest challenge for so many of us.  But if we are prepared with healthy options in the fridge and cupboard it becomes so much easier to make the healthy choice and remain satisfied too. 

This is a list of my Top 10 Real food Snacks:

1. Apple with Peanut Butter

2 Greek yogurt with Berries

3. Organic popcorn

4. Avocado on whole wheat toast

5. Shakeology Smoothie

6. Cottage Cheese with fruit

7. Nuts and dried fruit

8. Veggies & hummus

9. Cherry tomatoes

10. Cheese and Triscuits

Lately my evening snack, which by the way is my most challenging time of the day, has been a couple tablespoons of homemade peanut butter and an apple. 

What are your Favourite Healthy snacks?

Little Push 5 Day Challenge: Clean Eating Day 1

Welcome to Day one of the Little Push Challenge!

Here is your Clean eating post for the day.  Below I have listed my TOP 10 tips to eating real unprocessed foods.  Throughout the week I want you to try to stick to this tips and keep them in mind when you are planning your meals. 

Also please feel free to explore the clean eating recipes I have posted here on the blog.  

Here are my top 10 tips to eating Real food:

1. Eat whole, fresh, unprocessed foods.
   • Whole foods typically don’t have a label telling you that they are healthy for you. Think of an apple… An apple doesn’t try to convince you that it is healthy so you will want to buy it, but the foods that claim to be healthy “Low Fat”, “Low Sugar” and the like are usually overly processed and when one thing is removed they will add others in order to make it taste good!  Choose wisely.
2. Stop eating when you feel full: Listen to your internal cues and stop eating when you feel full.
   •  Michael Pollan says instead of using our internal cues to know when to stop eating, most of us “allow external, and usually visual, cues to determine how much we should eat.” Think back to your last meal…did you stop eating when your gut told you you’d had enough or when your plate was clean, the package was empty, or the T.V. show was over.
3. Never cut any food group out of your diet, including carbohydrates.
   • So many diets are based on cutting out one food group or reducing the amount of something.  My suggestion is, rather than cut out a food group, cut out anything man-made (in a lab).  If you don’t recognize the ingredient, chances are your body won’t either and it won’t know what to do with it.
4. Need a sweet treat? Dark chocolate is packed with healthy nutrients. Moreover, it improves mood!
5. All grains consumed must be 100% whole-grain.
   • Read the labels, as many products claim to be whole wheat, but they must be 100%, not 50/50, to be considered real food.  Also make sure you read the ingredients list on the back of breads, buns and crackers…
6. No more than 10 ingredients - Avoid any and all packaged food products that contain more than 10 ingredients, no matter what ingredients. When buying packaged foods, read the nutrition labels carefully.
   • The more ingredients in a packaged food, the more highly processed it probably is. Note 1: A long list of ingredients in a recipe is not the same thing; that’s fine. Note 2: Some products now boast, somewhat deceptively, about their short ingredient lists. Be sure to check out that short ingredient list and be mindful of the other tips listed when scanning the list.
7. Beverages should be limited to coffee, tea, water, and milk (only naturally sweetened with a little honey or 100% pure maple syrup). Limit yourself to one cup of juice per week and NO soda!
   • As far as sweetening your beverages, all sweeteners (sugar, honey, maple syrup, raw sugar, brown sugar, etc.) are high in calories and low in nutrients. The artificial sweeteners that have no calories are just chemically created imitations invented in a lab somewhere…YUCK! So no matter what kind of sweetener one uses I hope that it is, first of all, not an imitation and second of all, used in moderation. Best to stick to 100% pure maple syrup or honey.
8. Do not eat any food products that are labeled as “low-fat,” “lite,” “light,” “reduced fat,” or “nonfat.”
   • Scared of whole milk, cream or full fat cheese?  Don’t be.  Trust me, the low-fat diet fad is just that… The trouble is, it’s ingrained in so many of us that low fat is better for us!  It’s really not! Fats in things like sour cream and yogurt are replaced with hydrogenated oils and the cream in ‘whipped cream’ and ‘coffee creamer’ are replaced with corn starch. Usually if they take something out (like fat) they add something in to keep people satisfied (like sugar). Sugar is the enemy, not Fat!
9. No refined or artificial sweeteners including (but not limited to): white sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar, sucanat, splenda, stevia, agave, corn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, brown rice syrup, and cane juice. 
   • Foods and beverages should only be sweetened with a moderate amount of honey or maple syrup. (See reasons above in beverage note #7)
10. No refined or hydrogenated oils including (but not limited to): vegetable oil, organic vegetable oil, soybean oil, corn oil, canola oil, organic canola oil, margarine, and grape seed oil.
    • Instead, choose real Butter, olive oil, coconut oil, sesame oil, and flax seed oil.

What your body is cravings can tell you something...

I want chocolate.... but my body is really asking for Raw nuts and seeds, fruits and legumes. 

This table of foods we want and foods our bodies really need is super helpful in understanding cravings.  And I think part of the reason I have been able to reduce my cravings is because Shakeology has so many vitamins in it that my body isn't crying for much! 

Thank goodness!  Cravings are the worst!

So here is that chart I'm sure you have seen floating around the internet.  I've tired to put it together in an easy to read formatt for you and I hope it helps! 

·         What you Want	What you really need is…	And here are healthy foods that have it:
·         Chocolate	Magnesium	Raw nuts and seeds, legumes, fruits
·         Sweets	Chromium	Broccoli, grapes, cheese, dried beans, calves liver, chicken
	Carbon	Fresh fruits
	Phosphorus	Chicken, beef, liver, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts, legumes, grains
	Sulfur	Cranberries, horseradish, cruciferous vegetables, kale, cabbage
	Tryptophan	Cheese, liver, lamb, raisins, sweet potato, spinach
·         Bread, toast	Nitrogen	High protein foods: fish, meat, nuts, beans
·         Oily snacks, fatty foods	Calcium	Mustard and turnip greens, broccoli, kale, legumes, cheese, sesame
·         Coffee or tea	Phosphorous	Chicken, beef, liver, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts, legumes
	Sulfur	Egg yolks, red peppers, muscle protein, garlic, onion, cruciferous vegetables
	NaCl (salt)	Sea salt, apple cider vinegar (on salad)
	Iron	Meat, fish and poultry, seaweed, greens, black cherries
·         Alcohol, recreational drugs	Protein	Meat, poultry, seafood, dairy, nuts
	Avenin	Granola, oatmeal
	Calcium	Mustard and turnip greens, broccoli, kale, legumes, cheese, sesame
	Glutamine	Supplement glutamine powder for withdrawal, raw cabbage juice
	Potassium	Sun-dried black olives, potato peel broth, seaweed, bitter greens
·         Chewing ice	Iron	Meat, fish, poultry, seaweed, greens, black cherries
·         Burned food	Carbon	Fresh fruits
·         Soda and other carbonated drinks	Calcium	Mustard and turnip greens, broccoli, kale, legumes, cheese, sesame
·         Salty foods	Chloride	Raw goat milk, fish, unrefined sea salt
·         Acid foods	Magnesium	Raw nuts and seeds, legumes, fruits
·         Preference for liquids rather than solids	Water	Flavor water with lemon or lime. You need 8 to 10 glasses per day.
·         Preference for solids rather than liquids	Water	You have been so dehydrated for so long that you have lost your thirst. Flavor water with lemon or lime. You need 8 to 10 glasses per day.
·         Cool drinks	Manganese	Walnuts, almonds, pecans, pineapple, blueberries
·         Pre-menstrual cravings	Zinc	Red meats (especially organ meats), seafood, leafy vegetables, root vegetables
·         General overeating	Silicon	Nuts, seeds; avoid refined starches
	Tryptophan	Cheese, liver, lamb, raisins, sweet potato, spinach
	Tyrosine	Vitamin C supplements or orange, green, red fruits and vegetables
·         Lack of appetite	Vitamin B1	Nuts, seeds, beans, liver and other organ meats
	Vitamin B3	Tuna, halibut, beef, chicken, turkey, pork, seeds and legumes
	Manganese	Walnuts, almonds, pecans, pineapple, blueberries
	Chloride	Raw goat milk, unrefined sea salt
·         Tobacco	Silicon	Nuts, seeds; avoid refined starches