Are You Eating Fake Food?

In a world where we have “instant messaging,” want “immediate gratification,” and turn to “fast food” many of us do not have the time to stop and prepare a home cooked from scratch with real ingredients. Somehow the speed and flavor of our food has replaced the nutrition and quality of our food.

People are paying attention.

We want our health back.

We want clean food back.

I am not alone.

I am one of many who wants to reclaim my health.

Reclaim my food.

Reclaim my future.

I want health. I want to feel good. I want to be active. I want to be old some day. I chose life!

What if we could reclaim our health by ditching the fake food and eating real food?

Could it be that simple?

Our great-grandparents ate food. Real food. Most of it they raised themselves. It can even be argued that they lived better and longer than most folks do today. 3 generations ago 70- or 80-year-olds lived.

They gardened, they took care of animals, they farmed, they had lives. Today most 70- or 80-year-olds do not have what I would consider a quality life. They are simply surviving – not thriving. Many of them are in assisted living situations, some are weak and very sick. This is not the life I want when I am old.

If I am blessed with a long life, I want to still be “living” when I am 80. I don’t want to be “surviving.”

Around here, our philosophy on food is simple. Our goal is to eat real food, the way God made it. MOST of what we eat is the real thing. Not ALL — just MOST. We aren’t perfect, neither are our diets.

We try to avoid eating the fake stuff. It can be HARD.

What is “real food” and how can you know it when you see it?

Real Food vs. Fake Food

According to Marketplace, processed foods make up 70% of the U.S. diet.

According to Nation of Change, 80% of processed foods in U.S. are banned in other nations.

According to WSO-TV, 70% of processed foods have genetically modified ingredients.

One of my chief detective moves to decide if something is “real food” or not is to ask myself: “If my great-grandmother were alive would she recognize this as food?” If not — then it’s probably not food.

Most of the processed, frozen, bagged, packaged food-like substances sold at stores can be eliminated by this one test. If Great-Grandma doesn’t know what it is — it’s probably not real food.

Now, here’s some foods she would recognize:

Eggs
Fruit
Vegetables
Steak
Chicken
Bread
Rice
Nuts
Beans
Milk

You are probably getting the picture.

Some ways to identify “Fake Food”:

If it has ingredients you can’t pronounce, or identify
If you can’t picture it in nature (think twinkies)
If it has been highly “refined” or “processed” — (canola oil, crisco oil or vegetable oil)
If it is made by a corporation instead of people (think Nabisco, Keebler, Frito Lay)

Even if you make small changes, your body will thank you. Living in America, it is difficult to make the transition to a “real food” diet. It goes against what is all around us. The “Standard American Diet” (SAD) is full of processed foods and rarely questioned. If you are just beginning on your journey to reclaim your food … welcome! It is worth the work. It is worth the expense.

Our health has definitely improved since we began homesteading. When you grow your own food and raise your own livestock not only will you diet be much healthier, you will also get the benefit of exercise while raising your food.

Sign up to receive weekly updates, country tid-bits and homesteading fun by subscribing to Farm Fresh For Life via email, or “liking” the blog on Facebook, or sign up to follow the blog on Twitter.

XO,

Candi