Nutrition labels on the foods we buy have been in the spotlight for some time now. With the Food and Drug Administration flexing their muscles towards the food manufacturers, with the intention of giving "Joe Public" a better (yet false) sense of security, has resulted in nothing more than in a flood of information being thrown in the poor naive shoppers face. Information that, unless read and interpreted correctly, can and has resulted in a false sense of enlightenment, and ultimately an increasingly unhealthy public.
These stricter laws, along with a more proactive public and their recent desire to "know", have forced the food manufactures to simply become more creative. People love to see zeros on a label; zero fat, or zero cholesterol, or zero sugar, but these zeros come with a price, a hefty price, that we are paying for every day. When these chemists/scientists are putting their heads together over the next box or can of overly processed "food" that will ultimately fill your shopping cart, the top priorities are 'how do we make this appealing to the customer?" (and that's where the zeros come in), and finally 'how do we make this nutritionless, tasteless, lab experiment become the talk of the grocery aisle?'
When a product is marketed as low in calories and fat free, take a closer look at the amount of sugar; add "Cholesterol Free" to the mix and be aware to the amount of sodium; or "Sugar Free" and "Fat Free" and you should be looking to the calories. In order for a "Zero" to be added to the side of the box or can, another number must go up, because if all you do is take stuff out than your left with no taste, no anything.
So be smart and eat healthy! Limit the amount of processed foods you eat, but when you do buy that box or can of your favorite whatever make sure it's the healthiest box or can out there, with all natural (organic if possible) ingredients with no artificial anything and no preservatives.
Why am I finding that foods containing soybean oil and soy lecithin do not say "Contains: Soy" even when it's stated as "Contains: Wheat, Milk" etc?
ReplyDeleteThat's a very good question, and is something that always annoyed me to no end. Many misguided "experts" (and I use the word experts very loosely) seem to be convinced that soy protein is the main cause of most soy allergies, and I can tell you from personal experience that this is simply not the case. If you are allergic to soy the safest thing you can do is stay clear of anything soy.
ReplyDeleteThe other reason, and probably the biggest driving force behind what I call the 'soy conspiracy' is $$$$. The soy bean industry (like corn) is a billion dollar industry (I can talk for hours about this); it's over harvested and as a result it's in everything. It's pushed by health experts as practically the greatest food on earth, and until it's looked at as one of the top 5 allergens (as it should be) you will not see a change.
I feel about Dairy as you feel about Soy. I'm currently nursing a 2 month old who is reacting to Dairy in my diet and possibly also soy. I thought dairy (mostly whey) was in everything until it was suggested that I nix the soy, and WOAH is soy in EVRYTHING!! I've cut down, but I'm really having a difficult time cutting out 100%, but I'm working it.
ReplyDeleteI've been maintaining this website for years: http://milkfreekids.com
All I can say is that I wish I was the guy sitting at the top of the soy industry, oh boy do I wish!
Checked out your website... Nice work! I will put a link to yours under "Helpful Site" on my site, networking is the best way to bring soy and dairy allergy awareness into the spotlight.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work.