Confession: I'm a bit of a health nut

If you know me, you know that I like to bake and decorate desserts (did you notice my cupcake pictures in the background?). And it might seem contradictory, but I have become a bit of a health nut over the years. Note I said a "bit" not a full blown freak. I bake things because it's fun, and I like making things look pretty (yay for christmas cookies this weekend!). When I make some kind of fancy dessert, Nathan and I don't devour every last piece like fat kids. I usually bring part of it to work or give it away to friends and family.  No, I'm not trying to make my friends or family fat either.  I believe most things are ok in moderation.  And you've got to have good self-control.

Ok, so on to my health nuttiness.  After my mom found out she had multiple sclerosis, one of her doctors told her to try and eat organic foods.  I hardly knew anything about organic food at the time.  But as my mom started buying the food and different books about health foods, I started doing my own research.  What I found on my own was really disturbing to me, hence why I try and eat as much organic and natural foods as I can. Our food today is so overly processed and has so many chemicals and additives that most of it can't really even be considered food.  Even if I can't afford all organic food (you can still buy some organic foods without going broke), I still use lots of produce and products with the least amount of ingredients.  We probably do spend a little more on groceries than most people I know, but to me it's worth it. I know I'm eating quality food.  And I know that just because it is natural or organic doesn't mean it's good for you either.  Sugar and fat is still sugar and fat no matter if it's organic or not.  You just have to be smart about your choices.  It's ok to indulge every once in awhile. If you didn't, life would be boring.

Below are some of the foods that I always buy natural or organic:

1. apples
2. peanut butter-nathan recently found out he is allergic to peanuts :(
3. bread
4. sour cream
5. coffee creamer
6. cheese
7. orange juice
8. chicken- I always get the ones that are fed a vegetarian diet and raise humanely-should say on the package. Many mass farms feed their chicken other chicken by-products. Yuck!
9. eggs- same as chicken-fed a vegetarian diet and raised cage free
10.ice-cream-go with Breyers! they put it on sale a lot too!

And below are just some of the ingredients you should steer clear of. Do a little research and you'll understand why:

1. Hydrogenated or partially hydrogentated oil
2. BHA or BHT
3. Red #40
4. Aspartame
5. High Fructose Corn Syrup
6. MSG
7. Sodium Nitrite
8. caramel color

I am definitely not a nutritionist, but after reading so many articles about the negative side affects of all the crap they add in our food, I'm glad I'm a bit of a health nut.  No, I'm not perfect and yes sometimes I do use things that have artificial ingredients, or use color in some of my icings, but I try to keep it to a minimum. I'll get off my soapbox for now, but wanted to share my thoughts on eating healthy :) And if you get a chance, the documentary "Food Inc." is pretty interesting. You can find clips of it on YouTube.