FOOD LABELING
I found a terrific article tonight about what the food labeling terms really mean. Foods that we think are not GMO are, in fact, GMO foods. Foods labeled as organic, ah, not so much. So the labeling is itself an industry that serves manufacturers. Companies can call their food "organic" and charge more. It has always been a marketing ploy. And nothing else. But I want to highlight a few statements on meat labeling that I found shocking.
Here's one.
"Hormone-free: This means something with beef, but is nothing but a marketing ploy when you see it on poultry or pork, as the USDA does not allow the use of hormones with those animals. Hormone-free does not mean antibiotic-free."
Here's another.
"Antibiotic-free: Because of poor and stressful living conditions, factory-farmed animals are very susceptible to illness. Antibiotic-free means they were not prophylactically treated with antibiotics. This does not, however, mean that the animal is hormone-free."
A third.
"Grass-fed: Grass-fed cows are allowed some access to the outdoors and are not fed grains or corn. This does NOT mean they are organic, because the grass they are grazing on may have been chemically fertilized and sprayed. Unless you have actually seen them roaming around the farm, keep in mind their access to the outdoors may not be the lovely rolling pastures that you have in your mind, but a crowded corral with hundreds of other cows."
These comments sound like anti-meat arguments, for they certainly turn me off from beef, Tyson and Foster Farms chicken, and others.
And I don't know about you, but I have put a lot of faith and meaning in the term "Free-range," but according to the article that label means nothing. "Free-range: This label doesn’t mean diddly squat. It means that the animal is allowed a minimum of an hour a day outside. This could mean that they are crammed into an open area with a billion other chickens, still, without room to move, or that their cage is put outside, leaving them still tightly confined. Like the grass-fed cows above, unless you actually see the farm with the gallivanting chickens or pigs, take the label “free-range” with a grain of salt."
PACKAGED FOODS: IT'S NOT GOOD.
"Nearly every packaged food on the shelf is seasoned with MSG in one of its many names, and many lower calorie foods and diet drinks are sweetened with aspartame. Both of these are excitotoxins that cause brain cell death instantly, causing decreased IQs, headaches, depression, and seizures."
"The length of the ingredients list in your food is often a direct indicator of the unhealthiness of the item. When an item contains a host of additives, colors, flavors, and preservatives, you can safely bet that most of the nutrients are gone."
FRUITS & VEGETABLES
"If organic produce is not an option, look for the items with the lowest pesticide loads. (This list by the Environmental Working Group is based ONLY on pesticide loads – some of the items they recommend could be GMOs). Fruits and vegetables that can be peeled often subject you to less pesticides than thin-skinned items. If you must buy conventional, wash the produce carefully and peel it if possible. Look to these stand-bys:"
"Conventional dairy products are absolutely loaded with hormones. Dairy cattle are given high levels of female hormones to make them produce a greater quantity of milk. This makes little boys develop female characteristics and makes little girls hit puberty at a far younger age than normal, which is the reason you see 4th graders with large breasts and hips. These hormones can also trigger obesity in both genders. Because of the public outcry, some dairies have pledged not to use rBST, the most commonly used of the growth hormones. Do your research to discover if there are any such brands available to you. The Lucerne brand from Safeway is guaranteed to be hormone free. (It’s interesting to note that Monsanto, the company that pushes rBST, wants the FDA to disallow dairies to put this on their labels, and that the FDA forces those who label their products rBST-free to also put the following disclaimer on the containers: “No significant difference has been shown between milk derived from rBST-treated and non-rBST treated cows.” (source).
I had thought that this problem was resolved. I have paid too much attention to the pro-protein diets, like the Zone Diet and the Weston Price Foundation. The one complaint that I've heard and read about dairy is that the milk proteins are hard to digest for most people. That it's not just lactose intolerance that develops, but a host of other digestive ailments. Oh, boy!
I found a terrific article tonight about what the food labeling terms really mean. Foods that we think are not GMO are, in fact, GMO foods. Foods labeled as organic, ah, not so much. So the labeling is itself an industry that serves manufacturers. Companies can call their food "organic" and charge more. It has always been a marketing ploy. And nothing else. But I want to highlight a few statements on meat labeling that I found shocking.
Here's one.
"Hormone-free: This means something with beef, but is nothing but a marketing ploy when you see it on poultry or pork, as the USDA does not allow the use of hormones with those animals. Hormone-free does not mean antibiotic-free."
Here's another.
"Antibiotic-free: Because of poor and stressful living conditions, factory-farmed animals are very susceptible to illness. Antibiotic-free means they were not prophylactically treated with antibiotics. This does not, however, mean that the animal is hormone-free."
A third.
"Grass-fed: Grass-fed cows are allowed some access to the outdoors and are not fed grains or corn. This does NOT mean they are organic, because the grass they are grazing on may have been chemically fertilized and sprayed. Unless you have actually seen them roaming around the farm, keep in mind their access to the outdoors may not be the lovely rolling pastures that you have in your mind, but a crowded corral with hundreds of other cows."
These comments sound like anti-meat arguments, for they certainly turn me off from beef, Tyson and Foster Farms chicken, and others.
And I don't know about you, but I have put a lot of faith and meaning in the term "Free-range," but according to the article that label means nothing. "Free-range: This label doesn’t mean diddly squat. It means that the animal is allowed a minimum of an hour a day outside. This could mean that they are crammed into an open area with a billion other chickens, still, without room to move, or that their cage is put outside, leaving them still tightly confined. Like the grass-fed cows above, unless you actually see the farm with the gallivanting chickens or pigs, take the label “free-range” with a grain of salt."
PACKAGED FOODS: IT'S NOT GOOD.
"Nearly every packaged food on the shelf is seasoned with MSG in one of its many names, and many lower calorie foods and diet drinks are sweetened with aspartame. Both of these are excitotoxins that cause brain cell death instantly, causing decreased IQs, headaches, depression, and seizures."
"The length of the ingredients list in your food is often a direct indicator of the unhealthiness of the item. When an item contains a host of additives, colors, flavors, and preservatives, you can safely bet that most of the nutrients are gone."
FRUITS & VEGETABLES
"If organic produce is not an option, look for the items with the lowest pesticide loads. (This list by the Environmental Working Group is based ONLY on pesticide loads – some of the items they recommend could be GMOs). Fruits and vegetables that can be peeled often subject you to less pesticides than thin-skinned items. If you must buy conventional, wash the produce carefully and peel it if possible. Look to these stand-bys:"
- Apples (peeled) [I eat these]
- Asparagus
- Avocados
- Cabbage [I eat this]
- Cantaloupe
- Eggplant
- Grapefruit [I eat these]
- Kiwi [I eat these and love these]
- Mangoes
- Mushrooms
- Onions [I eat onions with meat]
- Oranges
- Pineapples [Love pineapple]
- Rutabagas
- Sweet Peas
- Sweet Potatoes [I eat these frequently during winter]
- Turnips
"Conventional dairy products are absolutely loaded with hormones. Dairy cattle are given high levels of female hormones to make them produce a greater quantity of milk. This makes little boys develop female characteristics and makes little girls hit puberty at a far younger age than normal, which is the reason you see 4th graders with large breasts and hips. These hormones can also trigger obesity in both genders. Because of the public outcry, some dairies have pledged not to use rBST, the most commonly used of the growth hormones. Do your research to discover if there are any such brands available to you. The Lucerne brand from Safeway is guaranteed to be hormone free. (It’s interesting to note that Monsanto, the company that pushes rBST, wants the FDA to disallow dairies to put this on their labels, and that the FDA forces those who label their products rBST-free to also put the following disclaimer on the containers: “No significant difference has been shown between milk derived from rBST-treated and non-rBST treated cows.” (source).
I had thought that this problem was resolved. I have paid too much attention to the pro-protein diets, like the Zone Diet and the Weston Price Foundation. The one complaint that I've heard and read about dairy is that the milk proteins are hard to digest for most people. That it's not just lactose intolerance that develops, but a host of other digestive ailments. Oh, boy!
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