When Goldilocks opened the door to grandma’s house, she didn’t have to worry about trans fats or high fructose corn syrup. All she had to worry about was not getting eaten. It’s much harder to recognize the wolf in sheep’s clothing today because they don’t have big teeth and eyes. In today’s world, you have to keep your eye out everywhere you go, not just at grandma’s house.
Let’s start at home. How much real organic food do you currently have on hand? How many fresh fruits and vegetables can you put on your dinner table tonight? The major wolf in sheep’s clothing in your home is the pre-packaged, processed foods we have all grown accustomed to. There are some pre-packaged meals that are healthy, but you have to really be careful. Unless is says 100% whole grain rice it’s refined rice that will turn directly into sugar.
The next place the wolf likes to hang out is the grocery store. Food manufacturers and marketers do a very artful job of making processed foods look like real food. Unless it specifically says 100% whole wheat it’s processed flour that turns to sugar quickly and makes you fat.
Another wolf’s den is artificial sweeteners vs. natural sugars. Even though artificial sugars have no calories, they still make you gain weight. This is because your body can’t recognize the difference between the two because it stimulates the same receptors in your brain, so your body still produces insulin to carry this sweet substance around to burn as fuel. Too much insulin leads to insulin resistance and eventually Diabetes type II.
High fructose corn syrup is considered a natural sugar. And it’s true that it’s made from field corn, a partially natural product. But this substance causes a great deal of trouble when you put it in your body on a regular basis. First, just like artificial sugar, it causes a huge jump in insulin production that leads you down the path to diabetes type II. Second, high sugar intake has been associated with a decrease in your immune response allowing you to get sick easier. The more sugar you eat, the more stress it puts on your body and the worse your immune response becomes. This leads to you getting sick more often.
So when you go into the grocery store, keep your eyes open for big bad wolves, stay to the outside, where all the coolers are. If they have to keep it cold that means it’s probably a living food that can spoil. If a food can’t spoil chances are it’s not a good thing to be eating anyway. We are a living being that needs real food to keep us alive. If you have to go into the middle of the grocery store, the best rule of thumb is the fewer ingredients the better the food item. My natural peanut butter has four ingredients on the label. The more ingredients there are, the more the wolf has had his hands in it.
I want you to live like Goldilocks, happily ever after. Watch for the wolf in everything you put into your mouth. Real food leads to a real healthy life.
