"Eat Food. Mostly Plants. Not Too Much."
Seven simple words to live by, according to Michael Pollan.
Anything we can do in our household to make us healthier & make our environment healthier should be done, right? As parents, we strive to take care of our children & to do anything in our power to keep them healthy, but I'm learning that what we think is healthy may not actually be at all.
Have you watched Food, Inc.? Oh my gosh. I STRONGLY urge anyone reading this to watch it immediately. It was the most eye opening, enlightening, amazing 1 1/2 hour documentary I've ever seen. We watched it last night. Parts of it were absolutely heartbreaking - both as a mother & as a farm family. I have a farm in my family that will be mine one day & knowing what has been happening to farmers & their livestock is horrifying. You owe it to your life to take the time to watch it. I promise, it will change you (if you let it).
I'm also currently reading In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan & Green Kids, Sage Families by Lynda Fassa. I highly recommend GKSF & believe it's a great book. I can't recommend In Defense of Food yet, but I know that once I finish it I will.
As for changes, after watching Food, Inc., Hubs has agreed to try new ice cream & to look for an alternative to Coke. These are major changes. I've agreed to switch all meat to organic, grass fed, no antibiotic, healthy meat- I was holding out, because 1) it's more expensive & 2) I thought I was buying 'all natural, farm grown' meat. Boy was I wrong.
Want some of your own resources to check out? Start by looking at Food, Inc's take part website. Right there, on the homepage it talks about 5 steps you can take to improve things RIGHT NOW. Here's a sneak peek:
5. Support companies that treat workers, animals & the environment with respect.
4. Drink more water, less sugary beverages (Right on, Hubs!).
3. Read labels- know where your food comes from.
I'll let you check out the next two for yourself.
Did anyone watch Oprah last week? Michael Pollan was on; Alicia Silverstone & Steve Ells- the Chipotle founder, were on too. Here's a clip: The Truth About Food with Michael Pollan. The whole episode is a great resource.
If we as consumers could get informed & keep learning, things could change. We could demand change so that kids could stay healthy. Adults could get healthy. Everyone could be healthier. Future diabetes statistics could drop & that's big news for us personally- both our families have multiple people inflicted with diabetes & anything we can do to prevent that, in us, as well as our children, will be done in our household.
3 comments:
When I tell friends that my toddler has never had store-bought "baby food" and that nearly every meal she has ever had has been home-cooked by me, reactions span from “Wow! That’s awesome” to “You must be one of those crazy over-functioning super-moms” accompanied by an eye-roll.
I’m always surprised by the second reaction because I consider myself relatively low-key on the mom spectrum. Making baby/toddler food is quite simple, requires very minimal “equipment” and you certainly don’t need to be chef-trained to achieve excellent, nutritious results.
I cook mainly with organic ingredients. I also employ some “short-cuts” when I can. I keep it simple. Babies don’t have sophisticated palates. One or two ingredients in a dish is usually enough. I have always loved cooking, but now find that I am more mindful than ever of what I put on the plate every night.
Fresh, seasonal, organic and easy -- if these four things appeal to you (and it sounds like it might) check out my blog citybaby.posterous.com -- I update it weekly!
I read in defense of food, and immediately went out and joined Urban Organics, an organic food delivery group in NYC. Unfortunately i've since moved to CT and haven't found a replacement... most of the CSA's here are summer only.
I think in defense of food is great in general, but i still finished the book afraid to eat normal foods. I make an effort to buy grass fed and organic products, but it's not easy! I'm afraid of everything now, even organic... because organic isn't the promise that i originally assumed it was!
I wrote a big comment, and now it's disappeared. Booo!
I read in defense of foods too, and it was eye opening, but scared me even about organics. I still feel like organic is better than conventional, but organic isn't the promise that i thought it was before reading the book. But i did immediately run out and sign up for an organic produce box! Unfortunately i haven't found a replacement now that i've moved to CT...
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