Food labels are killing me.  Organic, gluten-free, fat-free, low-carb, all-natural, added fiber, heart-healthy, calcium rich.  Everyone in the food industry has jumped on the ”healthy” bandwagon.  The new ‘health conscious’ labels make me feel better about what I’m eating… but should they?  I’ve been known to binge eat some healthy food.  I never feel bad about it because it’s healthy, riiiiight?!  Here are a few things to think about when eating your ‘healthy’ food…

1.  Organic sugar is still sugar.  Better for you in an ‘organic’ way BUT it’s still processed and has the same amount of non-organic sugar calories.  Lots of sugar can make you fat – organic or not.

2. Remember, food companies are trying to ’sell’ something.  If you’re trying to eat better, ’healthy’ labels are going to jump out at you.  Just because a juice container says it’s the equivalent of 8 servings of fruit does not mean it is better than eating actual fruit.

3.  If food is missing something (fat-free, sugar-free, etc) something horrible was probably added to make up for it.  If it doesn’t have sugar, it’s got a sugar substitute – blech.  I’d rather eat less of the real thing and have it taste like it’s supposed to.

4.  Less is more when you read labels.  The fewer the ingredients the better… the ingredients you can actually pronounce are even better than that!  If an ingredient sounds like it was created in a laboratory, it was.

It’s hard knowing all this – I love junk food.  Here’s what it all comes down to… Ice cream sandwiches do not give me the calcium I need.  Drinking a whole bottle of wine one night is not going to reduce my risk of heart disease.  Organic cookies are not so good for me that I should eat an entire box.  Sorry to break it to ya… better me than someone else.

Today’s Action Item:

Eat the real deal today.  Everything in moderation.  Food is best for you in its most natural state… yay nature’s candy!