So 2012 is here. I can't believe it, time just seems to go by so fast. Did you set a new year's resolution? I don't really set one specific resolution. I used to end up setting a somewhat unattainable one, which ended in too much pressure and eventually failure. A few years back, Zach and I decided we would sit down and make mini personal and professional goals, both as a couple and individually. The important part (and most of the time the difficult part) is following through. To make sure we would follow through, half way through the year, sometime during the summer, Zach and I look at our written list of goals and see how we are doing. We have found the more you keep it in your forefront, the more likely you are to continue to try. To me it isn't "I met the resolution" or "didn't meet the resolution," it is the continual attention, effort and hopefully improvement and progress towards whatever it is you are working towards.
I bet if I googled 'top five new years resolutions', one of them would be eating healthier. One goal Zach and I set for ourselves a few years back was to try to eat higher quality food. To us a huge factor in healthy food, is the quality of the ingredients. I am not sure if that is ever a thought that crossed your mind, but I thought I would share our background and how we got to the point we are at today, in case you are interested in taking small steps towards supporting and consuming better quality food.
Our journey started a couple of years ago. We heard about a company called Door to Door Organics and immediately signed up for an every other week shipment of fruits and veggies (mostly locally grown) that would be dropped off at Zach’s office. This was a small step we could make to start eating better quality produce and was an extremely convenient first step. We were able to pick if we wanted our box to contain both fruits and veggies or just one or the other and also the frequency of the delivery. We did this for quite a while, but eventually decided we wanted to consider eating more organic foods, besides just produce. Due to my interest in cooking and constantly wanting to try new foods, we also felt we wanted a little more variety than our Door to Door Organics box was offering. We started paying attention to what types of foods had organic varietals and where we could get organic food. We typically shopped at Hy-Vee, so just started looking in their Health Market section. This is a great little area that is separate from the rest of the store and has both refrigerated, frozen and pantry products. We decided we wanted to add some dairy and various packaged products, such as canned foods, pasta sauce, cereal, etc. to our organic food line up.
After about a year or so, we continued to have the urge to do more. Our next logical step was Whole Foods, a natural and organic grocery store. I didn't really like the idea of starting to shop at this store, because there are only two in the area and neither of them close to us. We decided to go in just to see what it was all about and the rest was just history.You will probably hear me mention Whole Foods many times during the life of this blog, but it truly changed the way I think about food - the way food is grown, raised, prepared, stored, even presented to the buyer. As much as you can love a grocery store, we did and still do. I used to hate, and I mean hate, going to the grocery store. I always thought that was weird, because I loved to cook, but I hated it until we started shopping at Whole Foods. Even Zach doesn't mind going with me now, so it's a win win!
Yes, Whole Foods can be more expensive, which I would bet is the number one thought crossing most of your minds at this time. That can be true, but in some cases I found it to be just as much as the HyVee Health Market and in some instances Whole Foods was actually cheaper than what we were currently buying. Some items can even be purchased in bulk, which is normally a better option. They also have sales and coupons just like other stores, so if you utilize those benefits, the cost is even lower. Lastly, the store isn't entirely organic. Even when we aren't eating their organic products, we still feel better about the quality of their natural food because they have strict regulations and a list of ingredients that they consider unacceptable in the products they sell. To me that is one of the biggest benefits, you don’t have to think about what is in your food because they are doing it for you.
Better Bonus Tip: Whole Foods has their own store brand - 365 (both organic and not) - which can help save you money. Anytime they have what I need in their 365 brand I get that and have found it to be cheaper.
So why organic?
To be completely honest, I can’t remember the specific reason that persuaded us to decide to make this change (probably an article or documentary). I do know the more time that passes, the more we learn, the more we know this will be a life time priority for us. We by no means eat organically all of the time, but our goal is to try to eat organically at least 85% of the time and I think we accomplish that goal. Do we eat out? Yes. Do we eat non organic food? Yes. Do we eat processed food? Yes. Do we eat crap (pardon the term)? Yes, sometimes. I think one of my biggest fears is that friends and family will feel uncomfortable having us over for dinner because they don't serve us organic food. We don't have to eat organically, just choose to do it as often as we can.
After about a year or so, we continued to have the urge to do more. Our next logical step was Whole Foods, a natural and organic grocery store. I didn't really like the idea of starting to shop at this store, because there are only two in the area and neither of them close to us. We decided to go in just to see what it was all about and the rest was just history.You will probably hear me mention Whole Foods many times during the life of this blog, but it truly changed the way I think about food - the way food is grown, raised, prepared, stored, even presented to the buyer. As much as you can love a grocery store, we did and still do. I used to hate, and I mean hate, going to the grocery store. I always thought that was weird, because I loved to cook, but I hated it until we started shopping at Whole Foods. Even Zach doesn't mind going with me now, so it's a win win!
Yes, Whole Foods can be more expensive, which I would bet is the number one thought crossing most of your minds at this time. That can be true, but in some cases I found it to be just as much as the HyVee Health Market and in some instances Whole Foods was actually cheaper than what we were currently buying. Some items can even be purchased in bulk, which is normally a better option. They also have sales and coupons just like other stores, so if you utilize those benefits, the cost is even lower. Lastly, the store isn't entirely organic. Even when we aren't eating their organic products, we still feel better about the quality of their natural food because they have strict regulations and a list of ingredients that they consider unacceptable in the products they sell. To me that is one of the biggest benefits, you don’t have to think about what is in your food because they are doing it for you.
Better Bonus Tip: Whole Foods has their own store brand - 365 (both organic and not) - which can help save you money. Anytime they have what I need in their 365 brand I get that and have found it to be cheaper.
So why organic?
To be completely honest, I can’t remember the specific reason that persuaded us to decide to make this change (probably an article or documentary). I do know the more time that passes, the more we learn, the more we know this will be a life time priority for us. We by no means eat organically all of the time, but our goal is to try to eat organically at least 85% of the time and I think we accomplish that goal. Do we eat out? Yes. Do we eat non organic food? Yes. Do we eat processed food? Yes. Do we eat crap (pardon the term)? Yes, sometimes. I think one of my biggest fears is that friends and family will feel uncomfortable having us over for dinner because they don't serve us organic food. We don't have to eat organically, just choose to do it as often as we can.
I mentioned Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution in a previous blog about beef. He did another demonstration on his TV show a while back that I think shares in a very dramatic way one reason we choose to continue to eat organically as often as possible.
So yes, this is a pretty drastic way to make the point (if you watched the show or the other clip I posted, you will agree he always does that doesn't he). You get the idea though, if you can't pronounce an ingredient, you don't know what it is, or it sounds like something you could use in a science experiment, you probably don't want to consume it! There are tons of articles out there and top 10 reason lists to eat organically, but bottom line is organic food is grown naturally, without pesticides, radiation, synthetic fertilizers, or organisms that have been genetically modified. You are simply getting the natural product the way it was intended to be. Eating organically means you take into consideration what is added to the food, while growing or during the production process, and strive to keep the food in it's natural state. You can still eat ice cream sundaes, just like Jamie showed in the video, just consider modifying the ingredients to ensure you know what is being put in your body.
Do what you can or want to do.
You don't have to eat organically, that is just a choice Zach and I made. Organic food has strict regulations, so not all good quality food has the organic label. The point I am trying to make on my soap box is demand higher quality food, you deserve it! Better quality food is a vital part of eating healthy.
Better Bonus Tip: If you can't or choose not to eat organically, look at the ingredients listed on packaged products and try to consume products that only contain items you are familiar with. Also, usually the shorter the ingredient list, the more natural state the food is in. I will caution you to be weary of the words all natural on products. As I have mentioned before, there is much debate about what regulations surround the use of this disclaimer.
If you want to eat organically, you don’t have to shop at Whole Foods. As more people are bringing awareness to food quality, the more organic food that is becoming available and the better the price. Give Door to Door Organics a try. I just received an email this week that they are adding a lot of foods to their service, including meats and pantry items. Trader Joes is now open, which sells both organic and natural food. HyVee is getting more and more organic produce, in addition to their products in the Health Market. Walmart and Target even sell organic products now! Demand better!!!
Better Bonus Tip: Start small as a goal for 2012. If you can only do a little, take a peek at the dirty dozen list. According to the Environmental Working Group, consuming 5 servings of fruits and vegetables from the 12 most contaminated list would cause you to consume an average of 14 different pesticides a day!
~Ashley
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