Eating healthier requires a shift in consciousness and habit patterns. It is easy to reach for the boxed or packaged food, or to eat fast food. There are healthier options for those families wanting the convenience of packaged food. Eating healthier food is an investment in better health and wellness for the entire family.

Reading food labels is the first change that can create healthier food choices. It is true that we are what we eat. Food can be a friend or an enemy to our health. Look for total sugars and fats on the label to see what is really in the packaged food. Next look at the other items on the food labels, and observe that the items below are not listed.

As reported on Good Morning America last summer there are food-label loopholes to watch out for including:  

• Ingredients called “incidental additives” do not have to be listed anywhere on labels. Examples would include ingredients that are sub-ingredients of other ingredients, have no technical or functional effect in the food, or are present in insignificant levels.
• A label can state it is “free from” a substance if there is less than 0.5 grams of it per serving. So a product that claims to be gluten-free or trans-fat-free can actually contain up to 0.5 grams per serving. This adds up fast when more than one serving is eaten.  
• Undesirable ingredients are often “hidden” on labels. A classic example of this is with the dangerous food additive MSG, which is often disguised under ingredients like glutamate or glutamic acid.
• “Natural contaminants” are also allowed and present in food. This includes things like insect parts, insect eggs, and rodent hairs. 

This last item is disturbing but true, and not a thought many of us have had before. The New York Times published a piece by E.J. Levy in 2009 that cited some of the allowable defect levels in our foods as listed by the FDA’s booklet. (Please see http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/13/opinion/13levy.html for the full article.)

• Canned mushrooms: “over 20 or more maggots of any size per 100 grams of drained mushrooms and proportionate liquid.”
• Hops, 10grams: “As many as 2500 plant lice.”
• Tomato juice: “10 or more fly eggs per 100 grams... or five or more fly eggs and one or more maggots.”

It is important that we become more conscious of what we are eating, but our regulations often don’t make it easy. According to a CBS news report consumers don’t know that they are eating genetically modified foods, simply because the genetically modified foods aren’t labeled. Most Americans do not realize that 80% of non-organic supermarket processed foods (basically every product containing soy, corn, canola, cottonseed oil, sugar beet derivatives or ingredients from animals fed soy or corn) are contaminated with genetically modified organisms. This means that 65% of the non-organic foods in the U.S. contain some genetically modified ingredients.

Monsanto has genetically engineered these food crops to withstand their pesticide Roundup®. They have also genetically engineered rBGH or Bovine Growth Hormone. Thousands of U.S. dairy cows are injected routinely with this hormone, even though it has been banned in Europe, Japan, Canada, and most industrialized nations. Rent the movie “Food, Inc. to learn more about genetically modified crops and the chemical alterations to the food supply.

For healthier food options during the summer months eat healthy hot dogs made from 100% meat, instead of chemically laden hot dogs with nitrates and fillers. Avoid fake man-made foods like meat sauce or fake nacho cheese and choose real cheese or real tomato sauce instead.

Cheese is a great snack food for children instead of candy or other packaged foods. Cheese is high in protein, calcium, and good fats, all necessary for proper bone growth. Choose cheese from non-rGBH cows to avoid the excess hormones that can cause unwanted hormone changes in young children.

Look for organic milk and organic free range or pasture raised beef and chicken. These foods are now available in most regular supermarkets, and also at local farmers’ markets during the summer. More than 200 foods are grown in Michigan, which is the second most agriculturally diverse state in the U.S. Many organic Michigan farmers are selling directly to consumers through farmers’ markets. Farmers’ markets offer the freshest and most local foods. 

Eating fresh fruits and vegetables is also beneficial and can help with the transition from packaged to fresh foods, particularly during the summer months when so many fresh fruits and vegetables are abundant. Look for fresh strawberries in June, cherries in July and melons and plums in August. Organic produce is best because it does not contain harmful pesticides and other chemical residues. During the summer there is also an abundance of fresh sweet peas, sweet corn and a wide variety of green vegetables, blueberries, cherries and more at local farmers’ markets. And as fall approaches, don’t forget to try the many varieties of apples!

Fruit contains natural sugars, which are metabolized easier by the body compared to packaged foods which have added sugar, fats, and chemicals. Natural fruit is a much better option than jello, marshmallows, or whipped cream desserts. Peanut or almond butter without sugar or added hydrogenated oil is great as a snack with apples or celery.

If other sweeteners must be used in food preparation, stevia is the best option since it is a naturally occurring sweet plant. Rice cereal treats can easily be made by combining natural ingredients instead of eating packaged sugary, artificially flavored convenience foods. 

Ice cream is one of the most popular foods worldwide. Look at the colors and flavors listed on the label when choosing ice cream. Commercial ice cream can have many ingredients that are not healthy. Do not buy the product when the label has confusing or hard to pronounce ingredient names. Look for naturally flavored organic ice cream. 

Another healthier option is to make your own ice cream during the summer months. Homemade ice cream has a better flavor, healthier ingredients, and allows for family bonding time. It is easy to make ice cream in a Vita-Mix® blender or in an ice cream maker. Simple healthy recipes are available at ice-cream-recipes.com or on the Vita-Mix.com website.

Healthy eating options are easier with blenders and food processors, which shorten food preparation time. The Vita-Mix® is a great kitchen appliance for making soups, smoothies, ice cream, juice, salsa, bread, nut butters and more. 

Many supermarkets are now carrying more organic produce and organic packaged foods due to high public demand, which also makes it easier to choose healthier options for your family. Even many packaged foods now are organic with real food ingredients. If you can’t eat organic, educate yourself about the safest non-organic produce. For a listing of the healthiest non-organic produce visit Environmental Working Group’s web site, www.ewg.org. They evaluated the top 50 produce items, and ranked them according to their pesticide residue from the least to the highest.

Children will be confused about what foods are healthy if their parents are confused. Children will not eat vegetables or try new foods if their parents also make unhealthy food choices. A recently written book can help both children and their parents learn what food is and is not healthy. Please Don’t Eat the Wallpaper!: The Teenager’s Guide to Avoiding Trans Fats, Enriched Wheat and High Fructose Corn Syrup, authored by Nancy Irven, D.C. will change the way children and parents think about food. The book is aimed at 14 year olds to teach them to want better food and how to make better choices. Chapters include recipes, food choices and meal planning, how to read food labels and product labeling, and the history of sugar, trans fat, and white flour. The book is becoming popular in many high schools as a textbook for nutrition classes.

It is true that eating fresh food requires more planning and preparation. But the health benefits far outweigh the time investment. Families can use the food preparation time to bond with their children, and to teach them the benefits of eating healthy. The time is well spent for families who involve their children in the creation of healthy meals.