7 Tips to Grocery Shopping (Without Harming Your Family)

There are many approaches to grocery shopping.  Some shop based upon the coupons they have clipped that week, some plan ahead with a list, and some shop by the seat of their pants.  However, there are ways to shop that will not only save money, but will increase the health of your family as well.  Here are seven tips:

1.  Plan meals one week in advance.  Planning organizes your kitchen and saves money.  It enables you to clip coupons for the week ahead and to plan for healthy meals.

2.  Always have a list.  Being prepared helps you avoid spontaneous buys (which really add to the bottom line).  It also helps you focus on the healthy choices, rather than the hugely promoted “junk foods”.

3.  Shop in the outskirts of the store.  The healthy whole food products are located around the perimeter.

4.  Buy organic.  Certified organic produce is guaranteed not to have pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilizers, sewage sludge, genetically modified organisms, or use ionizing radiation.

5.  Avoid processed foods.  Anything that is canned, packaged, or wrapped is a processed food and as far as the FDA is concerned, the package label can be “anything goes”.  First, there is no requirement on revealing if genetically modified organisms (GMO) are in the food.  Second, there are no standardized serving sizes and many companies will use a serving size so small that any attempt to calculate actually calories consumed can become a daunting task.  And thirdly, things such as trans – fats may not make the nutrition label at all, if the amount present in the serving size falls under the minimum FDA requirements.

6.  Avoid genetically modified organisms (GMO).  The American Academy of Environmental Medicine has stated that “GM foods pose a serious health risk.”  There has been very little research on the dangers of GM foods in humans, but animal studies have shown smaller brains, livers, and testicles, partial atrophy or increased density of the liver, odd shaped nuclei, and other anomalies in animals consuming GM foods.

7.  Read labels for “at risk” ingredients. 90% of corn, soybeans, canola, and cottonseed is genetically modified.  If the nutritional label contains these items, it is a safe bet the food contains genetically modified ingredients.

Use these tips to save money, shop healthy, and shop wise!

 

The Dangers of Soy

Soy
Soy products are becoming more common everyday.  Their popularity is mostly due to their properties as a low fat protein and also some evidence of a decrease in some cancers with a diet rich in soy.  Soy is found in tofu, soy nuts, soy milk and soy butter.  However, soy has some major drawbacks as well.

  • High levels of phytic acid in soy reduce assimilation of calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc. Phytic acid in soy is not neutralized by ordinary preparation methods such as soaking, sprouting and long, slow cooking. High phytate diets have caused growth problems in children.
  • Trypsin inhibitors in soy interfere with protein digestion and may cause pancreatic disorders. In test animals soy containing trypsin inhibitors caused stunted growth.
  • Soy phytoestrogens disrupt endocrine function and have the potential to cause infertility and to promote breast cancer in adult women.
  • Soy phytoestrogens are potent antithyroid agents that cause hypothyroidism and may cause thyroid cancer. In infants, consumption of soy formula has been linked to autoimmune thyroid disease.
  • Vitamin B12 analogs in soy are not absorbed and actually increase the body's requirement for B12.
  • Soy foods increase the body's requirement for vitamin D.
  • Fragile proteins are denatured during high temperature processing to make soy protein isolate and textured vegetable protein.
  • Processing of soy protein results in the formation of toxic lysinoalanine and highly carcinogenic nitrosamines.
  • Free glutamic acid or MSG, a potent neurotoxin, is formed during soy food processing and additional amounts are added to many soy foods.
  • Soy foods contain high levels of aluminum which is toxic to the nervous system and the kidneys(*). 

Beware of soy and soy products.  Mothers be especially careful of soy infant formulas.  Soy foods contain trypsin inhibitors that inhibit protein digestion and affect pancreatic function. In test animals, diets high in trypsin inhibitors led to stunted growth and pancreatic disorders. Soy foods increase the body's requirement for vitamin D, needed for strong bones and normal growth. Phytic acid in soy foods results in reduced bioavailabilty of iron and zinc which are required for the health and development of the brain and nervous system. Soy also lacks cholesterol, likewise essential for the development of the brain and nervous system. Megadoses of phytoestrogens in soy formula have been implicated in the current trend toward increasingly premature sexual development in girls and delayed or retarded sexual development in boys(*). 

* Information acquired from www.westinaprice.org

 

Dr. Tom