Food for thought....

Did you ever wonder about the flavor of your natural foods?  For example, milk, orange juice, cheese, butter?  If you think about every time you've eaten or drank your favorite brand, did the flavor ever change?  We reach for our favorite brand of orange juice because we have found the flavor that suits us best.  But if you were to taste your favorite commercial foods or drinks, that were packaged for you a year ago and one that was packaged today you would notice that they taste exactly the same.

This may not take you by surprise or even bother you at first as that flavor is what endeared you to that brand in the first place.  But do foods naturally taste the same day after day after day?  The answer is no.  Any fruit picked yesterday will have a different sugar content than one picked tomorrow or the next day.  Milk, butter, cheeses change flavor based on what the cow is eating through out the year.  Even eggs can have subtle changes due to a chicken's diet (unfortunately in the chicken arena, commercially raised chickens diet never do change, so "factory eggs" likely do never change their flavor or color).

It almost seems ridiculous that I personally had not thought this concept through much earlier.  As a young child I remember being blessed with raw milk, we ate a lot of our own garden raised vegetables, and we produced fresh apple cider three months out of the year for sale.  I've known from a very young age that the cider produced early in the season has a very different flavor from that later in the season and that no two batches of cider were ever identical in flavor or color.  If that's the case with a simple glass of apple cider, why wouldn't it be the same for orange juice, grape juice, milk, cheeses, and any other natural product.

Unfortunately the answer lies in chemicals.  The large commercial companies know that their customers want a certain texture, a certain flavor and have found a way to make sure that every bottle of your favorite orange juice remains true to that particular bottle you opened on the day you fell in love with it.  Below I've posted some links with information and sources regarding the "amazing" journey our "natural" orange juice takes from an orange tree to your glass.

I haven't researched milk, and other similar products yet, but I'm quite certain the findings will be similar.  Though I do know for a fact that the raw milk, butter, yogurt, and cheeses that we buy from our farmer certainly do change from month to month, sometimes from week to week, all based on what the cows have been eating, where they have been pastured, etc....  And a shameless plug for our fresh pressed apple cider as an example of what a more natural process should look like:  you will never find an identical batch of our juice, similar maybe, as we've found certain blends of apple varieties make yummier juice then others, but never identical.  Our juice is pressed, filtered enough to remove any stray apple chunks, pumped cold through a (state mandated) computer controled uv light that targets e.coli and bad bacteria (enzymes, yeasts, and most good bacteria are not effected as our uv processed cider will "turn" just as quickly as the unprocessed cider), and then bottled into jugs and kept chilled in a cooler until bought by our customers.  Our cider will not last more than a week without beginning to turn and ferment (unless you purchase our preserved label, which uses the same exact process above, the only difference is it has potassium sorbate added prior to bottling.)  Personally we love freezing our favorite batch of the season to enjoy all through the winter, and if we're lucky and have pressed enough, through part of the summer.  A fond memory of mine was watching my Grandfather taste each batch of cider throughout the cider pressing months, looking for "the one" he wanted to fill his cider freezer with for the year.  Then every summer as he would be splitting wood for the year to come he'd have a half gallon of his cider thawing on a stump nearby so that as the day grew warm it would thaw and he'd enjoy "fresh cider" as he worked.

Next time you reach for something "natural", think about how much processing that "natural" food has gone through.

http://www.naturalnews.com/034703_orange_juice_flavor_packs_ingredients.html

http://www.foodrenegade.com/secret-ingredient-your-orange-juice/

It's a Journey!

Our daily journey towards complete health is just that, a journey-full of ups and downs, twists and turns, detours, road blocks, accidents, changed routes, and delightful side trips.  As I've said before we have always been in a state of flux, up and down, about our health, where we think we should be regarding our health, and even what we feel "being healthy" really means.   Two weeks ago it was suggested to my husband that he begin a strict diet to combat Adrenal Fatigue following a month of fighting with sleeplessness, inability to eat, function, or sleep well.

This "diet" wasn't crazy, it wasn't even weird, it was simply.....real.  So, at our wits end for how to deal with my hubby's declining health we took on this new "diet" and two weeks ago we began to eat more like GOD intended, or created us to eat.  We have a long way to go in getting this "right", but WOW the changes that have occurred in just a couple short weeks!

*Our family as a whole is sleeping better (once we convince the boys that it is indeed time to rest and they do NOT need another drink of water) and waking up refreshed in the morning.

*Our kitchen has NEVER seen so much activity.

*Our energy levels are rising and we are able to take on our days as opposed to our days draining us by mid afternoon.

*Dearest hubby of mine has gone from being a Mt. Dew/ Mellow Yellow junkie to being soda free.

*I have traded my 20 year daily organic black coffee habit for water and Teeccino.  (Here's a few reasons why we have chosen to quit the caffeine habit cold turkey.)

*Our littles are learning to truly appreciate a wide variety of good healthy foods.

*We are truly enjoying the delightful findings we glean from our garden everyday for our meals. (As well as storing up the extras for winter time use.)

*That evil scale in the bathroom, that is always reading a higher number than I want it to.....it's steadily getting closer to the numbers I want to see.  Ten pounds closer in just two weeks!

All these wonderful, healthy, delightful changes have come about simply by making wise, good, food decisions.  Our breakfasts consist of either an omelet of some sort or grain free pancakes and a drink of water or homemade lemonade or orange juice.  Lunches and Suppers include a meat (grass fed beef, free range chickens, or wild fish) and an assortment of fresh or frozen veggies along with a drink of water or homemade lemonade.  Snacks throughout our day include fresh fruits, raw nuts (no peanuts), and occasionally a grain free cookie.

I've mentioned what we DO eat first because that's what is truly important and really quite simply.  By making the commitment and decision to only eat real, whole foods, we are cutting out any processed, fake foods that effect our bodies negatively.  My husband is completely gluten intolerant and our whole family has been "mostly gluten free" for a year now and we have only seen minimal changes in our health and well being from our "change in diet".  But there is a reason for that, "gluten free" has become a big business, a popular fad and/or lifestyle and many, MANY companies have jumped in the gluten free pool.  This has made it very easy to eat the same exact processed foods that are available to those who are gluten tolerant.  Granted, quite often the quality of the gluten free foods may be slightly superior to the name brands, as many gluten free companies tend to carry organic and/or gmo free certifications.  But in the end, processed food is still processed food and every processing step creates a food that is further and further away from what your body recognizes and can utilize.    

By cutting out ALL processed foods, all soy products, all vegetable oils (we use coconut oil, olive oil, and raw butter), all grains, all processed sugars, and sparingly using potatoes, corn, and other starchy veggies we are transforming our family's health and are thrilled with the complete results!  This is truly a lifestyle, and a journey that is making serious changes to our family's life and future.