While all your friends are pigging out on chips, dips, sodas and more… you can also enjoy your own version of junk food or better yet, share with them. The only difference is that what you are eating is actually full of good “junk” that will nourish your every cell.
The multi-billion dollar junk food market has increased steadily over the years with the influx of cheap, subsidized corn and one of its derivatives, high fructose corn syrup. We are, in essence, living in a junk food culture with giant glowing signs and sexy media campaigns around every corner drawing us in. Junk food is easy, it is quick and it is accessible. It is also BAD!
Most junk food is dead, meaning – it has no nutritional value at all. In fact, some junk food can even be downright dangerous no matter what manufacturers are telling us. Imagine that, paying to harm yourself.
As strange as that may seem, it happens everyday, every minute and every second all over our country. High content sugar, trans fats, high refined salt and high additive pseudo foods are robbing us of our health and we are paying for that to happen!
The flip side to nutrient void junk food is food that feeds your body with rich nutrients. Healthy food does not have to be boring and bland; it can be fun, full of life and actually good for you at the same time.
Easy Healthy Junk Food Rules
Making just a few substitutions will allow you to enjoy healthy junk food.
Stop Eating Conventional Beef: – Today’s cows are not raised like they used to be. Cows consume a diet high in genetically modified grain and soy, which they are not designed to digest. The omega 6 to omega 3 ratio in industrial beef is 6:1 while grass fed beef is 1:1. A diet high in omega 6 may lead to chronic inflammation and serious health conditions. The use of dangerous antibiotics and growth hormones is also prevalent in the conventional beef industry.
Eat Organic Grass-fed Burgers – Look for a local source of grass fed-beef or bison. You can visit eatwild.com to find a farm near you. Serve your grass fed meat to your friends on a tasty sprouted bun or wrapped in a romaine lettuce leaf. Not only is grass-fed meat full of healthy fat, vitamins and protein, but it also tastes amazing. No more fake burgers for you!
Stop Eating Fast Food Fries – In our recent article regarding fast food fries we talked about some of the dangers of this popular snack food. Fast food fries are normally fried in trans fat which has been linked to heart disease, hypertension and diabetes to name a few. starchy foods such as potatoes that are cooked above 245 degrees F release cancer-causing chemicals known as acrylamides. Animal studies have confirmed that acrylamides cause tumors to form.
Eat Sweet-Potato Fries – Try slicing up a sweet potato into wedges and drizzling with coconut oil, italian herbs and sea salt. Sweet potatoes are loaded with fiber, antioxidants and potassium. Bake these wedges in a single layer at 450 degrees F for 30 minutes on each side or until they are brown.
Stop Drinking Soda and Diet Soda: In our article comparing soda to diet soda we concluded that both were equally bad in their own way. Regular soda is void of nutrients and loaded with high fructose corny syrup, a sure recipe for a health disaster. Diet soda, made from artificial sweeteners, mostly aspartame. Aspartame is designated as a ‘chemical poison’ in the book Prescription for Nutritional Healing by James and Phyllis Balch, and is responsible for over 75 percent of adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA. These reported reactions include seizures and death.
Start Drinking Homemade Soda – While we recommend fresh, filtered water as the beverage of choice, everyone likes a change from water from time to time. Homemade soda is a naturally sweet and healthy alternative.
Stop Eating Conventional Ice Cream: Just one look at the nutritional label on most store-bought ice cream packages reveals the dark truth. Among the ingredients are ice crystals, high fructose corn syrup, refined salt, stabilizers, emulsifiers, carrageenan, mono and diglycerides and calcium sulfate, a common industrial chemical. Commercial sources of calcium sulfate found in soft serve ice cream are derived from cows or pigs, or manufactured synthetically.
Eat Coconut Fruit Pops – If your sweet tooth has gotten the best of you, try these delicious coconut fruit pops. No empty calories or artificial ingredients here!
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups fresh organic coconut milk
- 1/4 cup coconut crystals
- 1/2 cup frozen organic fruit
- 3 finely chopped mint leaves
Instructions:
- Place small chunks of the frozen fruit in the bottom of your popsicle molds.
- Put a few pieces of mint leaves into each of the molds.
- Blend the honey and coconut milk in a blender until smooth then fill the molds with the mixture.
- Put in sticks and freeze the mixture for 2 hours.
Don’t be sad to say goodbye to junk food.
“Mourning your abstinence from junk food is like mourning the loss of an enemy who would happily see you die.” – unknown
-The Alternative Daily
Sources:
Dearfield KL, Abernathy CO, Ottley MS, Brantner JH, Hayes PF. Acrylamide: Its metabolism, developmental and reproductive effects, genotoxicity, and carcinogenicity. Mutation Research 1988; 195(1):45–77.