Life is just busy as ever and when it comes to meal time, most Americans are conveniently cooking it up. When I say conveniently cooking it up, I am talking about pulling out a box meal or popping a frozen entrée into the microwave.
A typical family where both parents are working outside of the home at 8 hours a day with added commute time, and dropping off the children at daycare, takes up a full day.
You may be familiar with this routine; not to mention, after a long day you have to get the kids to different activities or sports.
Where does a healthy cooked meal fit into this type of schedule? Sadly, it doesn’t for most people.
This is where most of the American diet is tailored around processed food or fast food chains. Although convenience is a nice option for the busy family, it also comes with a price, and that is a price of good health.
Why are processed foods not a healthy option? For one, processed foods are loaded with trans fats, saturated fats, and a lot of sodium and sugar.
I used to buy canned soups from famous brands, and after reading the label, I was shocked by the amount of sodium in one small can. A 10 ¾ oz can of soup may contain 750 mg of sodium per serving! That’s per serving!
I was on a search for some healthier options with much lower sodium. Eating foods that are loaded with these ingredients should be avoided or eaten very little if we are going to live healthier.
About.com gives a general list of processed foods that may not be as healthy below: (see link for full article)
• canned foods loaded with sodium
• refined white flour, in most breads and pastas
• snack packs ei: chips
• frozen dinners entrees
• packaged boxed meal
• processed meats ei: lunch meats, deli meats
Not only are processes foods made with trans fats, saturated fats, a lot of sodium and sugar, but there are also chemicals and preservatives that are used to keep them lasting longer.
Let’s take processed meats for example. Processed meat uses sodium nitrite or nitrate to help preserve, so it looks more pleasing to the eyes and longer shelf life.
It sounds all good, right? Of course; however, what it does to your body is far from GOOD!
What is sodium nitrite? American Institute for Cancer Report defines this chemical in their glossary:
Nitrite: A salt containing the nitrite ion, which contains nitrogen and oxygen in proportion
1:2 (NO2). Sodium nitrite is added to many processed meats.
Nitrites are also formed in the body from nitrates in plant foods that are eaten. When consumed, nitrites can lead to the generation of N-nitroso compounds, some of which are known carcinogens (see box 4.3.2) Please see the glossary term or nitrate (it’s shocking).
Carcinogens are cancer causing chemicals! A lot of deli meats we use for lunches contain nitrite or nitrate. I went on a search several years ago for healthier lunch meats that are nitrite or nitrate free.
Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods Market carries nitrite and nitrate free lunch meat. One of my favorite brands is Applegate Farms. They have a great selection of lunch meat that is wholesome.
As a busy mom, it’s difficult to whip up healthy meals every night; however, with a bit of advance meal planning it’s possible! I was not a fan of the slow cooker; 
I’ve found that when days are busy, the good old slow cooker
I found an awesome cookbook for slow cookers years ago full of easy recipes that I would improvise for organic ingredients whenever possible.
If you need some simple ideas to help you with your slow cooker, you can purchase Fix It and Forget It Cookbook
I still believe in a 90/10 rule, that’s to eat healthy 90% of the time and allow the 10% of the time to be for rare occasions like, vacations and parties, etc.
The point is, the more we can decrease the amount of processed foods in our life the greater chances we have of reducing the risks for various cancers and illness that rob us from living healthier and happier!
Disclosure: I have not been compensated to mention any of the brands or products in this post. All opinions are mine.
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I found about all of this information only recently and at what price price: my aunt passed away young (my mother’s baby sister). My entire family is working from home now and promoting healthy nutrition ever since. We started taking the products that we distribute, 7 years ago. All three of us were super obese/ obese/overweight. We stopped eating unhealthy foods, because our customized and personalized to us healthy shakes compensated for all that and saved us a lot of money for breakfast and lunch not to mention healthy protein snacks in between the meals. We all became distributors as we found out that we could buy all these products at whole sale prices and helping other people with their nutritional needs(like losing weight healthy, safely and sustain energy throughout the day using natural plant based products ). Then we realized that we are working from home earning extra money from sales, royalties, bonuses, we just started little over a year and getting residual income check from the company for helping people with targeted nutrition and helping others make extra money part/full time. It takes 5 minutes to prepare shake using recopies that we got from our sponsor and the company pays us extra income for doing our business. The best of all my mother is not taking any medications anymore was able to retire and my husband left his miserable 15 hours a day business to take care of me as I am disabled. And we are all happy now.
So true, we MUST be aware of the chemicals that are going IN our bodies. But, we also need to know the chemicals that we are putting ON our bodies. Here’s a great video about cosmetic products, “Unmasked: The Truth About Cosmetics” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQYxkMVexo0
Great post on how to live healthier by removing processed foods from the diet. Love it!
I totally agree with what you wrote concerning the negatives of consuming processed foods. A few years back, midway through undergrad I realized just what a negative effect those types of foods had on the human body. Being a student, I was limited in time to prepare more health conscious meals and/or seek out healthier alternatives to what surrounds a college campus. However, having a major in the health field allowed me to be educated on what foods are required to maintain a healthier lifestyle. Today, I limit my intake of fast food meals and attempt to make more healthier meals in the comfort of my own home. Thanks so much for sharing this very helpful information as it is much needed in our society.
*Disclaimer: I do eat a burger and fries on occasion. Now, I simply apply the concept of moderation. *
Totally, moderation is key! Being healthy doesn’t mean being in bondage. Eat healthy 90% or more of time and allow room for some of the other stuff occasionally! Thanks for sharing
Great collection of info. It really is scary what goes into those preprocessed foods. Several years ago I quit eating at the fast food places all together in order to lose weight and started preparing my own foods. After a year of being off of the fast food I went back and tried a burger. It made me feel physically sick after eating it and now avoid them like the plague.
Great article. Coincidentally, we just began a “campaign” to eat primarily raw. I purchased a Vita-Mix processor and I make amazing fruit/vegetable concotions morning and evening that fill us up and are filled with the nutrients that we need. We are in week three and I am beginning to really feel the energy and benefits of this way of eating. I am excited about the prospect of using the veggies from my organic garden this summer. I have always been concerned about the chemicals found in processed foods. I am hoping that by eating mostly raw, some of those concerns (and chemicals) will be reduced.
Thank you again for a great post.
I had no idea that lunch meat, especially when they say how low in fat and sodium some are (turkey, I’m looking at you), can contain such harmful substances. Is it possibly the curing process that creates this chemical mixture? Either way that is some scary stuff. Great post!!
Wonderful information! It’s so important to know WHAT we’re eating so we can understand WHY we feel as we do. Once people get that connection, they’re on their way to making healthier food choices. Thanks for the great info!
I totally understand processed foods are so bad for you, but they are sooo good too
I know I want to start eating right and cooking right too, so many people are obese in the world and I would really like to teach my children to eat healthier so they can live a healthier, happier, longer life!
Thanks for this information!