4 Easy Ways to Eat More Healthy

Over the last year I have started to eat more healthy.  I talked a little about it in Getting Back to Healthy where I talked about a sleep issue I had because of eating too much aspartame.  Another reason I'm changing how I eat?  Two years ago I started getting nauseous about an hour after lunch every afternoon.  I started thinking maybe it was something I was eating.  I ate a chicken salad every day and one day I switched the chicken for salmon.  Bingo.  Had I suddenly developed an allergy to chicken?  Crazy, and so irritating.  I eat chicken a lot.  I went to an allergist to get tested, but it was inconclusive.  He said so many people are developing allergies, they haven't been able to create tests to keep up.  Someone, and I don't remember who, said try eating organic chicken.  That was it.  There was something in the chicken, it wasn't the chicken itself.  Makes you wonder, what do they put in our food?  Sometimes I don't like to think about it...

I'm certainly not perfect (I love my Ben & Jerrys) and I am trying to continue to learning a lot.  Although I'm still making some changes, I started out with baby steps and I thought I would share them with you.

These are easy things, relatively inexpensive that can help you be healthier and feel good about the things you're putting in you body.

1.  Switch sugar & Aspartame for Stevia.  I use Truvia brand and really love it.  I'm very picky as I love sugar (a total downfall), and Truvia has a taste & texture similar to sugar.  The one item of aspartame I allow myself most days is 1 can of diet soda.  I have tried Zevia and well, it's just not the same.  Learn about Stevia vs. Aspartame & Stevia vs. Splenda.

2.  Buy Organic Produce.  It's not that organic produce is healthier (surprised?)... It has FAR less pesticides than conventional produce.  I don't know about you, but I'd rather not have toxins in my body and especially my kids!  Read more about why you should buy organic produce.

3.  Organic or non rBST Dairy.  This is controversial.  Many people say that the hormones they treat the cows with does not pass into the milk.  However, cows treated with this hormone tend to get more infections, are treated with more antibiotics, and those can be passed into the milk.  Decide for yourself.  This is an interesting read on rBST.

4.  Grass Fed Beef.  I don't generally eat a lot of beef.  But when I do,  I buy grass fed meat and butter from grass fed cows and you don't know until you've tasted it.  It's higher in Omega 3 fatty acids, good unsaturated fats, vitamins A & E, and CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid) which has numerous health benefit (read here).

All in all, make your own decisions.  Try to do research if it's something you're concerned about.  It's also helpful to surround yourself with knowledgeable people that can offer advise when you can't the forest between the trees.