I believe in eating a diet that is as free of additives, chemicals, hormones, antibiotics, and artificial ingredients as possible. It all started with a toddler who was having night rages, aggression, and hyperactivity. I removed artificial dye from her diet, and began eating a mostly organic and gluten-free diet for her sake, with major improvements the following year. We lived in a rural area, with access to local farms where we could get fresh chicken, cow milk straight from the grass-fed cow, eggs from wandering chickens, and produce right off the side of the road. I learned how to cook somewhat decently with fresh ingredients, and I saw my child become more regulated than she ever had been.
But eating that way in the real world is not easy. It takes work, and planning. It takes constant commitment. We moved across the country, and my clean food ideas fell by the wayside for a good year. In that time, along with the disruption to her routine, my daughter’s behavior again became unmanageable. Although food was only one factor among many, I knew that we needed to get back on track with clean food. Once again, we begin to really restrict the artificial ingredients in her food as well as eliminating gluten. Our entire family began eating more organic produce, milk, and avoiding artificial dyes. Although I’ve recently committed myself to avoiding all GMO and unnatural ingredients in my food, feeding our whole family is a balancing act.
Even though we can’t live in a bubble, avoiding every single unfavorable ingredient 100% of the time, we give more of our dollars to organic brands and local farmers now, and I strive to keep our staple foods as healthy as possible. I love to learn more about my food, discover ways to keep it as natural as possible, and expose our children to a better way of eating so that they can someday make good choices for themselves.
Learn more about eating clean, whole foods here:
Food Babe: A food investigator researches what’s in our food, and has lots of advice on how to find a better way
Robyn O’Brien’s website: The author of “The Unhealthy Truth” and a mother of four, her research uncovers the links between GMOs and other unhealthy ingredients to poor health in children. Practical advice for improving the diet of busy families, too!
Mother of All Things 