KATHY’S HOME & GARDEN TIPS – Clean(er) Eating

We are all trying to eat a little better as we get older. I’ve recently lost 20+ pounds by doing a few things differently in my diet. I’m by no means eating completely clean or actually even close but if you really start to think before planning, shopping and eating you can really make a few manageable changes that can really make a difference.

Consider first what you are drinking every day. I was a diet popaholic. I was easily drinking four to five 2 liters and at least two to three 20oz. 6 packs a week. Of course I’m thinking no calories, but actually that’s not the whole story. Studies show that artificial sweeteners throw off our sense of how sweet things actually are. They can even make you crave sweets even more. The many chemicals also throw off your metabolism. I have switched to tea and water. Tea is great for your health and contains antioxidants that prevent disease. Btw, alcohol is nothing but empty calories that change to sugar. Avoid.

Always read labels. The more ingredients a food has the more processed it is. Many processed foods contain high amounts of salt (sodium). This makes us crave it. Diet foods claiming to be low fat usually are but fat is usually replaced by an equally unhealthy amount of sugar. We often decide fresh vegetables and salad are a great way to start clean eating, and indeed they are, but we need to watch what we are adding and dressing them with. Even oil based bottled salad dressings contain ingredients we’d rather not eat. Of course cream based dressings are out for me not for their additives but calories alone. Many feel simple lemon juice or flavored vinegar are sufficient to dress salads I need a little more. Mix extra virgin olive oil with lemon juice or any type vinegar at 2:1 ratio. Add I teaspoon Dijon mustard for a rich and flavorful dressing. Use sparingly! I keep a small bowl on the side and dip. Fresh vegetables like bean, asparagus, Brussel sprouts and broccoli should be quick sautéed in a little EVOO and garlic. We make a meal of fresh sautéed or roasted veggies and pan grilled chicken or steak.

Crave sweets still? Swap out fresh fruit. Make fresh fruit salad dressed with orange juice and balsamic vinegar. Adding a little real sugar to any fruit is better than dessert or artificial sweeteners.

Fat is not the villain that we all have thought. Bad fats are indeed an evil like excessive animal fat but many fats thought to be on the no-no list are now considered cleaner and healthier than previously thought. For instance, real butter is much better than margarine. Have you read a margarine label? Still, use butter sparingly but it’s more flavorful so that’s usually not a problem. Eggs are another forbidden food due to the high cholesterol. Actually the egg is a dietary powerhouse packing 6 grams of protein in 70 nutrient dense calories. They contain all nine essential amino acids as well as vitamin D, B12, phosphorus and riboflavin.

All this clean eating is also great for the environment. Try to eat foods grown near home. Shop farmer’s markets. Pay attention in stores, many grocery chains now are eager to stock locally sourced foods and will definitely label as such. I know that organic foods are more expensive and often hard to find in some areas but thankfully that’s changing. Aldi now has a large organic section as well as stores like Fresh Farms. Prices are coming down. If you can only afford a few organic items, choose dairy. Many dairy products contain antibiotics and hormones. Not healthy for anyone but especially harmful to adolescents and middle agers like me. Besides you will be saving by not buying expensive processed foods so a few more organics are more affordable.

KATHLEEN WEAVER-ZECH & DEAN’S TEAM CHICAGO