I have a picky son who absolutely loves Alfredo Sauce. But traditional Alfredo Sauce is through the roof with fat, saturated fat, and calories. Since he eats so much cheese, I've been concerned about his heart health. Children today are so much less active than they were when I was growing up, and Nathan is no exception. So, I decided to find a reduced fat Alfredo Sauce to try. (Post may contain affiliate links).
I found a recipe for reduced fat Alfredo Sauce online a few months ago.
We tweaked it a bit. It was a hit! In fact, shortly after trying this recipe, I bought regular Alfredo Sauce at the deli of our local grocery store. If you can believe it, Nathan likes my reduced fat version better. So we make it for him quite frequently.
One thing many people don't realize about cheese is that dry Italian cheese has richer flavor, and weighs less by bulk. So a 3/4 cup serving of Romano Pecorino cheese has less calories and fat than 3/4 cup of cheddar cheese, for example. This is one reason why this recipe was actually pretty easy to create.
Although Alfredo sauce is traditionally served with Fettucine, you can add this sauce to different types of pasta to add variety. And it will all taste delicious!
We serve our reduced fat Alfredo sauce with Ravioli, whole grain pasta, and legume pasta. It also tastes delicious on vegetables, such as broccoli, and with chicken and beef. We're still trying to get Nathan used to the idea of eating broccoli, chicken and pasta Alfredo together as one dish. However, he's not going for it–yet.
The good news is that he will eat chicken and broccoli on the side as long as the pasta is in a separate bowl.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as Nathan does. Oh, for comparison.
Delicious, aromatic, and easy. This reduced fat version passes the kid test. You'll be able to serve it with your favorite pasta, meats, and vegetables.
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time10 minutesmins
Total Time30 minutesmins
Servings: 4Servings
Calories: 358kcal
Author: Deborah Hanyon, MPH, RDN, ACE-CHC
Ingredients
1tbspButter
1tspminced garlic
1tbspall purpose flouror gluten-free flour of choice
1cup2% reduced fat milk
2 tbspcream cheesesoftened
1/2tsplemon zestgrated, fresh
1tbspparsleyfresh, chopped
3/4cupromano pecorinoor other favorite italian cheese
1dashwhite pepperoptional
1/4tspsaltmay use up to 1/2 tsp
8ozwhole grain pastaor other favorite pasta
Instructions
Melt Butter in saucepan
add garlic and lemon zest; cook until soft, about 1 minute
add in flour, stir
add milk, whisk together until smooth; cook, stirring constantly, at medium temp until thickened and bubbly, about 3 minutes
add cream cheese and romano pecorino cheese;
Note that cream cheese will be difficult to completely mix into the milk; if will taste good even if you see little pieces. However, if you want to combine it until it's creamy, you can use an immersion blender.
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When discussing parental involvement, many usually associate it with supporting children’s academic performance and achievement. However, research published in the journal Child Development emphasizes the role of parenting in children’s behaviors and self-improvement, especially in early childhood. Although the study focused on the socioemotional aspects of child development, it can also extend to cultivating your kids’ healthy habits and behaviors.
One of the simplest ways to become more involved in your children’s health and lifestyle is by reading digital resources and imparting insights to them. Take the best-selling book The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown, which can help families understand their weaknesses and imperfections for improved self-perception and mental health. This book is filled with daily practices and ten guideposts for better living and can be accessed on the digital library Everand — alongside other top-rated titles on parenting and relationships, such as The 5 Principles of Parenting by Aliza Pressman.
Besides helping you care for children’s mental and emotional wellness, reading can also be an avenue for promoting physical health to your kids, specifically by cultivating healthier eating habits. So, here are the best ebooks to help you teach your kids about nutrition.
In their early years, it’s common for kids to be more interested in sweet treats and processed foods. But instead of lecturing them and potentially discouraging them from trying healthier choices, the book We Are What We Eat: Holistic Thinking Kids by Kristy Hamill uses talking food characters to guide them toward real foods. Through humor and rhyme, kids aged 2-10 can better distinguish which foods are nourishing and which aren’t. The best thing is that the book is also vegan-friendly, making it ideal for families looking to transition to plant-based diets for health, economic, and environmental reasons.
Another practical, informational book parents can consider adding to their digital libraries is Lizzy Rockwell’s Good Enough to Eat: A Kid's Guide to Food and Nutrition. This hands-on tool can help parents explain healthy eating to kids in a more digestible way, as it breaks down the basics of nutrient groups, nutritious food sources, recommended nutrient intake, and calorie management with sufficient text and graphics. It also includes kid-friendly recipes that apply the book’s principles in real life, such as Alphabread and Full o' Beans Soup.
No matter how much you want to encourage your kids to eat healthier, it shouldn’t be at the expense of their self-esteem and body image. As such, parents can refer to Virginia Sole-Smith’s new book, Fat Talk: Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture, to help them navigate conversations about body weight and overall health while still avoiding body-shaming. Among the powerful insights gained from the book is the idea of using neutral language around food, allowing families to take a mindful yet relaxed approach to diet and nutrition.
Nutrition also involves food hygiene and safety, as preparing and handling foods the proper way helps ensure kids can maximize flavor and nutrients. In this case, you can find the printable Food Safety for Kids on the blog as a handy guide for reinforcing the importance of food safety and preventing food-borne illnesses. The digital resource includes activities, flashcards, and other informative tools that teach kids to avoid food poisoning and cross-contamination and to clean and sanitize properly.
Overall, digital resources can teach you both technical and practical information about diet and nutrition, which you can then instill in your kids’ daily habits and lifestyles for long-term health and wellness. You can also find more printable nutrition education guides by exploring the rest of the blog.
Written by Reanne John for homeschoolingdietitianmom.com
Reanne John became a learning advocate after her daughter entered nursery. After discovering helpful educational tips, Reanne decided to pursue a career in blogging to support other parents.
Why a Zinc Deficiency May be Contributing to Your Child's Pickiness
There are SO MANY THINGS that can be causing your child's picky eating behavior. From sensory/tactile issues, to food allergies and intolerances, the cause and cure can seem impossible to figure out. Limited food intake, including few different foods accepted, can make the problem even harder to figure out. There is often a vicious cycle of unwillingness to try new foods which then results in a limited variety of foods eaten. The fewer different foods a child eats the more likely they are to be deficient in one or more vitamins and minerals. Often, the deficiency can make the appetite disappear, and can affect taste and smell. This is especially the case with zinc.
Zinc is an important nutrient. It is a trace mineral that is vital for a healthy immune system. Research has shown that taking zinc for five months before and even within 24 hours of catching a cold can actually shorten the cold recovery time.
Besides iron, zinc is the most concentrated trace mineral found in the human body. It is also important for wound healing. In fact, a common practice in long-term care facilities is to give zinc and Vitamin C supplements to patients JUST IN CASE they develop a wound, or in order to prevent a wound from developing.
Adequate zinc also helps to ensure proper growth in children as well as a healthy appetite. Not only does a lack of zinc in the diet affect appetite, it also affects taste and smell.
Symptoms of zinc deficiency include:
Frequent infections
Hypogonadism in males
Loss of hair
Poor appetite
Problems with the sense of taste
Problems with the sense of smell
Skin sores
Slow growth
Trouble seeing in the dark
Wounds that take a long time to heal
Although in the ideal world, everyone would eat all the right foods in all the right amounts, this is obviously not the case. As a result, I normally encourage parents of picky kids to take a multivitamin with minerals to help offset the potential nutrient imbalances. Unfortunately, gummy vitamins do not have sufficient minerals of any kind in them.
I really do not recommend mega doses of any one nutrient unless there is a proven reason for it. This is because when a person takes an excessive amount of one nutrient, it can make it difficult for the body to digest other important nutrients.
The best and safest way to ensure proper nutrition is through the diet. However, if there is a severe deficiency, and your child doesn't eat much, it may be necessary to supplement. How much to give your child really depends on the level of deficiency, the age and weight of your child, and other factors. So, if you suspect that your child might have a zinc deficiency, I suggest you have them tested first.
So, how do you determine if your child has a zinc deficiency? Unfortunately, traditional blood tests will not be able to rule out a zinc deficiency. There is one test that may at least help determine if zinc deficiency is a possibility. It's called the “Zinc Taste Test.” However, it is probably not all that accurate either. And it might be difficult to get a picky eater to cooperate anyway. It you can convince your child, It might not hurt to try it, but I would talk to your child's doctor first. In the meantime, it will be helpful to know what the best sources of zinc are.
Keep in mind that often a person will crave something they are low in. For example, my son loves seafood. Despite that he is so picky, he will eat oysters, octopus, clams, squid (I know, right?).
I had a reader ask me a couple of days ago about what she can do during the special holiday meals to help prevent weight gain. Of course, she's not unlike most of us who don't want to be rude when invited to friends and family meals. Here's my take.
We don't want to pick and choose which foods we eat when we visit friends and family for holiday meals. This is partly because many hosts are offended or hurt when we reject what they spent hours to make.
As a result of this question, I decided to talk with my readers about what I am serving for Christmas dinner, and what I will do to minimize excess poundage. Note, that I do not go for the fat-free, sugar-free Christmas choices.
First, I don't like all my foods to be fat-free or sugar-free. Second, most of my guests won't appreciate fat-free, sugar free either–especially at Christmas. Besides, I have discovered through personal experience that if I feel deprived, my long-term goals of weight management will not be successful. As MyFitnessPal recently noted,
YOU CAN LOSE WEIGHT EATING NOTHING BUT TWINKIES AND OTHER JUNK FOODS.
Bottom line is whether you consume more calories than you burn through activities of daily living and exercise.
Quickly, I just want to mention something. Food is composed of three different “macronutrients” known commonly as carbohydrates, protein, and fat. Each gram of fat in food is equal to 9 calories, each gram of carbohydrate is equal to 4 calories, and each gram of protein is also 4 calories. Thus, fat is more than twice as calorie dense as carbohydrates and protein. Thus, if your diet is high in fat, the amount of food will have to be lower to achieve calorie balance.
Remember what I just said about the “Twinkie Diet?” Well, the principle that allows it to be possible to basically eat anything you want is,
Calories in = Calories out = Weight maintenance
Calories in < Calories out = Weight Loss
Calories in > Calories out = Weight Gain
For example, if I eat 1500 calories a day and use 1500 calories a day through regular activity and exercise, then I will maintain my weight. And If I eat 1500 calories and burn and extra 300 calories a day for a total of 1800 calories used, I will lose weight over time. In contrast, if I eat 1500 calories and only use 1200 calories, I will gain weight over time.
One pound is equal to 3500 calories. So, if you have a 300-calorie deficit, you will lose 1 pound every 11-12 days. If you have a 300-calorie surplus, you will gain 1 pound every 11-12 days.
1. Remember that Portion Sizes Matter
The first and most important of the 5 ways to avoid holiday weight gain is to remember that portion sizes matter.
To not feel deprived, and to be successful in long-term weight loss and maintenance, I have discovered that I can eat any food within reason.
So, rather than focusing on what I “should” or “shouldn't” eat, I have found it's much more efficient to be aware of portion size. However, it is important to remember that portion sizes will have to be smaller for foods that are more calorie dense if you want to maintain your weight or lose some extra weight. This is why I use a calorie counting app to keep track of my calorie intake.
Since having my son, I have struggled with my weight. When I got serious about losing the extra 40 pounds or so that I gained when I stopped breastfeeding, I learned that keeping track of my calories keeps me on track. Most recently, I have lost 15 pounds this way. My app of choice is MyFitnessPal. But there are others that are good as well.
And just to make sure I'm being clear; I'm not suggesting you eat junk food all day. It's just an extreme example to illustrate a crucial point that most diet fads don't acknowledge. One specific food group is not the enemy.
Below are the foods I'm going to serve for Christmas and their calorie content. I got this information from MyFitnessPal. I just love My Fitness Pal! I've written about this app before.
CHRISTMAS DINNER PLANNED FOR THIS YEAR
Beef Loin New York Steak Roast – Weight of roast before cooking is 4.56 pounds (16 oz per lb.; 16 x 4.56 = 73 ounces raw weight divided by 4 oz serving =18.25 servings without trimming – According to MyFitnessPal app, 4 oz = 250 calories (3 ounce is size of deck of cards).
Normally, if there is a lot of visible fat, you can remove the fat to save calories, but this roast doesn't have a lot of visible fat, so that won't be an option.
Cheesy Baked Rice – My son absolutely LOVES this, and he wants me to make it more often than just Christmas. However, I save it for Christmas so that it will be more special. I use Basmati Rice in most of my rice dishes because it adds a nutty flavor which is much more interesting than plain rice. I got the original recipe from Chowhound several years ago. But I've made a couple of changes.
1) Regular butter instead of unsalted butter mainly because I don't want to spend extra money buying unsalted butter when I don't use it that much.
2) Regular chicken base/broth
3) Reduce the amount of salt from 2 1/2 teaspoons to 1/2 teaspoon salt.
I will never understand using all those unsalted ingredients, and then adding extra salt! Just my own opinion. Not only that, but I have NEVER used that much salt in any recipe I have made. But I regress…
4) 2% milk in place of heavy cream, which no one will hardly even notice despite that this is the first year I've decided to do this. The reason is the recipe has butter and cheese which have plenty of fat (and flavor) on their own.
The original recipe says that it makes 6-8 servings. However, my experience is that it makes quite a bit more than that. But, for the sake of not underestimating calories I am using 8 servings, 396 calories with the changes I'm making. The original recipe has 525 calories.
Roll – Calories will vary depending on type of roll. For example, the rolls we served at Thanksgiving were whole wheat, but they had 190 calories! In contrast, 2 oz sourdough dinner roll has 150 calories. Plus, butter, if you use any 100 calories per tablespoon.
1/2 roll = 75 calories. Therefore, I usually half one with my mom, with 1/2 tablespoon butter, that's only 125 calories (75 for roll and 50 for butter). This is why breads, grains and other carbohydrate rich foods have a reputation for making you fat.
This is because people don't pay attention to how much they are eating. So,
2. REMEMBER THAT PORTION SIZE COUNTS!
I know this is the same as the first way to avoid Holiday weight gain. But IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT!!!
In fact, it is the most important of the five ways to avoid holiday weight gain.
Broccoli – without butter – 1/2 cup = 15 calories, with butter – 1/2 cup with 1 teaspoon butter – 47 calories
Slow Cooker Cranberry Sauce (from McCormick) 1/2 cup = 89 calories. (I made this at Thanksgiving. It is so good)!
Dutch Apple Pie – 1 serving 360 calories.
150 calories for 1/2 cup regular ice cream
So total for regular serving sizes: 250 calories for 4 oz roast, 396 calories for 1/2 cup rice, 225 calories for sourdough roll with 1/2 tablespoon butter, 47 calories (broccoli w/butter); cranberry sauce, 1/2 cup 89 calories, Dutch Apple pie 360 calories, regular vanilla ice cream 150 calories per 1/2 cup.
Total calories including apple pie and ice cream: 1517
My calorie allowance when I don't work out is only 1330 calories!!! BUT it's only one day, and you can save calories by eating less of everything.
If you cut serving sizes in half, you will be down to 1/2 of 1517, which is 759. You can also take the ice cream off completely or have only ice cream on the dessert.
One of the best ways to decrease portion size without noticing so much is to use smaller plates. If you tried to put all those foods on a regular size dinner (9 oz) plate, you would have to put a lot less of each to fit. Standard size is about 12 ounces and 6 ounces for dessert plate.
3. CUT DOWN ON THE SNACKS!!!
In previous years, our family has gone too crazy with the pre-dinner snacks. Not only were we doing some serious calorie loading, but we weren't as hungry for the main meal, and didn't enjoy the meal as much.
Now that I'm watching my calories more, I am limiting snacks served.
For example, for Thanksgiving, we had carrots, potato chips, onion dip, wheat thins, cheese, grapes tomatoes. Other years we've had all that PLUS 2-3 other kinds of chips and crackers, salami, nuts, ranch dip, avocado dip, and there's only five of us! Now that's just ridiculous.
So, for Christmas, it's carrots, tomatoes, cauliflower, one type of chip, one type of cracker, cheese, and onion dip (made from Lipton Onion Soup Mix and sour cream).
Eat lots of carrots, tomatoes, cauliflower, or serve vegetables you like and enjoy so that you will want to eat them. For the main meal, I'm serving broccoli because my son wants broccoli for most meals, and we didn't have broccoli on Thanksgiving. If you like broccoli, eat lots of it! Without butter, it hardly has any calories, plus it's super good for you!
5. EAT A LIGHT BREAKFAST
I put the snacks out around 1:00. So, theoretically this could be our lunch. (We usually eat dinner around 6 pm). With a light breakfast, and smaller portion sizes, I just might stay close to my calorie allowance. For example, I might have yogurt, fruit and a slice of toast, or a bowl of nice whole grain cereal with a banana.
But remember, it is calories consumed OVER TIME, not just one day that makes a difference in overall calorie balance. So, if you eat a bit less the day before and a bit less the day after, you will have a balance and will be successful with long-term weight management. My Fitness Pal shows you your daily intakes and has an option for 7 days so you can see if there's an overall deficit or surplus over time.
Also remember that one pound is equal to 3500 calories. So, you won't gain weight from going overboard one day in the year, if you aren't regularly consuming more calories than you are using in your daily living.
6. EXERCISE the day before and the day after (and the day of, if possible).
Can I be honest?
One of the main reasons I exercise regularly is so that I can eat more. That's right!!! (If all I could eat was 1300 calories a day, I'd be in BIG trouble weight-wise).
I also exercise because it calms me down. This is a bonus and can be helpful during the holidays when dealing with the extra stress that comes with the joy of the season (including the stress of all those relatives you don't have a good relationship with).
My gym won't be open this Christmas, so that means if I want to burn extra energy, I must exercise at home. I will not exercise on Christmas but will have an extra good workout the day before and the day after.
In past years, a few of us have gone on walks after dinner. That's a really effective way to burn extra calories and to refresh yourself. Noone in my family likes walking, and I don't like to walk alone. This is a good example of how you have to find what works for you. If you like walking, this is an excellent idea, and something you can integrate into your everyday living.
Making sure your child is getting his or her basic nutritional needs met.
Today I'm going to focus on how to avoid (or minimize) the food additives that are detrimental to his or her health.
Since reading the book, “Eating for Autism,” and others like it, I have made quite a few changes to Nathan's diet. That is, I've removed things that I've decided aren't so good for him.
I must be honest when I say that I haven't noticed any remarkable changes in his behavior, like many have when making these significant changes. However, I still know that it's making a difference. One of the things about prevention is that you're preventing it from happening. So, obviously it didn't happen. You can't know about something that didn't happen, right? I believe that's important to remember.
It's not just about reducing behavior and allergy issues; it's about preventing them from happening at all.
The process is complicated and time consuming. However, if you have a child with major behavior issues, who is nonverbal, or has any other extreme symptoms, you may find the time and effort worth it in the end.
The next step is straight forward:
Get Rid of Harmful Toxins
So, what should you strive to remove, or at least reduce, and why? You should eliminate all synthetic food additives because evidence is growing that these additives do affect people who are sensitive.
Food additives include artificial colors, artificial flavors, artificial preservatives, and artificial sweeteners. Click here for partial list
One of the issues with toxins is that there are so many of them in the diet of Americans. And food manufacturers are quite skilled at hiding these worrisome ingredients under different names. For example, MSG (Monosodium Glutamate), which I will talk about in a minute. But first, let's talk about “GRAS.”
GRAS
“GRAS,” which stands for “Generally Regarded as Safe,” is the label or certification the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gives when they determine that an ingredient in food is safe to eat. Once a food is labeled as “GRAS,” it's impossible to get it removed from this list. Unfortunately, many food ingredients that have been labeled GRAS aren't necessarily safe for everyone.
Here's what the FDA has to say about GRAS:
“GRAS” is an acronym for the phrase Generally Recognized as Safe. Under sections 201(s) and 409 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the Act), any substance that is intentionally added to food is a food additive, that is subject to premarket review and approval by FDA, unless the substance is generally recognized, among qualified experts, as having been adequately shown to be safe under the conditions of its intended use, or unless the use of the substance is otherwise excepted from the definition of a food additive. (Emphasis Mine)
But if you look at the list of food additives, you might not be feeling so positive about the “safe” part of GRAS, especially when you realize that certain substances were “grandfathered” into the GRAS designation under the Food Additive Amendment of 1958. In other words, they were never really tested for safety before GRAS was slapped on them.
Saccharin, which has been clearly shown to cause bladder cancer in rats, is still on the market because it falls under “GRAS.”
Other ingredients that are labeled as GRAS are questionable, including Aspartame and MSG. Despite the fact that numerous people have reported adverse symptoms to Aspartame and MSG, the FDA refuses to budge on its classification of GRAS for both additives.
So, GRAS was created in an effort by the FDA to monitor food additives. The designation GRAS, according to the FDA, is supposed to mean the food additive is safe for the general public. But kids with ADD, ADHD, and Autism are not the “general public.” And studies are showing that many of these food additives have detrimental effects on these kids and other sensitive people.
Many of these additives contain suspicious ingredients or are created by suspicious means. For example, artificial colors.
Artificial Colors
Most artificial colors contain Coal Tar. Coal Tar is a by-product of coal, and it has been shown to be a carcinogen. So, besides the fact that artificial colors have been shown to increase behavior problems and hyperactivity, there's the risk of cancer. Coal tar is also used in shampoo, soap, and as a treatment for lice (yikes)!
The current artificial colors used include Blue #1 and #2, Green #3, Red #3 and #40, Yellow #5 and Yellow #6, and Orange. Look for these ingredients on food labels if you want to avoid them.
Artificial Flavors
Artificial flavors are added to food to improve and enhance the flavor of natural food. For example, MSG (Monosodium Glutamate), which is the most common. Do any of you remember the old “Accent” spice? The commercials used to say, “Enhances the flavor of foods.” Well, that's what Accent is: MSG. In fact, it turns out that Accent is alive and well in the food community. My husband was just in the hospital, and I discovered that they were giving him an Accent packet on his meal trays.
Here is the ingredient list for Accent:
MSG, salt, chili pepper, Tricalcium Phosphate, (anticaking agent), spice (cumin, oregano), Paprika Extractives (color), Garlic Extractives, Onion Extractives, Yellow Lake No. 6, Yellow Lake No. 5.
Hello!!!???
I could not eat Chinese food as a child, because I got sick. I remember one time I was so sick I didn't even get out of bed. My mom was not happy with me! When I was older, someone told me it was MSG that made me sick. Fast forward to the current day. The food manufacturers still claim it's all in our head that MSG causes symptoms. Yet many Chinese (and other Asian) restaurants are MSG free.
And the FDA is requiring MSG to be labeled if it is in a particular food. That should make us all wonder.
Some people think MSG is addicting.
For example, many fast foods contain MSG. I have found when I eat a lot of fast food, I want to eat more. In fact, my first job was at McDonald's. I remember that I always wanted to eat there even on my days off. Addicting? Maybe.
While in college, I read a book titled, “The Slow Poisoning of America.” It seemed extreme at the time, but it did discuss MSG in depth. If you're interested in reading this book, it is available on Amazon.
Some people believe that MSG is added to foods because of its addictive properties.
Do an internet search under “Is MSG addictive?” and you will see what I mean.
At any rate, if you are interested in removing MSG from your kids' diets, you will need to learn to identify it on food labels. Unfortunately, it's not so straight forward. Even though the FDA requires a manufacturer to state “Contains MSG” on the package, food manufacturers figure out ways to avoid putting it on the label.
Glutamate, or glutamic acid, is a naturally occurring amino acid. So, technically it's “natural.” As a result, if a food contains any form of glutamate (if it's not actually MSG), it can be labeled under “natural flavors” or “spices.”
Also watch out for the chemicals “disodium inosinate” and “disodium guanylate,” because these are always associated with MSG. Other ingredients that contain glutamate are hydrolyzed vegetable protein, autolyzed yeast, hydrolyzed yeast, yeast extract, soy extracts, and protein isolate.
As you can see, carefully reading labels and doing your research is extremely important, if you want to eliminate or reduce MSG in your family's diet.
Artificial Food Preservatives
Two artificial food preservatives that have caused controversy are butylated hydroxy anisole “BHA” and butyl hydroxytoluene “BHT.” These two preservatives are used in cereals, certain oils, and in cosmetics.
When I first learned about BHA/BHT, I discovered that Cheerios had them listed as an ingredient. I was really bummed because Cheerios are one of my favorite cereals. Reluctantly, I stopped buying Cheerios after that.
The good news is that Cheerios stopped using that preservative. One day I was in the grocery store, thinking, “Boy some Cheerios really sounds good right now. It's too bad they contain that cursed ingredient!” Just for fun, I checked the label. It was no longer there! So now my family can eat Cheerios again.
So, read food labels, and re-read them again, because food manufacturers are starting to get the hint that increasing numbers of people don't want that junk in their food!
Other common preservatives that are often not tolerated and that can be harmful are sulfites and sodium nitrites/nitrates. Sulfites are found in dried fruit, certain aged cheeses, and wine. Nitrites are found in ham, hot dogs, salami, other cold cuts, and bacon. The good news is that there are sulfite free versions of most foods. There are also nitrate free versions of cold cuts as well.
In part 3 of this series, I will discuss specific vitamins and minerals, and why they are important, in more detail.
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