The Crazy Thing In My Friends Cookie Jar And Things You Should Never Eat
My friend has a glass cookie jar with a loose fitting lid and a few left over sugar cookies. These cookies are 13 years old and look exactly the way they did the day they were bought. Not even mold or insects wants them. If you put a carrot, or egg or chicken breast in that jar how long would it last? Mother Nature’s processes can not decompose these cookies, how is your body supposed to do it? I last posted some ideas on what to eat. Here are things to avoid. When I say avoid I mean avoid like you would avoid getting hit by a truck! Read to the end and I will tell you the reason why you really care!
Hydrogenated Oils or Partially Hydrogenated Oils
Hydrogenation is the process of forcing hydrogen gas into the oil at very high temperatures to change the molecular structure and convert safer unsaturated fats into dangerous trans-fats. The new structure is very close to that of plastic.
Hydrogenated oil and trans-fats are artificial. They are worse than saturated fat and our bodies don’t know what to do with them. They have a double negative effect on cholesterol as they increase LDL (bad cholesterol) and decrease HDL (good cholesterol). Remember, LDL clogs your arteries while HDL helps to clear them. These fats are closely linked to the rise in obesity, heart disease and diabetes. They are particularly worrying for the way they make you pile on fat around the abdomen. This abdominal fat pumps out dangerous chemicals that contribute to more high LDL (bad) cholesterol and inflammation/stiffening of blood vessels.
Find it in: French fries, Cool Whip, peanut butter, cake mix, margarine, shortening, microwave popcorn, cereal, chips, cookies and crackers. It is possible to find most of these things without hydrogenated oils but DO NOT trust the front label that says “No Tran Fat”. You have to read the ingredients.
High fructose corn syrup
Emerging evidence suggests that HFCS may increase the risk of metabolic syndrome and a cluster of other health problems such as insulin resistance, high blood pressure, obesity and high blood triglycerides. Like hydrogenated fats, fructose sweeteners also increase belly fat, much more so than conventional sugar. What’s more, fructose sweeteners have the potential to damage the liver as they pass undigested through the small intestine where they head directly to the liver. You will notice that the advertisements that say HFCS is just sugar (as if sugar was good) are paid for by the corn growers and they are only telling you half the story.
Find it in: Soda, juice drinks, cereal (especially Kelloggs), salad dressing, relish, chocolate milk, whole wheat bread, yoplait yogurt, graham crackers, candy, cookies, ice cream, ketchup, pancake syrup, jam and BBQ sauce
Sugar
The average American consumes 2-3 pounds of sugar each week. In the last 20 years, we have increased sugar consumption in the US from 26 lbs to 135 lbs a year! And then we wonder at the obesity rate. Everything from ketchup to peanut butter to spaghetti sauce has significant amounts of added sugar. And then of course there are the usual sugary foods we consume on a daily basis such as soda, cookies, donuts and candy. Also to blame for this rapid increase is sugar’s addictive tendencies. Sugar evokes a brain chemical called beta endorphin, the same chemical affected by morphine and heroin, The sugar creates a wonderful feeling of euphoria and well-being, but when it wears off, you feel edgy, irritable and cranky – this is actual withdrawal. Besides bad moods, sugar causes and/or advances: depression, diabetes, gum disease, preeclampsia, eczema, cancer, wrinkles, digestion problems, and more.
Find it in: Well you find it everywhere but some places you might not expect to find it or find it in such abundance are breakfast cereals. Look for cereals with lessthan 5 grams of sugar. Look for yogurt with less than 20 grams per serving. Also find it in sauces, ketchup, salad dressing and in “diet” foods and meal replacement bars and drinks. Also anything that says “reduced fat” usually has added sugar. You are better off with the fat.
Other Chemicals
The list of possibilities is too long to list here. Just follow this simple rule. Read the label. If you need a chemist to explain it to you don’t eat it! We just don’t know what all these things do to our bodies, especially in combinations with other chemicals. This list would include artificial sweeteners or artificial anything. Do you really want to eat anything artificial?
Those sugar cookies were made from the things on this list but here is why you really care. Every one of these things makes you old, sick and fat, and if you already have extra weight you will never get it off and keep it off until you drop these. Get rid of them permanently and you will lose weight and keep it off.
