Healthy Food... or Not

I was browsing through the recipe section of a magazine yesterday, which prompted this thought. Some of the recipes called for 'low sodium', 'fat free' etc. It got me wondering about the processes a product goes through to yield it 'healthy'. A print ad screamed 'A healthier egg' - lower cholesterol, fat and a bunch of other stuff, but still promised, in essence, an egg. Mind you, this particular egg came in a carton. Not an egg carton, but a milk or juice-like carton. Now, how can an egg be a fresh egg outside its shell? Surely it went through some process to remove all the bad stuff, retain the good stuff and be resilient enough to be in a carton. Give me the ones in the shell, thanks.

We can't escape the use of processed foods. What would a ham sandwich be without ham? Can't live without mayo, ketchup, soy sauce. Sure, we can make home-made everything, but that would mean being in the kitchen 24/7. I believe healthy eating is :

Eating as close to the source as possible, whenever possible. By this I mean choosing pork over ham, fresh vegetables over canned or frozen,.... - you get the idea....

Choose local over imported produce. Unless your local produce is tainted, or just isn't right for the dish you're making, go local and go organic. It's fresher without use of unnecessary chemicals. You also support your local farmer, and therefore the local community. Imported food chalks up air/sea miles and has environmental implications.

Choose seasonal vegetables whenever possible. Mother nature has a reason for doing things. And we know mother is always right.

Try homemade. Surfing the net, I found so many recipes for foodstuff that I never realised could be made at home with relative ease. Gather friends to split the workload. Each person makes a different item and shares (or sells) it to the other people in the group.

Stay healthy!