You are like many people, you wonder what foods are good for your family and which ones aren’t. One trip to the grocery store will reveal that most food packaging touts itself as healthy in one way or another. Packaging can be deceptive, though, and it isn’t a good idea to blindly trust the claims on a box. What can you do to maintain a healthy diet and avoid the pitfalls of alluring packaging? There are several steps you can take, but perhaps the most important is dedicating yourself to the pursuit of clean eating. Truly dedicating your diet to health and wellness is the incentive you need to make better choices. It’s difficult to decipher the packaging of foods and see through other nutritional claims when you don’t have an objective for your personal diet. As you take control of your food and improve the way you eat, seeing through gimmicks will start to come naturally to you.
Identify Trends
If it seems like everybody on Facebook and Twitter is constantly touting a new fad diet, it’s probably because they are. People move from one eating trend to the next, and they often give little thought to the consequences of this pattern. People overshare and discuss their diets all over social media, but trusting the hype isn’t necessarily a good idea. These are likely trends that will come and go, and recognizing them as such can save you from falling prey. Eating trends are about as trustworthy as packing, which is to say you should be critical before buying in.
Go Back to Basics
Launching a whole-diet overhaul is a daunting task, and it’s probably not the best idea to jump all in before doing some research on what foods are best for you. If you want to tune out all the buzz coming from advertisements, social media, and food packaging, you can do so by getting back to basics. Fruits and vegetables are the best bet for shifting towards healthier habits, and there aren’t any complicated nutrition facts with additives and GMOs to try and decipher. Most people don’t eat enough fruits and vegetables, but they play a vital role in your diet.
Look for Honesty
It can be difficult to tell who’s telling the truth when you’re subjected to constant claims from companies regarding the ingredients, health benefits and effects of their foods. Take a step back to see whether or not those claims match the product. You can tell a company is honest if it backs up claims with quality products. Hampton Creek, a San Francisco startup creating clean food, has followed this model and found success in selling straightforward products. The truth about a food can be found in its ingredients and nutrition facts, not in empty claims made by manufacturers.
Critique Packaging Closely
Once you’ve waded through all of the misinformation thrown at you from social media and advertisements, you’re left to contend with the packaging you see at the grocery store. This presents its own set of challenges, but understanding is easier once you’ve gained a critical lens to see food through. Packaging like that found on Hampton Creek products boasts simple ingredients, and you can check the claims easily by consulting the nutrition facts. Products that makes these claims yet contain additives and GMOs shouldn’t be trusted. Instead, select foods with packaging that truly reflect their ingredients.
Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is
If you care about living well and eating nutritiously, it can be difficult to find the foods that assist in this goal. Our perception of foods is often skewed by its packaging and the opinions we see on social media. With the right information, though, you can step up and take control of your diet. Put your money where your mouth is by being proactive about the food you choose. Despite the overwhelming stream of fad diets and false claims, clean and simple food endures as the key to better living. Find products that meet this criteron. Don’t get your nutrition advice from trending topics when you should be listening to your body. The difference a natural diet can make will become apparent. When faced with the deluge of troubling trends, sticking to simple and healthy foods is the only way to see past the noise. You owe it to yourself to eat well, and your body is sure to thank you.