What Are Natural Flavors?

Oi, what are Natural Flavors?  I don't know, but they are not always so very natural!  Here is a link to Today Food, a branch of NBC News that explains natural flavors.  Is it still confusing after reading that article?  Then let us go a little deeper, but not too deep; otherwise I might not be able to follow my own blog post.  You can check out Wickipedia that may further your understanding, or not.

One confusion is that you will see both artificial flavors and natural flavors listed on conventional processed food labels, but you will also see natural flavors listed on All Natural and Organic food labels?!?!!?  The only difference is that in All Natural foods the base that the Natural Flavor is mixed in has to be from a natural source (the flavor itself is probably not natural), and in Organic foods the base that the Natural Flavor is mixed in and the method of extraction must be organic (the actual flavor itself is probably not organic or natural.).  Natural Flavors are allowed in 'All Natural' and 'Organic' foods, so beware and read your labels!

According to the US Code of Federal Regulations*, a natural flavor or flavoring is:

…the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.

Here is what I do know.  Natural flavors are created by scientists called flavorists that produce these flavors in laboratories (not kitchens) using natural and chemical compounds.  The reason these flavors are lumped into one ingredient called natural flavors is because there are too many ingredients to list, and even if they were listed we would not know what they are.  If you want true blueberry flavor then purchase an item with blueberry listed as the ingredient instead of natural or artificial blueberry flavor!

Photo from sott.net

Both natural and artificial flavors are created in the same factories and most artificial flavors are made from petroleum products/byproducts, so cross contamination is possible.

Some artificial flavors are safer than their natural counterparts. Benzaldehyde is almond flavor, and when derived from nature, traces of hydrogen cyanide--a deadly poison--can be found in it.  Also, Vanillan, artificial vanilla, can cause allergic reactions. It can limit the liver enzyme dopamine sulphotransferase by 50%. Its sources are the waste product of paper mills and petroleum. It can be very difficult to know which is better: artificial or natural. It is hard to find a list of all flavorings to research them all. It is thus best to avoid flavorings in general. (yahoo)  Yikes!!!

For some more information here is a great article from Natural News.

Vegetarians Beware: Natural Flavors can be derived from meat, seafood, poultry, eggs and dairy products.  If you are not purchasing an approved vegetarian product but just 'think' it is vegetarian from reading the ingredient label and Natural Flavors is in the ingredient list you may be eating animal byproduct!

I was unable to find a list of natural flavors :(  So I guess the long and short of it is that natural flavors are not so natural after all, but rather just made to taste 'natural'!  And not necessarily organic either.  Read labels and put it back if you are unsure to what you are purchasing.  I know for a fact that many options are out there without natural flavors in them, you just have to be willing to read a lot of labels to find the brand you are comfortable eating!



*In order to read the regulations for flavorings – you need to go to the US CFR site, and search for the term “natural flavor”. The first document returned will have the appropriate information.

Great Links

Here are some great links that you may be interested in:

Real Food Blog:
Talks about eating real food, what is processed, fad diets and more.  Check her out here.

Rawfully Organic Co-op:
Where we get most of our fruit and veggies, and also great tips, tricks and information about food and food storage.  Recipes also!  Click here.

Yonder Way Farm:
Local Grass Fed beef, chicken, pork and eggs.  They deliver to Katy and surronding areas.  Click here.

Georgia's Texas Grass Fed Beef:
More local meat.  You can order a share/box for $150 a month.  For that it is delivered to the Katy area twice a month and each delivery contains 6 adult portions for two.  So approximately 12 meat portions a month, or 3 meat dinners a week.  Click here.

Matt Family Orchard:
This is where my family goes to pick blueberries, blackberries, figs, persimmons and get awesome local honey.  Sign up for their mailing list to see what is in season and for how much $.  Click here.

Imperial Farmers Market:
Farmers Market in Sugarland.  Click here.

Mother Earth News:
Great fresh bread recipes.  No kneeding and no machine required!  Click here.

Easily Eradicate the Dirty Dozen

If you read my previous post about the Dirty Dozen, top twelve foods to avoid, your head may be spinning around at high speeds, or you may be feeling depressed not knowing how you can possibly avoid all (or any) of those ingredients.  Actually, you could now be living in fear.

Let me ease your worries and help you along by telling you what our family did (and is doing) to make the transition from chemical filled life to a more natural life a fairly easy process.  No, we are not completely chemical free yet, but we get closer every time we go grocery shopping or run out of a household item and it is time to replace.

First, stop your worry and fear.  You can not change what has already been done, but now that you are informed you can make wise decisions going forward, and decide what is best for you and your family (even if you only choose one or two things to change).  One of the most simple ways to begin is with your food.  My family has an extremely tight budget where we end some months wondering how God paid all of our bills, filled our bellies and left us a dollar in our account.  Now that we are using higher quality foods and products we are even more amazed that we make it through each month, but that is how God works.  When we learn something new and apply it out of obedience, He provides!

Yes, the foods and products that do not contain the 'Dirty Dozen' are typically more expensive, or you could say that the ones that do contain those fillers are 'cheap'.  But what you save in worry, allergies, doctors visits, fatigue, and medications is well worth it.

Switch Foods First:  Change the foods you eat first.  Anything you ingest is going to have the biggest effect on your body, so foods first is a must.  No, I am not telling you to give up your potato chips (although for some of us that would be a good idea), but rather switch to veggie chips, all natural or organic chips.  If you LOVE Cheetos and just can't give those up then switch to the All Natural ones.  Yes, they make all natural Cheetos!
Go organic!  Many non-organic strawberries are watered and/or washed with Red 40 to make them shine bright red in the grocery (as are many other fruits and veggies washed in food dye).  When you purchase organic fruits and veggies you will not be getting those hidden food colors, pesticides, herbicides and other chemical laden junk.
Almost every food you want is available in organic or all natural, you simply have to look for it.  Other alternatives are Gluten Free,vegetarian and vegan options which usually eliminate that toxic list of additives.  Often just steering clear of the store brands and reading labels will correct the problem.
Also, cook or make your meals whenever possible, and eat raw as often as you can (check out Rawfully Organic for great meal ideas).  Trust me, your mind, body and skin will thank you.
As far as keeping your kiddos happy, just learn to bake from scratch (one or two simple recipes) and find a few dye free candies that you can rotate (like some chocolates, caramel, all natural lollipops...).

Soaps, Shampoos and Toothpastes Second:  Our skin is our largest organ and absorbs everything from pesticides when walking barefoot on the grass to lotions, sun screen and makeup we use daily.  This one is a little easier (with shampoo being the last one you would need to change).  When you run out of a product simply replace it with a better quality of that product.  For example, we use Young Living toothpaste.  And Berts Bees body wash and shampoo.  Grocery stores are now offering many more all natural and organic options; find one you like and use it.

Finally, change all other household items one at a time.  Dryer sheets (more on this to come in a future post), dish detergent, ant killer...  There are natural alternatives for everything.  We are still working on this area in our family and know it will take time, but we are happy that we are on the road we are on, and confident that even if we can not remove all toxins (because we can't) that every little bit helps us on our journey to health and happiness.

*If you want or need to order from Young Living feel free to become a customer under my number 1069772.

Newest Rawfully Organic

I really enjoyed picking up my half share box from the Rawfully Organic Co-op yesterday.  My hubby came with the kids and I this time, so he was able to see how everything works and he choose our extra point items. 

I LOVE our box for this week and wanted to share pictures and a list of items with you.

This shot is our entire half share (there are 3 heads of red romaine in there!)

Another angle of the half share...look at all tat fruit!



Here is a shot of some of the fruit!

Here is a shot of some of the veggies!

My favorite...Swiss Chard!

Kiddos all excited :)

Oh, and we purchased this yummy watermelon.



So, what was in our box?  Here is an approximate list:

Pineapple

Cantaloupe

about 5 Apples

about 5 Pears

about 7 oranges

Grapefruit

Lemon

Bunch of Bananas

Carton Grape Tomatoes

2 Beefsteak Tomatoes

Avocado

Cucumber

Bunch of Carrots

3 Heads Red Leaf Lettuce

Swiss Chard

Kale

For our points we added

Sweet Potatoes and Cabbage.

I hope I didn't miss anything!  Happy Eating.

Rawfully Organic

I finally have a computer that can process the Internet and photographs!!!!  Yes, our computer from the late 1990's is finally disassembled and, for now, sitting on our study floor.  I am excited to say that I will finally be catching up here on my blog, and although most of these posts will be a day late and a dollar short at least they will finally be on here...and with pictures!

Let's get started.

I have had several inquiries about the Rawfully Organic Co-op that my family is now a part of.  I thought the best way to answer everyone was to post some of the information here and use pictures.  (For more specifics, pick up days and locations, what is in the boxes each week, helpful tips and videos visit the link above.)

My family LOVES to eat mostly fruits, veggies and green leafy food items that have not been processed.  We seem to feel best when that diet includes some carbs/starches and a little meat (too much meat and I feel YUCK).  What processed foods we do eat we make sure that it is all organic.  Although I have always been a healthy eater, my family is extremely more diligent today due to the adverse side effect of food additives on the human body (which our awareness started with my daughter and her very severe sensitivity); particularly artificial food color and other petroleum based additives that, if you can believe it, are not food at all.  Did you know that artificial food color is made from Gasoline and Coal Tar run off?!?!?  Would you allow your child to eat even a drop of WD-40 or drink even a teaspoon of gasoline?  If your answer is NO, then you should consider excluding those products from your diet.  If you would like more information about those ingredients Google it and check out the FDA's response as to whey they allow it in our food, or I would be more than happy to share with you what I now know; maybe I will make a post about it when I have more time or enough interest from readers.

Anyway, we have recently discovered the Rawfully Organic Co-op and truly love it.  It is a great way to receive local or organic fruits and veggies on a weekly, bi-monthly (or even less often) basis without racking your brain trying to decide what to get a the grocery store.  My family of four (two adults and two small children) get a half share that lasts us about two weeks.  We are not raw foodies or vegans or vegetarians (as I am sure you gleaned above), so we do supplement our box at the grocery store.  Receiving this box does, however; allow us to practically skip over that section of the store while only running in to quickly grab and item or two that we need for a specific meal or to go with meals that week. 

One of my favorite things about this co-op is that you get a large variety of items.  You get items that you would never have thought about purchasing, thus increasing the variety in the meals you prepare daily.  Some examples might be beets or Swiss chard (my new favorite leafy green veggie).  Also, if you KNOW that your family would NEVER EVER EAT an item(s) you are allowed to trade items from your box for other items.  They also sell additional items on the side, so if your family LOVES strawberries you can purchase extras when you pick up your box.  You even have the option of ordering an extra quarter, half or whole box of one item.  Maybe you make peach pie for all of your friends during peach season, you can pre-order an entire box of peaches to be there when you pick up your box.  Yumm!  Ok, if you do that make sure I get a pie :)

Rawfully Organic also tries to supply co-op members with weekly recipes for some of the ingredients in that weeks box.  This can help with that surprise ingredient (maybe turnips) that you have no idea what to do with, but you really want to try.  Actually, I love the recipe for apple, carrot, beet salad...yum!

Another great thing is that whenever possible, you are supporting local farms and eating local food.  You get to know your community and can help out or donate to the co-op at any time.

OK, are you ready for the pictures?  These pictures are from my very first half share box (remember, these pictures are of the HALF SHARE.  A full share has twice as much in it.)  Remember, the two pictures below are combined to make the half share I received.

Here are all the fruits I received in my half share (apples, pears, bananas, tangelos, kiwi, grapefruit, orange and pineapple; we ate the strawberries before we took the picture...oops)



Here are the veggies I received in my half share (two romaine lettuce, cilantro, spinach, tat choy, swiss chard, tomatoes, carrots, cucumber)