Sugar 
*Salt
Soda
Fast Food
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Artificial sweeteners – aspartame, neotame, sucralose
*Coffee
MSG
Soy
*Beef
*Potatoes
Ice cream
*Chocolate
Fried Foods – chip, fries, donuts
White flour foods – pasta, rice, cakes, cookies
The list could go on and on as almost every food you can think of has, at one time or another, been put on the list of “bad” foods that we must avoid. When I work with clients who want to clean up their diets and try to get them to focus on fresh, whole foods, their initial response is many times that they will feel deprived, it will be boring or tasteless.
My husband’s cousin has had quite a few digestive problems in the last several years, including a Celiac disease diagnosis and allergies to dairy, peanuts, bananas and even fish. They were going to visit and I was concerned as to what I could safely serve her. What can someone eat who must avoid all wheat products, dairy, peanuts and fish? Isn’t that going to be a limited, boring diet?
Not hardly! She can eat beef, lamb, buffalo, chicken, turkey, almond or coconut milk, millet or brown rice bread, pretty much any fresh or frozen fruit and vegetable, beans and legumes, gluten free pasta, brown, black, red or green rice (yes, and they’re all delicious) and grain substitutes like quinoa, millet and amaranth.
The plus side of all her digestive challenges was that her husband lost 50 lbs just by eating only what she can eat! So, rather than looking at all the things that are not healthy and that you shouldn’t have – why not focus on all the delicious food you can eat?
You may notice an asterisk next to some of the foods on that list. That’s because they are not necessarily “bad” for you, IF you choose wisely. Intentionally choosing the highest quality food is more of an issue to me. Salt, if it is natural, unprocessed sea salt, is actually very healthy. Dairy, if it comes from green fed cattle is not bad for you. Studies have shown at times past that coffee and chocolate were to be eliminated from your diet. Well, further investigation reveals it depends on the quality and quantity you eat! They both have definite health benefits.
So exercise wisdom, use common sense and aim for balance and moderation – and you can’t go wrong.
Do you think your diet would be very limited if you focused just on fresh, whole foods?
Ann,
Any time we focus on the negative side of things, we will likely feel overwhelmed, hopeless and defeated. However, if we focus on the positive — what we CAN eat, we’ll likely feel empowered, hopeful and excited. Thanks for shifting the focus when it comes to eating healthy foods!
Have a Victorious Day!
Marianne Clements
Victory Christian Coaching
Thanks, Marianne.
I see you didn’t put an asterisk next to fast food 😉 To many households I’m sure that would say its boring to get rid of that. But I’m with you 100% there are many alternatives to enjoy a very good meal that’s full of all the right kinds of stuff. I find that eating a healthy meal doesn’t starve me, but leaves me feeling much better…
Haha – yes for a second there I thought I left something out but that has definitely been on the “naughty” list all along!
Ann, you are absolutely correct. We have been working on the whole foods and we have found great and tasty alternatives to our old diet. Thanks for all the hard work you are doing.
Thank you Rob – I really appreciate that.
I’m so glad you didn’t say Coffee was “bad”…hehe. I never drank the stuff until I turned 30 and now I think I can’t live without it. All in the mind, I know. It seems the number of people with Celiac are on the rise – you think this is the case? We use Hahn’s Sea Salt – is that a “good” one?
Funny you mention Celiac – I just did finished one of my newsletters for April and it’s on Celiac (March and April are all about digestive disorders) and yes it really is on the rise. I looked at Hahn’s sea salt and from what I could see it looks really good – it’s part of Dr. Hahn’s line? As long as it’s natural and unprocessed, it’s great!
Actually, no. I spelled it wrong. It’s Hain Sea Salt.
http://www.hainpurefoods.com/
Funny that there is a Dr. Hahn with a sea salt!
Michael – it’s ok but I would suggest one that doesn’t contain the anti caking ingredients this one does. The less processed and fewer additional ingredients the better. I find many of the sea salts sold in supermarkets have these added ingredients.
Ann,
Food has changed my life!
Eliminating the junk and diving into organic, whole local foods has been truly life altering.
That’s awesome Claudia and I agree! I wish more people realized how powerful eating right truly is.
I focus my diet on including fresh whole foods and it is only as boring as the routine I fall into. I have grown up a vegetarian and there are more food options than most people think!
Thanks for a great post!