Survey says……?

Caitlin over at HealthyTippingPoint gave her readers a survey on real vs. fake foods:

A survey: which of these foods do you prefer the “real” version of, and which do you not see as “worth it”?

• Ice cream or frozen yogurt?
• Regular coke or diet?
• Sugar or artificial sweetener?
• Butter or fake butter?
• Real salad dressing or the light stuff?
• Half and half or fake creamer?
• Real sugary gum or artificially sweetened gum?

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I wanted to share this with my readers as I think this is a great topic, and one that I think about on a daily basis.

When I started eating clean I threw out everything fake from my diet. Sugar free, light and fat free no longer exist in my daily noshing’s. As well as fatty, fried, sugar loaded items. She asked, “When is a food worth it?”.

I will answer it in a form of an example:

I was craving a cheeseburger a few weeks back. Greasy, cheesy, bacony… THE WORKS! (This is what happens when I watch too much FoodNetwork!) Marc went down and brought home some cheeseburgers, onion rings and a chocolate shake. I was in a food coma – it was so good! And as you can tell I normally do not eat like that so it really was a treat!
The next day was a different story. I was bloated, swollen from all the salt, constipated… you name it, I had it. I was kicking myself all day because I KNEW that this was going to happen! My body cannot adjust to such drastic intakes. Going from eating clean to eating like shit turned my insides into a knot.
So, was it worth it?
No. I now know that I cannot digest foods like this. And it really got me thinking about everyone that has chronic headaches, intestinal problems, bloating, water retention and so on. You are what you eat! Simple as that. It has been said for years and years but no one seems to ever put 2 & 2 together.
Society relies on prescriptions that the doctors give us for our “problems” when WE hold the key to our own good health.
This is why I am so passionate about what I do and what I would like to become. I am a small Nutrional Adviser (which really is not much) and I strive to be a RD someday. I know I can’t save the world but I would be completely happy with saving just one life.

So back to Caitlin’s question:

• Ice cream or frozen yogurt? – both, and I do sneak in sorbet and coconut ice cream.
• Regular coke or diet? – I haven’t drank an entire soda in a very long time. Marc drinks them and I will occasionally have a sip. If I am craving one I usually have a real one or stick to the natural sodas. (NOT WORTH IT)
• Sugar or artificial sweetener? – Sugar, but I was addicted to everything artificial before. Now I try to stick to agave syrup or honey if I need to sweeten anything.
• Butter or fake butter? – I bake with real butter
• Real salad dressing or the light stuff? – NOT WORTH IT – I use herbs and EVOO
• Half and half or fake creamer? – For coffee? Neither.
• Real sugary gum or artificially sweetened gum? – I only chew Trident. I think it’s artificial, right?