HealthyLivingPhoenixSedona: Fooled by Food Labels

Everybody knows food labels these days are very misleading. They want us to think we are really getting something healthy when just the opposite is true. What are some of the things we need to look out for?

1. The word "NATURAL"
We see this word all over in the grocery store. So what does the word natural actually mean?
Here's what Webster says:

nat·u·ral

ˈnaCH(ə)rəl/

adjective

1.
existing in or caused by nature; not made or caused by humankind.

"carrots contain a natural antiseptic that fights bacteria"
2.

of or in agreement with the character or makeup of, or circumstances surrounding, someone or something.

"sharks have no natural enemies"

It drives me crazy to see a box, bag or bottle that isn’t covered with labels touting the food’s nutritional merits. The most confusing labels are “natural,” “made with 100 percent natural ingredients” and “all natural.” I wish I could trust those words when I see them, but I can't.

What do those labels actually mean? "Largely whatever the food manufacturer – and its marketing division – want it to mean", says Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University and author of “Food Politics."

"No regulatory agency has settled on a definition of “natural,” the U.S. Food and Drug Administration does have some parameters food manufactures must follow when using the term," says FDA spokeswoman Jennifer Corbett Dooren. The FDA considers “natural” to mean the food does not contain added colors, artificial flavors or synthetic substances. Really, I think it still isn't quite right. With so many different names for these ingredients, and of course they are constantly changing, how in the WORLD CAN YOU BE SURE??????

"Fortunately for food manufacturers – and unfortunately for consumers – that leaves a lot of wiggle room," says registered dietitian Wesley Delbridge, a spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.

Would you believe foods that say “natural” can contain added sugar, trans fats and genetically modified ingredients, or GMOs. It doesn't assure you it's organic, grass-fed or free-range. Most are and can be deep-fried, loaded with salt, preservatives, covered in sugary icing and/or filled with artificial ingredients, Even worse filled with synthetic ingredients, basically "JUNK".

“At present, the word ‘natural’ in food marketing is meaningless, and that’s the way food companies want it,” says Gary Ruskin, executive director of U.S. Right to Know, a nonprofit organization that promotes transparency within the food industry. “It’s a swindle. It’s a scam. It’s a term crafty marketers use to make you buy something.”

This is just plain scary: One 2014 Harris Interactive survey found that 62 percent of supermarket shoppers seek out “natural,” “all natural” or “100 percent natural” when looking for healthy choices. Another 2014 survey, this one from Consumer Reports, shows about two-thirds of respondents stating they believe the term “natural” means that a food has no artificial ingredients, pesticides or genetically modified organisms. THINK AGAIN!

This won't surprise you:

A new study published in the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing shows that consumers are increasingly filing lawsuits against food manufacturers using the term “natural.” In 2009, 30 percent of newly launched foods claimed to be natural but by 2013 this dropped to 22 percent, possibly due to an increase in the number of consumer lawsuits,” wrote the authors, explaining that “lawyers are increasingly willing to take cases which regulatory agencies have abandoned."

In 2014, in response to a series of lawsuits over “natural,” the FDA said it didn’t have the resources to devote to defining the term once and for all. The administration’s letter to the courts explains, “At present, priority food public health and safety matters are largely occupying the limited resources that FDA has to address foods matters … Because, especially in the foods arena, FDA operates in a world of limited resources, we necessarily must prioritize which issues to address.”

Looks like to me the food industry is just like everybody else, it's all about the money! Putting natural on the label, gets us all to just spend more of our hard earned money because "we think" its a better choice. Next time remember, natural may be natural all right, but is it healthy? Oil or black gold as many call it, is "natural", is used to make gasoline. Arsenic is "natural". There are many "natural" elements such as mercury, lead, and cadmium! These are toxic in various concentrations to both plants and animals. Even tho they are indeed "natural:, they are not healthy to you and me.

We are all getting more toxins in our diets than our bodies know what to do with. That's why I detox on a regular basis. It does make a difference and those toxins can add up to big trouble PDQ!