If its not one thing, its another...

When it comes to pet food nutrition, I consider myself to be quite knowledgeable. After 12 years of working in the pet specialty industry, pet food is something I do know well. However when it comes to people food, I'm not quite as well-versed. There are so many differing opinions, latest research, fads, personal preferences and facts that I can't keep up. As a consumer segment, I'm what marketing folks refer to as a "foodie"- someone who loves good food, fine dining, preparing fresh food from scratch and hosting dinner parties. I subscribe to several cooking magazines, enjoy experimenting with recipes and find that a glass of wine helps it all taste even better. Aside from being a foodie, I am also a major advocate for organic foods, including animals raised free-range, without antibiotics or growth-hormones. All that being said I tend to think I know how to "eat healthy". So why do I think I'm not well versed in human food? For the longest time I have been trying to eat more salmon to increased my intake of Omega 3's, and also consume less beef. I recently found out that farm-raised salmon is not necessarily all that beneficial at all, because they are often fed grain based flakes, which deliver fewer beneficial omega 3's and more omega 6's which are not good in high doses. Apparently the trick is to only have wild caught salmon, which consume krill and other naturally occurring things in the open sea. Problem with that is the darn mercury gets you. Or at least that's the issue with Ahi tuna anyway. Now I hear that grass-fed beef can actually be best for you anyway. I used to think that whole wheat anything is better than white bread. Now I hear than any wheat products can be bad. Apparently carbs/sugars are the source of all evil. Milk and cream are supposed to be better than Soy milk. Butter is better than margarine. Olive oil is apparently dangerous to cook on high heat. Low fat stuff isn't necessarily all that good for you if the sodium levels are too high. So that rules out just about anything processed, pre-made or things that come in a box. The one thing I do still believe in is organic foods. It stands to reason that consuming fewer chemicals and pesticides must be better for long term health. So I guess the lesson of the day is to find organic foods that are low sodium, not processed, free-range, grass-fed or wild caught. If its not one thing that will get you, its another. A psychic once told me I'd live to at least 87. If I only live to 86 because I can't lay off the occasional Klondike bar, so be it. There's no way I'm giving up pasta, pizza or chocolate either. Well that's all for today's rant. I'm going to go have some organic strawberries now.
-Rick Rockhill