Since my family has been making some new food choices in hopes of living a longer/healthier life we have adopted a few “food rules.” Make no mistake, we ENJOY eating, we eat meat, AND we live on a budget – but we are not deprived. This may or may not be similar to your life style… and that is okay. But, here I will share a rule that we have adopted. You can adopt this rule too, or not. Either way, it will be okay with me. =)
Cut Back on Canned Foods
Remember the big media alert that BPA (the chemical bisphenol) was in baby bottles? People started throwing out their plastic bottles and checking other plastic items from BPA. To replace those bottles and other food storage containers people started buying BPA free plastics, or better yet glass.
Well, it is a lesser known fact that BPA is also used in most can food can liners. Some studies have linked BPA to reproductive abnormalities and a higher risk of breast and prostate cancers, diabetes, and heart disease. Consumer reports tests of canned foods, including soups, juice, tuna, and green beans, found that almost all of their samples contained some BPA.
While cutting out canned food totally just isn’t possible in my home, we are doing our best to eliminate as many as possible. One of the canned items we bought a lot of previously was beans. We’re trying to buy more dried beans instead to eliminate this item. We’re growing tomatoes this summer in abundance in hopes of canning our own (in glass jars) to eliminate the need to purchase canned diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. We’ve been buying our tuna in pouches instead of cans and not too long ago their was some great coupons so we’ve been getting them free or cheap! And, we purchase our juice in BPA free plastic, not cans.
I recently left my can opener at my parent’s coffee house on a Saturday and didn’t realize it. It wasn’t until Wednesday that I realized I had misplaced it. That’s when I realized I haven’t been using my can opener near as much, meaning we haven’t been eating as many canned foods!
If you are like me, eliminating canned foods all together is just impossible, but I challenge you to take a look at what canned foods you are purchasing and look for alternatives. Just eliminating a few canned foods from your diet could do a lot of good! Plus, fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables retain more of their nutrients, texture, and flavor. So, it will be a win-win!
If you are joining me on a new food journey I hope you will leave your comments below. Feel free to speak about what your family is doing or hoping to do. And, if you have any advice for me or others leave that here too! Just remember to keep it helpful, upbeat, and positive.
