MOM: Basic Nutrition

Hi there! Today’s post is actually a post some of you may have seen before, back when I was using my sister’s blog (thefrugalcountrymom@blogspot.com) for the All You Grocery Challenge. I thought it was worth a transfer and repost.

Also, you’d probably like to know what “MOM” stands for. It just means “(from the) Mind of Megan”. AND it works because I am a mommy. But the topics I talk about in these posts won’t always be completely related to motherhood. These posts will be my little personal feelings and ideas on money, nutrition, and life in general. I hope you enjoy this and any future “MOM” post! Here we go to the post:

Basic Nutrition

—-Mmmmm, Food!—-

One of my favorite classes in Nursing school was nutrition- If I would have had the guts to switch majors, I think I would have become a nutritionist! That is not to say I know a ton about it. But it interests me and is a vital part of my role as a wife and mommy. And therefore, central to living frugal. I cannot coupon, chase deals, cook from scratch or balance the budget correctly without a solid foundation around nutrition. I have to break it down to “yes” and “no” to keep it simple, and easy to remember.

The “YES!”
1. Vegetables- Fresh is generally best, for optimum nutrition. Broccoli, cauliflower, celery, carrots, lettuce, tomato and cucumber tend to be the easiest things to not cook around here. And we usually get them in the produce basket, so they are cheap. We try to get a serving or two at lunch, and a serving or two at dinner. Afternoon snack almost always includes a veggie!

2. Whole grains- It is SO important get whole grains in your diet! They help you keep your blood sugar even, decrease your bad cholesterol and increase the good, and they keep you full longer then their processed counterparts. We call these “complex carbohydrates” and they are the kind of carbs you WANT to get. So toss out that Wonderbread and Kix cereal, and bring in the whole wheat bread and raisin bran! LOL. Wait, you cant toss it out…that’s not very frugal. How about bird feed? Arts and crafts? Dog food? You get the idea.

3. Protein- First, meat (keep it real! As in, nix the lunchmeat). Staples here are chicken (white and dark), turkey and beef for meats. Get them on super sale, marked down, and use a rebate to get money back. Or go in with some friends and buy a whole cow to split. I highly recommend getting a locally raised grass fed cow . My hubby much prefers shredded chicken sandwiches to lunchmeat in his packed meals. But guess what? Meat is STILL expensive, and not always the best thing to eat meal in and meal out. So we have to be more creative…Like mixing grains, legumes and nuts/seeds. Examples: Beans and rice, peanut butter on whole wheat bread, hummus, cereal with almond slices, vegetable stir fry and a veggie burger on a whole grain bun with sesame seeds on it (um, yummers!). Dry beans are super cheap, and they can be found on sale, whole grain breads are cheap with coupons, or you can make it yourself, and brown rice can be bought for $1/lb if you shop smart. CHEAP. And oh-so-good for you!

4. Fruits- Once again, fresh is key. Cooked certainly is not BAD, it’s still better than processed- But uncooked is generally keeps the most nutrients. We like bananas, oranges, grapefruit (great source of folic acid for any pregnant mommies out there!), plums, nectarines, berries, peaches, and lime/lemons (fresh juice has more nutrients). We occasionally will get melons, but they just aren’t our favorite.

5. Healthy oils- Best: virgin coconut, extra virgin olive oil, and grapeseed. Its also nice to cook with natural butter from a grass fed cow, but I haven’t figured out how to get THAT cheap. I generally stick to the olive oil, since it goes on sale and you can find coupons. An OK oil is canola, and that is pretty easy to get for under $1 a container around here.

The “NO” side:

Top 3 big no-nos in our home, and why:
1. Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil(PHSO)- It pains me to say this, since my in-laws farm Soybeans- but its just about terrible for you. Soybean oil itself is not the healthiest oil and when you heat it at high temperatures and change the chemistry of its amino acid, it just makes it worse. The cells of your body take in amino acids to for its cell wall (just as one example), and that’s good. When PHSO amino acids are taken into a cell wall, on side is recognizable and connects to all the amino acids around it, helping to build the cell. The other side, however, is changed to a “stranger” and the cell cannot bind with it. This leaves a weakened area of the cell, where things in your body could pass through that should not, and the cell is more fragile overall. There has been much talk that this increases your risk for cancer (since the cell is not as protected). It has been proven to weaken your heart. But if you eliminate it from your diet, your body can be free of it within around 30 days as your old cells die and new ones are made.

2. MSG- It is in everything. Google all the names for it, you’d be amazed at how much you are really eating. MSG is addictive (you become hungry soon after eating), it messes with your insulin levels (harms your pancreas), and 30% of Americans have a sensitivity to it that causes severe headaches, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, nausea and weakness. YIKES!

3. High fructose corn syrup- Bwa-ha-ha, those commercials crack me up!! This is simply a form of sugar that is even more processed. Regular sugar and other super processed sugar are really really hard on your pancreas. Your insulin levels shoot up and down, up and down, up and down from them, and this puts stress on the heart, brain, and every other organ in the body. Kids who have too much of it in their diet cannot focus (does that sound like you at work too??) and often complain of lightheadedness soon after eating. It also causes you to eat more when your blood sugar drops. All in all, it’s not some evil substance (although in 2008 commercial foods containing HFCS had levels of mercury in them…), but if you will start reading labels, it seems that it’s in everything too. Bread, processed foods (kids lunch snacks, granola bars), and obviously lots of sweets. It’s just too much. So cut what you can out of your diet, and replace with more complex sweets like honey and sugar in the raw. These types of sweeteners are not nearly as hard on the body, and do well keeping your blood sugar at a more even level.

WOW that was a long post! I hope you enjoyed it.

Here’s to living- Happier, Healthier, more FRUGAL lives!

~~FrugalMegan~~