Traditional Foods Lifestyle

I wrote this on a message board & decided it should go here as well. I've mentioned our TF transition before, but I don;t believe I've really delved into it for you.

Traditional foods lifestyle is basically a "back-to-basics" lifestyle. It goes beyond foods, however & here is what I've learned & my take on it.

Back to basics means removing what is known as conventional foods. These conventional items include, but are not limited to:

Non-organic foods
Processed & pre-pkg'ed foods
Refined foods
Foods with added dyes & unnatural preservatives

Traditional food items include, but again, are not limited to:

Sugars/sweeteners in raw/little refined forms (Rapadura, demerara, molasses, stevia, honey, agave, etc.)
Organic produce
Organic, free range, grass fed & finished beef
Organic fed, free range chickens & eggs
Food items made from scratch with natural/organic ingredients

After doing a lot of research on the effects of process foods & behaviour, I learned that some of the issues I was having with one of my kids, may be linked to pesticides, food colourings & other unnatural additives in foods. We've since cut out, or are working on cutting out (yeah, trying to use up those stores in moderation- waste not, want not) white sugar, white flour, non-organic produce, etc. It has been AMAZING the difference we've seen in all the kids, but esp. the one. I was leaning towards ODD (oppositional defiance disorder), and have been blessed to find information on TF before I went forward with any Dx's or treatments.

I have an example. A little background first- Jan 09 was when I started TF. As I mentioned we are not 100% TF yet. However, we have already been seeing VAST improvements in all kids, esp. the one. A couple weeks ago we were in the grocery store & my youngest was being his cute self & chatting with the lady in front of us at the register. She had grabbed a couple candies from the impulse rack & he started pointing out other stuff. "Did you see this? Did you see that? Do you like this type?" She looked at me, and she says "You know, I feel the need to buy 3 boys a candy bar." I said "Oh no, that's ok, you don't have to." The whole while I'm SCREAMING in my head "NOOOOO DON'T DO IT!!!!!!!!" She says "No, really, I don't mind." So I allowed her, against my better judgment, to buy them each a candy bar. I knew I shouldn't have, I KNEW better, but sometimes I CAN be a pushover, esp. to polite older people (she was not old by ANY means, don't get me wrong!). Within an hour, I noticed a HUGE change in the kids, and not for the better. Within 2 hours, 2 of them were grounded.

Now, since January, even though we've noticed changes, I've always questioned my choice. 2 weeks ago was the first time I felt totally vindicated in what I was doing. 2 weeks ago was the first time that I KNEW beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was doing the right thing. 2 weeks ago marked the day that I will not say yes again to offers of preservative, poison, dye laced nastiness. The only thing that had kept me going since Jan. was that nothing worth doing is easy & the little hope that the behavioural issues were changing. I had wondered for 4 months if the changes I was seeing were "in my head." 2 weeks ago, I knew that wasn't the case.

OK, so I know a LOT of you on here cook from scratch already. But TF goes beyond that in finding the best quality foods for you & your family. Of course you can cook from scratch & still be eating the junk- refined sugars, dyes, preservatives, GM foods, etc. TF is NOT easy. Some say it's not cheap, but like any other sales, you have to learn the cycles of sales & learn to budget. Follow a list, keep a price list, etc.

It's best to start small. Wean the family. That's what I've been doing. You don't want to switch everything over in 1 day. Your family will freak. They will rebel. They will EAT JUNK!!!

Go grocery shopping with your list & choose, say, 2-3 things of 20 or more that you desire to change.

For instance- you've got flour, jelly, apples, ice cream, lemons, peanut butter & milk on your list, among other stuff. Get your PB & lemons in organic, your ice cream "all natural." Leave everything else the same this trip. Each trip add 1 more thing you're willing to change over. Prices got you cornered? Find a co-op or a bulk supplier in your area. You'll pay around the same if not less for organics as you do for conventional in the grocery store.

I'll be back with more. But here's a start to get you reading & researching!