It Boils Down To . . .

So, it's been almost a week since my last post and I've had time here and there to reflect more on my own previous thoughts, read what others had to say and even talk with a few more people in more depth.  One thing I want to make sure everyone knows is this:  That post was ME sorting through MY thoughts about how I want to handle things for MYself and MY family.  And I was welcoming input.  I'm neither confident nor arrogant enough to feel that everyone has to think or do as I think and do in those gray areas of life.  I'm just making my way a step at a time like everyone else, and this happens to be the topic at hand these days! :)

One thing I clarified in my own mind is that when I used the word "organic" in my last post, I was including too much in that category.  When I used that term, I was also, in my mind, including food made with real, natural ingredients.  Those foods are not always "organic," though.

I like the idea of having a majority of our food be organically-grown, just to be as free as possible of yucky chemicals.  But it's not always affordable.  Sometimes it is, though.  Like, today at Meijer, organic food was plentiful and much of it was reasonably-priced for our family of three.  Now, all the meat and poultry I purchased was hormone-free, chemical-free and so on, but it was not labeled "organic."  I think there are many stipulations that must be adhered to for food to be considered organic, but I was happy to get these hormone-free items for decent prices, whether or not they were all the way organic.

I'm not an expert, but I've done a lot of research on nutrition as I've sought to find balance in that area for our family.  I'm convinced enough that companies use cheap chemicals, labeling them "ingredients," and charge a lot of money for what they try to pass as food.  Those are the kinds of "food" items I was referring to in my last post--the ones you can find coupons galore for.  High Fructose Corn Syrup is one of the worst culprits.  It seems, though, that some companies are aware of consumers' outcry against this stuff (that sounded really dramatic, but you know what I mean) and have taken it out of their products.  More and more companies are going back to real ingredients, but only in some of their products.

I guess what my post last week boils down to is that I wish there were more coupons and good deals on food that actually provides good nutrition.  I mean, people can't spend what they don't have (or, I should say, are better off not spending what they don't have!) and we're all trying to do what's best for our families based on what we have to spend.  Common sense and moderation go a long way, but it would be nice, too, to have access to "awesome deals" on real food made with real ingredients.

Take ice cream for instance, since so many people LOVE ice cream. :)  They market some kinds of ice cream as being more "healthy," because they take out the fat and replace it with chemicals.  Wouldn't it be more healthy to eat a brand like Breyers, that, as far as I know, uses real ingredients, but then just eat less of it?  Have a serving and leave it at that?  Sometimes Breyers is on sale but I've never seen a coupon for it.  That's probably a dumb example anyway, 'cuz ice cream isn't exactly health-promoting food, but maybe you get the idea of what I'm talking about? :)  On the other hand, maybe it is a good example of how something that's supposed to be bad for us can actually be quite fine for many people, when eaten in moderation.

Oh, there's that word again:  Moderation.  Does anyone know what that means?  It's a wonderful word, but the true meaning escapes many of us.  What do you think it means?  Is there a formula that equals moderation? :)  Hmmm  . . .