Fourth Day of Preparation:
Clean Eating

Eating clean means:

Eat whole foods
Eliminate processed foods
Choose organic
Choose non-GMO
Choose poultry/eggs/meat that once roamed
Eliminate inflammatory, allergenic, and addictive foods
Let’s dive into each of these a bit more.

1. EAT WHOLE FOODS - they grow on trees or from the ground. Ask yourself, "was this food alive?"

2. ELIMINATE PROCESSED FOODS - these foods contain chemicals such as preservatives, artificial flavors, artificial sweeteners (like aspartame and sucralose), and artificial colors.

3. CHOOSE ORGANIC - organic foods are non-toxic and grown without pesticides, herbicides, or Genetically Modified Organisms - GMOs. When shopping, look for round green/white USDA Organic label on the front of all foods. Organic fruits/veggies contain 40% more antioxidants and nutrients than their conventional counterparts. They are nutritionally sound and give your body the fuel it needs. On a budget? Use this EWG Guide to determine where you should spend your money on organic.

4. CHOOSE NON-GMO - Stick with food that hasn’t been genetically altered. This means humans took a whole food into the lab and cross bred or altered its DNA in a petri dish. Many common crops in the US are GMO, think RoundUp built right into your veggies or your tomatoes cross-bred with fish scales. The main problem with GMOs is that they are HIGHLY sprayed with pesticides and herbicides and those chemicals create a lot of human health and environmental issues.

5. CHOOSE POULTRY/EGGS/MEAT that once roamed -

Poultry - Choose "free range" or "pasture raised" turkeys and chickens that were allowed to roam in open space (not confined).
Eggs - Choose “pasture raised" eggs, which means your egg-laying hen was also free-range.
Meat - Choose "grass fed & finished" beef. This ensures the beef cattle was allowed to graze freely on the pasture and helps you to avoid beef fed a GMO corn diet that is higher in fat and chemical residues. Excellent choices are also wild-caught meat, like venison or buffalo.

6. ELIMINATE INFLAMMATORY, ALLERGENIC and ADDICTIVE FOODS - gluten, dairy, processed sugar, alcohol, and coffee. They are highly inflammatory, addictive, and allergenic. We know these will be challenging to give up. Here's a little more about each food and why we avoid them for the 30 days:

Gluten - Gluten is the protein found in wheat, rye, and barley. For those with gluten sensitivity, gluten can cause irritation in the gut system.

Dairy - Cow’s milk is made for baby cows. It is formulated perfectly to help a baby cow gain 1 ton (2000 lbs) of weight within 1 year. Nature’s best calcium sources are dark leafy greens such as kale, collards, mustard greens, and turnip greens. The calcium in these foods is absorbed at double the rate of dairy calcium. Other rich plant sources of calcium include beans, almonds, figs, and fortified non-dairy milks such as unsweetened almond milk, oat milk, cashew milk, coconut milk and hemp milk.

Processed Sugar - This program is designed to eliminate any added and/or hidden sugars. However, there is no way to eliminate all sugar. There are small amounts in vegetables and even the allowable fruits and products we use during this program (berries, apples, protein shake mix). And although we are hard core about processed sugar, let’s keep it in perspective. we need some natural sugar to live. When you have a few minutes, grab your family and watch this CBC News special on sugar, you’ll be glad you did!

 

◊ These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease