Healthy Habits 101: Responsible shopping
What your grocery cart reveals about you
By Pam Vos 04/24/2008
One, two, three, four, five, six … possibly seven. That’s how many individual packages of candy the teenager in front of me put on the conveyor belt at Vons. With her mother holding a huge Hershey bar in her hand, she stood waiting as her little darling made her selections from that “grab n’ go” shelf. Trying not to let them see my bulging eyeballs, I couldn’t help but notice the girl in front of me (not much older than 14 years) was already obese. Placing my celery, carrots, chicken breast, bananas, avocado, fresh ginger, nonfat milk, Cheerios and bottle of Cabernet on the conveyor belt I sadly approached the checkout counter. I felt grieved to see what that young girl was going to fuel her body with. I wondered if the checker ever noticed a correlation between what people were purchasing and how they looked. It’s something I often do … just for my own personal research. We know obesity is rampant. There is now a greater awareness of this than in years past. However, even if weight was not the issue, there is also another great danger lurking — mental and emotional health.
My mind reflected on recent news of the student on a bus who was irate and yelling at the bus driver. Clearly she was emotional and irrational. I imagined in my mind what her diet might look like. I know you can think of more recent news of teenagers beating each other up. They are not healthy outside, and not healthy inside either.
Sugar is a huge part of the American daily diet, especially our young people. It’s no wonder people are sick, tired and totally strung out. Do you remember the incident of a murder many years ago that was blamed on Twinkies? Sounds ridiculous and it is. The Twinkies were blamed for what happened. Hmmmmm? Although diet plays a big part in our mental health, where does personal responsibility come in?
Just as I couldn’t believe my eyes as this mother watched her daughter make her selection from a delicatessen of sweets and tossing a load of candy on the counter, I was even more shocked that they didn’t seem to care what they ate or what the consequences of her choices would be.
My point here is that sugar will really mess up the body chemistry and cause roller-coaster emotions. It is deadly stuff! The book Sugar Blues tells of how sugar used to be illegal! Sugar weakens our defense against disease, among other things.
Please friends, take your health (physical, mental and emotional) seriously. Eliminating sugar from the diet will calm your children, allow you to lose weight, and prevent many diseases.
Sugar is not just in candy and cookies, but other common items in the grocery store. Ever read the ingredient list on your ketchup bottle? Yep! Sugar … it’s in there! Please read the labels and get rid of it! Be a responsible shopper. As a recovering sugar addict, I can tell you it’s difficult, but well worth the effort. Perhaps you can begin by reading Lick the Sugar Habit by Nancy Appleton. In her book she has a huge list of “how sugar and sweeteners can ruin your health.” If you want this list, you can either locate the book or e-mail me (pam@foreverfitliving.com) and I will be happy to send it off to you. Once you read this, you will be motivated to rid your diet of sugar.
Pam Vos is Owner of Forever Fit! 3810 W. Channel Islands Blvd., Oxnard. www.ForeverFitStudio.com. 805-382-4444. Pam has developed a 12-week program entitled “Forever Fit Living” which she teaches for small groups, individuals and corporations.
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