Go through the aisles of your local food market, it seems that everything now says “all natural”, “natural ingredients”, “organic” or their many derivatives. Even what is traditionally known as junk food is starting to look pretty good - but is it?
Natural = Healthier?
Ask people on the street what their definition of what a natural product is and what you will hear is that it’s healthier for you, organically sourced and usually unprocessed. I guess somebody forgot to tell this to the food manufacturers 
The problem is most people only read the front of the box their food comes in instead of looking in the back - sections called ingredients and the food label!
Ingredients list
In North America at least, the ingredient list is sorted by most to least, so if you see for instance olive oil followed by flour, it means there is more olive oil then flour in the food you are about to consume. What it doesn’t tell you is if the flour was deep-fried in olive oil.
The fact is, the ingredients list is a good start but I sure wish it told me a little more about how a food was “processed”. The fact is something can be labeled “all natural” and still contain a lot of sugar, fats and other ingredients not normally associated with healthy eating make some “healthy natural foods” essentially overpriced junk food.
Labels lie
You got to wonder who writes the FDA specifications for food labels, the government or the food company. If I tell you I am finally debt-free, that means I no longer have ANY debt. Not so according to FDA specs. Using their logic, I can still be in debt with many creditors yet, still being considered debt-free if I spread the debt around enough to create smaller amounts.
Now, when you go through the specifications, notice how it usually says, “per serving size”, this is very tricky. Go through your cupboard, look at your favorite food and eat ONLY the serving size - I bet you will be surprised as how little companies think you actually eat of their product. If regularly eat 3-6x the suggested serving size, so that means what the food label said should be multiplied 3-6x - but most don’t realize to do this final multiplication. No wonder obesity and diabetes is reaching pandemic proportions!
FDA Specifications for labeling claims
Fat-Free Less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving, with no added fat or oil
Low fat 3 grams or less of fat per serving
Less fat 25% or less fat than the comparison food
Saturated Fat Free Less than 0.5 grams of saturated fat and 0.5 grams of trans-fatty acids per serving
Cholesterol-Free Less than 2 mg cholesterol per serving, and 2 grams or less saturated fat per serving
Low Cholesterol 20 mg or less cholesterol per serving and 2 grams or less saturated fat per serving
Reduced Calorie At least 25% fewer calories per serving than the comparison food
Low Calorie 40 calories or less per serving
Extra Lean Less than 5 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, and 95 mg of cholesterol per (100 gram) serving of meat, poultry or seafood
Lean Less than 10 grams of fat, 4.5 g of saturated fat, and 95 mg of cholesterol per (100 gram) serving of meat, poultry or seafood
Light (fat) 50% or less of the fat than in the comparison food (ex: 50% less fat than our regular cheese)
Light (calories) 1/3 fewer calories than the comparison food
High-Fiber 5 grams or more fiber per serving
Sugar-Free Less than 0.5 grams of sugar per serving
Sodium-Free or Salt-Free Less than 5 mg of sodium per serving
Low Sodium 140 mg or less per serving
Very Low Sodium 35 mg or less per serving
Healthy A food low in fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium, and contains at least 10% of the Daily Values for vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, calcium, protein or fiber
“High”, “Rich in” or “Excellent Source” 20% or more of the Daily Value for a given nutrient per serving
“Less”, “Fewer” or “Reduced” At least 25% less of a given nutrient or calories than the comparison food
“Low”, “Little”, “Few”, or “Low Source of” An amount that would allow frequent consumption of the food without exceeding the Daily Value for the nutrient - but can only make the claim as it applies to all similar foods
“Good Source Of”, “More”, or “Added” The food provides 10% more of the Daily Value for a given nutrient than the comparison food
Fat-free foods is an oxymoron
I hope the above chart made you realize how trivial your nutrition is taken into account by those you may trust to feed and protect your family, now one more interesting fact. Here is a simple calorie calculation chart:
1 gram fat = 9 calories
1 gram protein = 4 calories
1 gram carbohydrate = 4 calories
1 gram alcohol = 7 calories
People purchase foods that are labeld fat-free (I hope you now realize they can still contain fat), now for a shocker… if you really did eat food that 100% fat free but it contained carbohydrates or alcohol, guess what happens to all the extra calories you consumed - your body converts it to fat. So you can still become fat by eating fat-free foods.
The Bottom Line
Cook all your own meals using fresh ingredients; this will save you from a lot of potential health problems in the future caused by an improper diet.
No matter you walk in life, I think everybody will love this movie - to sum it up, Queen Latifah begins the movie living the same mundane life the majority of people around me live - wake up, go to work, go to sleep. She keeps a book of possibilities with her about the life she WANTS but never does anything to turn these into a reality for her. She loves cooking, is in love with L.L. Cool J. (who plays a salesman) and hates the “cubicle” that her boss keeps trying to keep her in. But she sticks her head down and keeps going day by day, week by week, month by month till the years come packing on. Then… a life altering even occurs - she has 3 weeks left to live!
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