The Doctor Weighs In

Thanks to Barry Messersmith for sending this link:  Good Foods, Gone Bad.

Christopher Winjek, the author of The Top 10 Good Foods Gone Bad describes his hit list of bad foods, all of which were formerly known as good foods, but are now corrupted by over- processing and under-investment in things that make good foods "good." 

 The list has few surprises:  #10 is fish sticks..."good for you" fish is covered in breading and associated preservatives to help it survive in your freezer forever.  Because it is so tasteless, we compound the problem by smothering it in tartar sauce or other high calorie condiments (the calories we forget to count).

#9 is yogurt.  That's right, the food we think is intrinsically healthy is loaded with sugar.  Check out "Yogurt - health food or dessert?

Canned soup is 8th on the list.  According to the author, canned soup "is a miserable concoction of salt, fat, artificial additives, preservatives, water and maybe part of a carrot." One serving typically contains 1000 mg of sodium, about half of the recommended daily allowance.

Green tea drinks are number 7.  We are not talking about pure green tea from Asia, but the green tea drinks you find in the grocery store that have been made "tastier" with sweeteners and other stuff. 

Russett potatoes win the 6th slot for two reasons:  (1) they have a high glycemic index and so raise your blood sugar
"Fully loaded" baked potatoes more quickly than foods with a lower glycemic index and (2) they usually require something high fat, high calorie -- like butter or sour cream -- to make them tasty. 

Popcorn (#5) used to be a health food, but not anymore.  Read the ingredients on the package before you pop up your next batch.  Sliced bread and breakfast cereals are numbers 4 and 3--think white bread and fruit loops.  Need I say more?

The second place award goes to organics that really aren't. Here's what Winjek has to say about commercial organics:

"Big players such as Wal-Mart and Kraft want part of the profits, and their demand for cheaper production methods undermines what it means to be organic. And so we now have organic milk from caged cows force-fed organic grain. And we have organic junk food with organic ingredients flown in from around the globe, disguised as health food by virtue of the organic label."   Cage a cow and feed it organic grain?  Come on now!

Pepperoni pizza (meat n' cheese)And, the winner is pizza.  Number one on the hit parade of good foods, gone bad.  The typical fast food pizza is topped with high fat meats, oily toppings, practically no fresh ingredients.  Years ago, I went to Italy and had real pizza.  Fresh peas, homegrown onions, recently picked tomatoes, and wonderful homemade sauces....ah, that's amore.