It got me curious about organic foods (is this what traditional foods is referring to?).
Organic food means food that is produced without inorganic chemicals (carbon based molecules that are components of life are organic, whereas other chemicals are inorganic. simplified.) It means only products derived from natural things can be used as fertilizer, pesticides, etc. It also in the US means that the crop cannot be genetically modified. It reduces harmful chemicals in your food and pollution from them of the earth and seas, but doesn't mean it's healthy. You can get organic junk food that isn't good for you. Traditional foods is refering to certain types of food and methods of preparing such foods, that have been eaten and provided good health to people for a very long period of time (hundreds or thousands of years)
I feel lost in this whole thing, I went out to buy milk from organic pastures and notice the milk has some solid white stuff floating in it, some time before the expiration date I think there was more of the solid white stuff and it already started to smell kind of sour... I poured it away because I wasn't sure if it was alright to drink anymore.
Organic Pastures milk is both raw, and unhomogenized. The solid white stuff is the cream from the milk. You can drink raw milk even when it begins to sour, though the taste might not be as good (it's great for baked goods instead of buttermilk). Try bringing it home in a cooler, and making sure your fridge is cold enough. Shake it up before drinking to mix the cream back in.
I also went out to buy organic gee to cook eggs with in the morning, the eggs are the regular ones (not advertised as organic or anything), and got some coconut oil. I didn't put it in the fridge and it got really hot one day, the oil turned liquid and when it went back to solid there were some black spots that formed near the bottom of the bottle... I think it might have been mold =/
At the least, you want to get organic eggs, as conventional eggs are horribly treated and not good for you. Organic eggs, the chickens aren't treated any better, but the organic feed does make a noticeable difference. The best is to get eggs from chickens which spend most of their days outside, eating bugs and weeds as well as chickenfeed, but you probably can't get them in a store. A farmer's market would be a good place to get them. the coconut oil is almost certainly not moldy. Mold forms on the top of foods, not deep under oil. I'm not sure what it is, but not mold. (and even a lot of mold, you can just scrape it off and eat the rest)
I'm lost... those of you that eat organic/traditional foods, do you actually notice a change in your health, like a really big dramatic change, after making the move from eating "normal foods" to organic/traditional foods?
Yes. A huge change. My cholesterol dropped back to healthy ranges, my weight dropped back to healthy ranges, my mental health issues (combined with several other lifechanges) are almost non-existant, I have more energy and just feel better.
Also, isn't it pretty expensive? Do you eat exclusively organic foods only? I don't cook, not really at least (I can make eggs... and instant noodles) and I don't want to be eating salads most of the time, atleast that's what I'm thinking now. My diet right now mainly consists of meat and grain (white rice), there's little vegetables. I did just buy a blender though to make smoothies, I'm hoping this will help...
Yes, and no. It is more expensive, however if you can't cook, then presumably you are eating a lot of processed foods and eating out a lot, in which case, it may not be that much more expensive. Cooking whole foods at home is always hugely less expensive than eating processed foods and eating out, but eating traditional foods is expensive. A lot more expensive. I could get a gallon of conventional milk for about 1.30. I pay 7.50 for half a gallon (which would be 14 dollars for a gallon) of raw, grass-fed, non-homogenized Guernsey whole milk, straight from the farmer. I could get a dozen conventional eggs for about 2.30. I pay 7-8 dollars a dozen pastured eggs from chickens who run around outside and eat bugs and weeds and veggie scraps as well as feed. I could get conventional ground beef for 50 cents a pound, but I pay 6 dollars a pound for ground beef that comes from cows eating grass, roaming outside with lots of free space their whole lives, which is healthier, more ethical, and more humane. That said, I'm not spending lots of money on soda, snacky puff things, cereal, etc, which don't make you feel full and aren't healthy.
I don't eat exclusively organic foods. I buy organic where it matters, and often buy "beyond organic" (that is, from farmers who pay attention not just to USDA organic standards, but their own personal higher standards), buying grass-fed or pastured animal products. I try to buy organic, or from farms which don't use chemical pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, etc when I can. I always buy the "dirty dozen" (worst contaminated produce) and commonly genetically modified foods organic, but most others I buy conventional (with an emphasis on local and quality) because I can't afford it.
It sounds like you really need to start with just learning to cook. Eating even just a whole foods diet with a traditional foods emphasis, and learning to cook your food will help your health a lot, and then you can learn to make things like sauerkraut, and sourdough bread, but that's not where I'd start. I'd start by learning how to cook three healthy tasty meals a day, which are made fromfoods still in their original form or similar to it (like whole wheat flour, which is wheat which is just ground, fresh meats and veggies, rice, etc)
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