*Also posted on my personal blog.
1. Artificial colors (including "caramel color") - So unnecessary most of the time! Annoying. Bad for you. No.2. Carrageenan - Inflammation? Cancer? No thanks!
3. Hyrdogenated oils - Pretty hard to avoid but worth it to cut down in your most eaten items.
4. MSG (aka autolyzed yeast extract, etc) - Extremely hard to avoid in all its forms but not impossible. It's worth the effort.
5. "Natural" and "Artificial" flavors - So natural it can't even be named...right. And artificial is just that: not real. Let's eat real flavors and real food. Please.
6. High fructose corn syrup - Too much of any sweetener is bad, but why make it worse?
7. Non-organic apples, strawberries, raspberries...and most of the EWG's dirty dozen when possible. Pesticides = poison. Poison is bad for you.
8. GMO's - Less is mo' bettah. Buy organic when you can. Limit your non-organic items containing soy, canola and corn oil. Olive, sunflower, and coconut oils are great alternatives.
Reading labels is not obsessive! Since when is educating yourself a ridiculous thing to do? Knowing what you're eating is smart. Taking care of yourself and your children's bodies is responsible. Supporting products that agree with these values is common sense.
