Unfortunately, condiments tend to be some of the unhealthiest processed foods of all. I typically use coconut oil or ghee as sauce and plan on trying to make some of my own. Fermented foods can make very healthy sauces and can even be used to make ketchup and mustard. But as you said, it’s sometimes nice to enjoy a condiment that we’re not capable of making ourselves, and this is when it’s important to pay close attention to the ingredients list.

I have not yet read In Defense of Food, but it’s one of the many books sitting on my bookshelf that I look forward to reading. I like Pollan’s grandparents guideline, but it doesn’t exclude grains which many people are better off not eating.

I agree, it’s quite sad how other species and our natural resources are being impacted by our irresponsible habits. The best we can do is not contribute to it, promote change, and not let it ruin our day.

Yes, it’s very expensive to eat all organic and pasture raised foods. I know this very well because I eat a lot of pasture raised meat which is expensive. It’s a shame that some people truly can’t afford it, but for everyone else, I think it’s a matter of setting priorities. Many of us spend money on things that we don’t really need that we could instead use for better food. Personally, I’d rather live in a small house, drive an old beat up car, and be well fed than the opposite scenario that most other people seem to choose.

But at times we may choose processed food over natural one because of convenience, like sauces (soy and mushroom sauce are some I can’t do without), kimchi and miso. That’s when we need to be a label whore and scrutinize food labels with eagle eyes.

Honestly though, even if you stick to these sound and sensible guidelines, it’s still a depressing world out there. With cod becoming endangered, tuna disappearing almost altogether (had a really depressing conversation with my local fishmonger about tuna last week) and tons of other fish being fish factoried into oblivion by those ocean bottom strip mining trawlers, I almost don’t know what fish to eat anymore except for farm grown tilapia. Same goes for cows (see global warming producing farts, massive deforestation so that they can have land to graze on, the amount of water necessary to produce 1lb of meat, etc), any almost everything else I look at.

In short: unless you’ve got lots of cash to buy expensive Whole Foods style organic, free range, no antibiotics/growth hormones/etc food, how are you supposed to eat healthy and not damage the planet?

I remember reading a story about one of the World Wars in which the bodies of dead American soldiers took a surprisingly long time to decompose and it was believed to be a result of all the preservatives in their food. Pretty scary!

I like that one even better than the 10,000 year rule! I completely agree about personal care products which is a subject that I plan to write a lot more about. My tip for these products is if you wouldn’t put it in your mouth, don’t put it on your skin.

Wow, I don’t know what that procedure is, but it sounds pretty ridiculous. It reminds me of how willing doctors are to recommend hysterectomies when they’re not really needed.