“DON’T FEEL BAD, IT’S ORGANIC”

“Don’t feel bad, it’s Organic” is what many people tell themselves when they are devouring a full bag of organic potato chips or eating a whole pint of organic ice cream. I have heard this line more times than I can count. Many people link organic to healthy when in reality the terms healthy and organic are completely unrelated. Above all, organic is a term for how something is grown while healthy is a term for whether or not something is good for you.

For the past few years, there has been a lot of discussion in the news that organic is not any nutritionally different from its conventional counterpart. When that article came out about three years ago, I had an outpour of emails and phone calls from my family telling me this news. I just shook my head because it should not have even received as much attention as it actually got. I mean of course it isn’t any different, an apple is an apple, a chip is a chip, and ice cream is ice cream. The only difference is how it is grown and maybe a few different ingredients.

People give themselves the right to overindulge in all these organic goodies by telling themselves “Don’t feel bad, it’s organic” when in reality it is still going to cause weight gain or other health issues if it is not under control. Many people assume organic is low calorie, sugar free, and fat free for some unknown reason which of course is not the case at all. Another reason is that you are eating snacks and treats with cleaner ingredients but it doesn’t change the nutrition facts. Sometimes my family will say to me, “Sara, this is organic so it must be healthy.” They do say it in a funny sometimes sarcastic tone but there are many people who actually believe this.

Like everyone else, I personally do not feel as bad eating desserts and sweets that are organically made. Because organic foods are made with better, cleaner ingredients, I don’t feel as bad but that doesn’t mean that they are healthy. However, I do not overindulge and I portion control almost all of my food and desserts. When people see me bring out measuring cups for my cereal or ice cream they usually are in shock. Also, I love to make organic desserts!  I am constantly baking up a storm. Even though I use all organic ingredients in my baking which make me feel better about what I am indulging in, I still do eat very small portions of the desserts I make. When I tell others about my portioning of desserts they usually are surprised or tell me they do not have the strength or control. Let me tell you, it took a long time for me to learn how to portion control. Trust me, you can learn how to as well. I do not “diet” but I have significantly changed my lifestyle. With that, I told myself that I could eat anything I wanted but if I was going to do that I must learn how to eat smaller portions. And like many of you or any average person in their twenties, I have my fill of chips, ice cream, cakes, cookies, chocolate, and cupcakes. Even with all of those indulgences, I balance it out with healthy meals and I control the portions. I usually allow myself one small dessert a day which fits with my lifestyle.

Life is all about balance and moderation which is the key to a healthy and happy lifestyle. Just remember to always read nutrition labels and never assume that just because it is sold in a health food store, or that it is organically made that it is healthy.

 

So as a reminder, DON’T FEEL BAD, IT’S ORGANIC, just don’t eat the whole thing in one sitting. 🙂

 

Love,

Sara, “S.O.Eats”