It’s 2012 and the most common resolutions I hear from my friends are, I want to lose weight, be healthy, be able to wear my bathing suit on spring break without having to suck in my tummy  etc. etc. Life becomes a diet frenzy at the beginning of every new year, but how about just being healthy? Instead of crazy crash diets I suggest simply treating your body better. I’m no nutritionist or extreme health freak but I’ve been researching food facts to teach myself to be more aware about what I’m consuming. Here are eight foods to consider cutting out because they seem rather gross.

1. Junk Food.Obvious right? Stacking up on five cent candies from 711 is clearly not what your body wants from you. But your addiction to junk food may be worse than you think. Junk food addictions are basically the same as cocaine addictions. OK THAT’S EXTREME. But the chemical found in processed junk food has the same reaction on your brain as cocaine does. Hence the term, “sugar high”.

2. Ground Meat. I’m a vegetarian so obviously I’m going to say try and limit the meat in your diet, but SERIOUSLY try to limit the amount of ground meat in your diet. There was a recent study reported in The New York Times that tested 80 brands of beef, pork, chicken and turkey to find that there is a 25 per cent chance that the ground meat you buy at the store may have a bacteria that cannot be treated by commonly prescribed drugs. See that’s gross hey? And marinated tofu is so good!

3. The Dirty Dozen. The Dirty Dozen is a list of the 12 most contaminated fruits/veggies you buy from the grocery store. And I used the term contaminated to mean these 12 produce items have the highest pesticide residue. 

Peaches
Apples
Sweet Bell Peppers
Celery
Nectarines
Strawberries
Cherries
Pears
Grapes (Imported) 
Spinach
Lettuce
Potatoes

Now I’m not saying to cut these fruits and veggies from your diet, but if possible buy them organic. 

4. Pop drinks. Now pop can easily fall under the junk food category, but it’s so gross for you I’ve decided to give it its own number. Pop is the number one factor in weight gain among kids and is hugely linked to obesity issues. Although, we aren’t kids I do know a couple of adult pop addicts and I admit I do partake in drinking a pop beverage every now and then. We all know the rumors (or truths) about pop such as,  stick a nail in a can of cola and it will disintegrate or aspartame from diet pop causes cancer. On top of that it’s also just an insane amount of empty calories. So if you care less about the health aspect of your New Year’s resolution and more about the get skinny quick.. cut out the pop! 

5. Hot dogs. Enough said? 

6. Apple Juice. Apple juice is loaded with arsenic. WHAAAT. When I think arsenic I think of the play turned movie- Chicago and the one prison lady who poisoned her husband with arsenic because,  “HE HAD IT COMING.” So now we’re being told that apple juice thinks we have it coming too? There are limits as to how much arsenic bottle water can contain due to its health risks but there are no limits when it comes to juices. Stop the juice and you’ll stop the toxins.

7. Canned soup. In the winter I love making tomato soup (by making I mean pouring it from the can) and adding hot sauce and grated cheese to the top of the bowl. But you know what? That is a salt attack waiting to happen. Approximately one can of condensed soup contains half a days worth of sodium. ICK. Try this one on for size, make your own soup. It’s really one of the easiest things to do. We even talked about how to make black bean soup here.

8. Microwave Popcorn
The inside lining of a microwave popcorn bag is just waiting to kill you. UCLA conducted a study which examined the chemicals which line the microwave bag and their reactions to the radiation form the microwave and it turns out that it may be linked to infertility and liver/pancreatic/testicular cancer. Due to these recent studies popcorn manufactures have said they will phase out the lethal chemical (perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) ) by 2015. So hold off until then.

Do you guys know any weird facts about food that we should be warned about?

~ Lindsey Peterson