Clean eating vs real food...

garlic7girl

This is where I have difficulty with clean eating. I have read different books, magazines and websites but I have not seen a straight answer. Ok, I see butter is not clean but if you buy pure organic butter and use sparingly why is that bad? I am more against the added chemicals in fake foods and foods that don't even need it! Like I want to change from farmed fish to fresh...cost more and may not eat as often but willing to for health...I even read in one place should not eat real maple syrup! But it is pure and REAL?! To me that is clean...the issue is how much and how often you use something like that.
Feedback and your thoughts!

ngory07

I do not agree that butter is not clean. Yes it is almost pure fat but it is natural. You can churn it yourself from cream. You can MAKE it. I just use it sparingly. I have never heard pure maple syrup wasn't clean and have often heard its a great subsitute for sugar. I am in the same boat. Tomorrow I am going shopping and stocking up. All my canned fruit with extra sugar is going to a food bank. Organic as much as the budget will allow. Other things as natural and whole as it can get. I get so confused as well. I love cottage cheese but its processed but if it just has natural ingredients in it isn't it clean? Same gows for cheese. LOVE string cheese!! I've decided to read labels and decide. If it has natural and whole ingredients ill eat it. I also found this great book called To Buy or Not to Buy organic. It has a very helpful list of almost every food imaginable and tells you straight up if its wise to buy organic. One thing it states is if you eat it every day try for organic. Milk eggs and the such. If you don't such as you only eat red meat once or twice a month go for natural and hormone free as possible.hopefully we can help eachother on this confusing journey to clean eating!

garlic7girl

I so agree thank you for your honesty!

Kymmu

I understand clean food to be real food.

garlic7girl

Kymmu when I was reading Oxygen magazine just this weekend they were saying a list of 'don't eat' foods and the whole egg was on the list bas well as butter. I was shocked. So just the egg white and not the whole egg.

Kymmu

The whites have the protein, the centres have all of the fantastic nutrition.
I think some authors are using mid 90's data. An egg has almost perfect nutrition. Did you know that some vitamins can't be absorbed properly unless they are with some good fats? That's why and egg is perfect just as nature intended. We mess thing up when we separate and hydrolise etc etc.

reaolliemama

Just chiming in...I'm just starting this "clean" eating thing and I guess I'm really not all that clean, cause I agree that if it's real then it's clean.

AKbluedragonfly

Clean eating to me doesn't mean low-fat. "Clean" to me means no additives, chemicals, or processing that didn't exist a few hundred years ago.

Butter from grass fed cows is totally clean (in my mind)! So is an entire egg from a properly farm raised chicken.

I'd much rather eat butter than some of the "health" food in stores that has 10+ ingredients in it.

cornr0

Totally agree.... Clean has no relation to Calories / g of fat / etc... it is how 'natural' it is. For example an avocado is 'clean' however quite calorific and full of fat (160 cal / 15g fat per 100g serving (approx)). This doesnt mean it is not clean.
p.s I frickin love Avocados!!

mummynee

I've just finished reading the Clean and Lean Book and it says that Clean foods are those that are nearest to their natural state with very few added ingredients. It is very clear that eggs, butter, avocado are all fine, as is cream, whole fat yogurt etc. it says it is cleaner to eat these than their tampered with low fat alternatives