What exactly is "Clean Eating"?

Maybe its the point that clean eating means a different thing to different people

I am not a clean eater by any stretch of the imagination but maybe clean eating is just a term that means the person is making the effort to self prepare more food than they used to and thereby reduce the salt, added sugar and gain more control over the nutritional content of what they eat

Just a consideration

@ OdesAngel -- I use seasoning...no dressing. Seasonings have one ingredient.

not necessarily true. Depends on whether you buy only whole seasonings and grind them yourself. A lot of seasonings actually contain fillers, and no they aren't listed on the label. Anything below a certain percentage does not have to be listed. So maybe you aren't eating as clean as you think.

Buy from a reputable company that grinds their spices and mixes their seasonings in small batches and you will not have any fillers.

Or just plant a pepper and herb garden and grow your own.

Nice idea but few people have the $ to build a specialized greenhouse that has different climate controlled sections that recreates the proper conditions to grow cinnamon trees, peppercorns, ginger plants, nutmeg trees (which also produce mace), cardamom plants, etc. Herbs and vegetables like peppers grow well in temperate climates like where I live but the only spices I can grow around here are dill seeds, poppy seeds, anise seeds, and mustard seeds.

I can't grow saffron but that doesn't stop me from planting what I can in my patch of dirt. Cost to construct said patch of dirt = $0

Actually, I did grow saffron one year. I used to work for Penzey's Spices and one of our suppliers sent a box of bulbs along with the annual crop of saffron. Where I am now, I only have space to grow a few tomatoes and a couple of herbs in containers on my balcony.

"Clean eating" is like porn vs art: It's hard to define, but you know it when you see it.

I consider clean eating as a food with just one ingredient. For an example, Chicken, beef, tuna, spinach, lettuce, almonds, rice, potatoes, etc...

^^^^^This

We also call it "perimeter shopping". If you only buy food walking along the perimeter of a typical grocery store (milk, meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits), than it's "clean". I rarely get anything else. Maybe once every couple months we get some basic stuff from the isles (grains, salt, sugar, spices)... And we rarely go to restaurants since we do not like their food. But I am a very good cook and our family is spoiled I think

Awesome! The bakery is on the perimeter. :bigsmile:

We also call it "perimeter shopping". If you only buy food walking along the perimeter of a typical grocery store (milk, meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits), than it's "clean". I rarely get anything else. Maybe once every couple months we get some basic stuff from the isles (grains, salt, sugar, spices)... And we rarely go to restaurants since we do not like their food. But I am a very good cook and our family is spoiled I think

And so is the deli (with it's potato salad, cole slaw, fried chicken, seasoned potato wedges, deli meats,) sausages, hot dogs, ham, cheese spread, the butcher, cage fed eggs, hormone injected dairy, yogurt, cheese, refrigerator rolls (you know those lovely cresecent rolls in a cardboard tube) Cookie dough, packaged tortilla, and oh so many more of my favorite things.

Onefortyone

I don't eat any of the things you mention on a regular basis and I have never had any sense of superiority over those that eat different then I do. I have no reason to judge what or how others eat.

I eat the way I do because I like it and because I can. Certainly not to impress others or be judgmental.
.

And that is fine! No judgement on my end - though I didn't think it was possible that you don't eat *anything* I mentioned, oils, dry pasta, rice, nori, any kind of dairy at all, or grocery store meats and produce.

I was trying to get across that most everything in a grocery store is factory-processed before you ever see it anyway, so you can't really ever avoid processing (I see the term has changed to 'minimally processed' foods, which leaves it even more up for debate!) unless you also avoid the grocery store entirely. Or only buy the produce that still has soil on it, and the meat that still has a head and feet on it!

Unless you basically eat what you want, and label it clean and don't worry about anyone else - that seems to be the most popular choice

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We also call it "perimeter shopping". If you only buy food walking along the perimeter of a typical grocery store (milk, meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits), than it's "clean". I rarely get anything else. Maybe once every couple months we get some basic stuff from the isles (grains, salt, sugar, spices)... And we rarely go to restaurants since we do not like their food. But I am a very good cook and our family is spoiled I think

Awesome! The bakery is on the perimeter. :bigsmile:

Those frosted cookies that are basically cupcake tops? OMG

Here's how I look at clean eating:

You sit down to breakfast. There are two pitchers you can choose from to fill your glass. One pitcher contains:

water
high fructose corn syrup
Less than 2% of the following:
concentrated juices of apple and orange
vitamins C, E, and A
citric acid
natural flavors
pectin
canola oil
modified corn starch
yellow dye #5
yellow dye #6
sucralose
sucrose acetate isobutyrate
sodium citrate
potassium sorbate
sodium hexametaphosphate
calcium disodium EDTA

The second pitcher contains:
orange juice.

Which one would you want to fill your glass with?

Now it's time to serve yourself some cereal. There are two choices again. Choice number one contains:

Rice
Sugar
Hydrogenated coconut and palm kernel oils
salt
natural and artificial flavor
red dye #40
yellow dye #6
turmeric oleoresin
blue dye #1
yellow dye #2
blue dye #2
BHA (preservative)

Choice number two contains:

Rolled oats
Toasted wheat germ
oat bran
walnuts
raisins
sunflower seeds
honey

To me, clean eating simply means eating actual food.

To me, the answer to the OP's question means Paleo diet.

If it wasn't available to cavemen, I shouldn't be eating it. With a few exceptions though.

I mean we all know Fruity and cocoa Pebbles were available to certain cavemen. And of course they had Greek Yogurt too.


Basically you go around the outer aisles of your grocery store for most of your diet needs.

Produce, Bacon and eggs, cheese, meats, fish, and of course beer.

Mmmmm. Fruity Pebbles. I just polished off a box of that this week.

Oh, and bcukshot500, just wanted you to know that both my husband and I own Jeeps. So my other ride is a Jeep too!

I do low carb and no sugar ...that's my definition of clean eating

So no fruit...seems healthy and reasonable....:grumble:

thankfully, liquor is found on the perimeter of safeway and wine on the perimeter at trader joes. i am set. clean eating!

dammit though, my avocado has a label on it.

and i have a bag of sugar in the kitchen with only one ingredient in it.

sounds like i am eating sugar with a spoon while chugging a bum jug of carlo rossi.

and maybe i will use that avocado as a facial mask since i cant eat it.

It's nonsense.

However...

@ OdesAngel -- I use seasoning...no dressing. Seasonings have one ingredient.

not necessarily true. Depends on whether you buy only whole seasonings and grind them yourself. A lot of seasonings actually contain fillers, and no they aren't listed on the label. Anything below a certain percentage does not have to be listed. So maybe you aren't eating as clean as you think.

Buy from a reputable company that grinds their spices and mixes their seasonings in small batches and you will not have any fillers.

Or just plant a pepper and herb garden and grow your own.

Nice idea but few people have the $ to build a specialized greenhouse that has different climate controlled sections that recreates the proper conditions to grow cinnamon trees, peppercorns, ginger plants, nutmeg trees (which also produce mace), cardamom plants, etc. Herbs and vegetables like peppers grow well in temperate climates like where I live but the only spices I can grow around here are dill seeds, poppy seeds, anise seeds, and mustard seeds.

I can't grow saffron but that doesn't stop me from planting what I can in my patch of dirt. Cost to construct said patch of dirt = $0

Yes, so do lots of people, including me. That doesn't mean there's any rational reason to limit myself to the spices I can personally grow or gather, as you seemed to be suggesting.