What great evils are forbidden in your kitchen?

[Elizabeth in MN]

Living in the middle of nowhere I am out of the loop on what food evils lurk in my food. Right now I see people becoming aware of the evils of artificial flavors and colors. The last I was aware High Fructose Corn Syrup was the last bad-boy to be ousted. Maybe I heard some rumblings about Palm Oil?

 

What are the top five to ten things you ban from your kitchen? Mine are -

 

1 Soy (allergic)

2 Artificial Flavors and Colors (bad reactions)

3 Limited milk (allergy)

4 Sugar (Mom is diabetic)

5 Limited Process Foods

 

By and large out food budget is a bit more than we can deal with, but there is just no room to cut. For example - Mac and Cheese. My daughter loves it so we have to buy the Annie's version rather than the Kraft because of the AF&C issues (and maybe Soy - I can't remember exactly). The price difference can be between twenty-five cents to a whole dollar depending on where we can buy it. Home made is a bust with my DD.

[In the Rain]

What are the top five to ten things you ban from your kitchen?

 

Partially hydrogenated fats

corn syrup (including HFCS)

artificial coloring- except in medications

artificial sweeteners- except in medications

MSG

[kewb]

This is an interesting question.

 

My current top 5.

1. High Fructose Corn Syrup

2. Processed Food Products (Doritos, Rice a Roni, etc.)

3. Processed Soy

4. Hydrogenated Oil

5. I limit refined sugar.

[Acorn]

We are newly adjusting to a life with no butter, no coconut oil and no palm oil. Rounding out the list would be partially hydrogenated oil and shortening.

Edited February 5, 2012 by Acorn

[Remudamom]

Wheat bread

Splenda

hummus

yogurt

herbal tea

8)

[*Lulu*]

decaff anything

margarine

milk chocolate

highly processed and/or surgery snack foods

my DH (unless he is cooking bacon! :tongue_smilie: )

[CalicoKat]

Aspertame, Splenda (fake sugars)

HFCS

Food Dyes

Sodium Benzoate

MSG -- any name that it's called.

[mo2]

Wheat bread

Splenda

hummus

yogurt

herbal tea

8)

 

:lol:

[Farrar]

Dh's cooking.

[*********]

Artificial sweeteners

margarine

corned beef hash in a can (childhood baggage, LOL)

hazelnut coffee (I can't stand the smell of it brewing)

And anyone who is in there NOT helping when I'm in there cooking or cleaning

[BarbecueMom]

Food colors (DS3 reacts)

Fake butter

Agave nectar (bad, bad headaches!)

Things that don't taste good

Snickers ice cream bars (I make sure to eat them before they get to the kitchen)

 

ETA: HFCS is mostly banned, except for graham crackers. Too lazy to make them, and non-HFCS ones are expensive)

Edited February 6, 2012 by BarbecueMom

[FaithManor]

Dh's cooking.

:D

 

My mom feels this way about my dad!

 

Hydrogenated oils

Hydrolyzed anything

Artificial Sweeteners

Genetically modified produce

HCFS

Splenda

Stevia - gives me terrible gut pain

 

Gluten free for me - I'm not so reactive that the rest of the family cannot have wheat so it isn't banned from the kitchen, but it's on the naughty list of things to make sure it doesn't cross contaminate my food much.

 

Soy - not totally against soy, just only small sparing amounts very occasionally and must be organic.

 

Limited sugar intake

 

 

Faith

[itsheresomewhere]

Artificial sweeteners

margarine

corned beef hash in a can (childhood baggage, LOL)

hazelnut coffee (I can't stand the smell of it brewing)

And anyone who is in there NOT helping when I'm in there cooking or cleaning

 

I can still smell that stuff in a can. Still makes me want to hurl.

[Parrothead]

Artificial sweeteners

Margarine

HFCS

Sugar in things it does not need to be in - tomato sauce, canned fruit, stc.

[MamaSheep]

Here are my 5:

 

1) alcohol

2) coffee

3) tea

4) Spam

5) ocra

 

The first three because I'm Mormon. The last two because...well...they just make me gag. There are other things I limit, but those are my top 5 banned items. :)

[Celia]

wheat

eggs

dairy

gluten

 

Just four things here!

[Heatherwith4]

Fake sugar

Fake butter

Most processed stuff

Trans fat

Usually no white bread/pasta (there are occasional exceptions)

[momto3innc]

My top things are...

 

1) white sugar, flour

2) nitrates

3) HFCS

4) Dyes

5) Most processed stuff

 

We also avoid soy and most dairy. Although if you saw what my husband brought home to eat during the superbowl....think he covered all of the top 5 with a vengeance!

[LibraryLover]

Formica. But it won't go away.

Edited February 6, 2012 by LibraryLover

[beaners]

corned beef hash in a can (childhood baggage, LOL)

 

I can still smell that stuff in a can. Still makes me want to hurl.

 

I love that stuff. My husband said the same thing about having it a lot when he was a child. He blames it on one particular strike when his father worked for the power company. He is nice enough to grab a few more cans for me when I run out, but he never touches it himself. :001_smile:

 

We have a few limitations for my husband.

 

-No artificial sweeteners at all because they make him violently ill.

-No dairy for him because it also makes him violently ill. I change our meals when he is home, but we eat cheese and milk products when he is working.

 

I don't worry much about corn syrup or dyes or MSG or things like that. I cook enough from scratch that I don't worry about that stuff sliding by.

 

-I do try to limit unfermented soy as much as possible. A friend in college was surprised that I like edamame and told me that she only ever ate fermented soy products. I don't know if it was cultural or a family thing. It stuck with me.

[GailV]

Trans fats

Corn syrup

MSG

Splenda

Probably more, but we've avoided them for so long I've forgotten that they exist.

[Janie Grace]

1. Canned fish or meat

2. MSG

3. HFCS

4. Fake butter

5. Fake sugar

[Elizabeth in MN]

Fake Butters I forgot. They aren't totally banned because for some unknown reason my Mom likes them. Fake sugars also give me migraines! I hate it when I get a soda, take a sip and find it's a diet. NOT THE SAME!

[MamaSheep]

Formica. But it won't go away.

 

 

:lol::lol::lol:

 

...I don't worry much about corn syrup or dyes or MSG or things like that. I cook enough from scratch that I don't worry about that stuff sliding by...

 

This is me too. I try to cook mostly with "real" ingredients and serve a fairly wide variety of foods, and then go about the business of living happily. No matter what I eat or don't eat, the fact is I will die someday of something, and paranoia in the kitchen is not going to change that fact. It might shift what I die of, or exactly when it happens a little one way or another, but with the ever-shifting nature of dietary science it's hard to sift out the real information from the hype, and yesterday's dietary villains are as likely to be next week's superheroes as not. So I stick with the basics and get on with life.

Edited February 6, 2012 by MamaSheep

[*lifeoftheparty*]

There are some things I would like to stay away from, but I'll get them every now and then. This is the list of things that are absolutely, positively, NOT ALLOWED in my kitchen. If someone gives these things, or something containing them, to me.... I will throw them away.

 

1. Hydrogenated Oils

2. High Fructose Corn Syrup

3. Non-Grass Fed Beef

4. Non-Organic Milk

5. BHA/BHT

 

Everything else can sometimes slip by.... and that's OK. But I cannot allow the above 5 in my house, in my families bodies, with a clear conscience b/c I know how bad they are. I try to keep the rest out... but I don't, well, I TRY, not to stress out if they make it in every now and then.

 

I can't bring myself to buy conventional meat (Beef/Pork) from a "regular" grocery store. *Barf* I have tried.... I stood at the meat counter at Target for a good 45 minutes trying to talk myself into buying their meat, but I couldn't do it. I don't like to eat meat at other peoples' houses either, if there is a possibility that it's conventional. YUCK. If the meat isn't from Whole Foods, or MOMS Organic Market, or straight from a trusted farmer/rancher. NO THANKS.

[Pretty in Pink]

I'm on a tree hugging kick, so:

 

plastic

extraneous packaging

chemical cleaning supplies

styrofoam (meat trays, egg cartons)

single-use paper products

 

Food-wise:

 

processed foods...that's fairly inclusive, eh?

[Sukale]

fake butter

fake sugar

and I am trying to get rid of anything plastic

[VeganCupcake]

Formica. But it won't go away.

 

I'm having the same problem with vinyl flooring.

[Stellalarella]

For a long time, we try to avoid buying products with any hydrogenated vegetable oils. I am working on eliminating all sources of corn syrup, which means that I have been learning to make even more of my own stuff. Tonight I made homemade spaghetti sauce for the third time.

A couple of weeks ago I got some advice on the forum about how to cleanse my life of cream of bleck soups.

The next project is making homemade ranch dressing.

 

I also try to avoid products made with dried milk.

 

So really, other than buying canned tomatoes, canned tuna and salmon, canned black beans (because they are so hard to cook) and boxes of cereal, our food is homemade. OH, for pete's sake, I forgot the condiments that I buy. But I am learning--just give me a few more weeks.

[SweetMissMagnolia]

tomatoes-carrots-blueberries--I am ALLERGIC---don't like mayo but the guys have a jar in the fridge---don't like food colorings-

[Tigger]

GMO Foods (grains, soy, corn, produce)

Hydrogenated oils in anything

Vegetable oils (corn, soybean, etc.)

Artificial Sweeteners

High Fructose Corn Syrup

Commercial breads, buns, rolls, etc.

Non-organic dairy

MSG

BHT/BHA

BPA plastics, cans, etc.

Soy in anything

 

Fish and shellfish, along with things like Worcestershire sauce, Asian sauces, Caesar dressing, etc. due to DS's allergy.

[ChristineW]

No artificial food coloring (DS6 reacts)

No artificial flavors (see above)

No soy (DD2 is allergic)

DH has diet coke but no other artificial sweeteners (migraines for me including stevia (boo))

No ginger (DD2 and DD5 break out in hives)

 

We were peanut free (just a pain b/c I can't send it in to preschool, but DD2 loves the stuff). Thankfully, DD2 also seems to be over her dairy intolerance because the rest of us can't get enough cheese.

 

Christine

[Forget-Me-Not]

Formica. But it won't go away.

 

:grouphug: I share your pain LL

 

:D

[Bang!Zoom!]

Children & Men.

[twoxcell]

HFCS

Trans Fat

Margarine/Crisco/Lard

Nitrates/Nitrites(My oldest dd gets very ill from this)

MSG

Alcohol

Things with unnecessary added sugar(i.e. Peanut Butter, Jam, Canned fruit etc.) I only buy Adams Peanut butter, canned fruit in juice, and applesauce without sugar.

I try to avoid white foods also, so I buy brown rice only, and whole grain or whole wheat everything else.

I try to limit pre-packaged food but we do eat some. Mostly stuff my dh buys.

 

I'm sure there is more but that's all I can think of right now.;)

[Catwoman]

Wow, I feel like such a slacker. :eek:

 

I don't "forbid" anything in my kitchen, unless we simply don't like the way it tastes (like margarine :ack2: -- we're butter people here!)

 

We don't eat things like frozen dinners, but again, it's a taste thing and not an "evil ingredients" thing.

 

We have friends who are very restrictive about what they'll eat, and everything has to be organic, with no preservatives, and the list goes on and on. I admire them for their dedication to a healthy diet, but I'm more of an "everything in moderation" person.

 

And yes, I am eating chips and drinking a Coke while I type this. But not the jumbo-sized bag or anything...

 

I am a bad, bad person. But thanks to my snacks, I'm not hungry or thirsty right now, so I consider that to be a good thing. ;)

Edited February 6, 2012 by Catwoman

[Element]

Pork

Poultry

Red meat

Artificial sweeteners

Soda

[MyLittleWonders]

1. Artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners, and preservatives ... many here react negatively.

2. Gluten ... many here react.

3. Dairy ... same. ;)

4. MSG ... gives dh migraines.

5. HFCS ... it's just evil. :lol:

 

I also really limit our soy intake. Other than the HFCS, which my boys only have in the occasional 7-Up at my mom's house (like tonight), the above items are non-negotiable; the reactions in various members are such that it's just not worth it (though we can do stuff that has been processed in facilities).

[Joyofsixreboot]

Wow, I feel like such a slacker. :eek:

 

I don't "forbid" anything in my kitchen, unless we simply don't like the way it tastes (like margarine :ack2: -- we're butter people here!)

 

We don't eat things like frozen dinners, but again, it's a taste thing and not an "evil ingredients" thing.

 

We have friends who are very restrictive about what they'll eat, and everything has to be organic, with no preservatives, and the list goes on and on. I admire them for their dedication to a healthy diet, but I'm more of an "everything in moderation" person.

 

And yes, I am eating chips and drinking a Coke while I type this. But not the jumbo-sized bag or anything...

 

I am a bad, bad person. But thanks to my snacks, I'm not hungry or thirsty right now, so I consider that to be a good thing. ;)

 

:iagree:I don't ban anything. We don't eat much junk but last night for the superbowl that's almost all we had :D

[Princess Peach]

Wow, I feel like such a slacker. :eek:

 

I don't "forbid" anything in my kitchen, unless we simply don't like the way it tastes (like margarine :ack2: -- we're butter people here!)

 

We don't eat things like frozen dinners, but again, it's a taste thing and not an "evil ingredients" thing.

 

We have friends who are very restrictive about what they'll eat, and everything has to be organic, with no preservatives, and the list goes on and on. I admire them for their dedication to a healthy diet, but I'm more of an "everything in moderation" person.

 

And yes, I am eating chips and drinking a Coke while I type this. But not the jumbo-sized bag or anything...

 

I am a bad, bad person. But thanks to my snacks, I'm not hungry or thirsty right now, so I consider that to be a good thing. ;)

 

Phew! I was beginning to think my kitchen was the seventh circle of h3ll! :D

 

We, too, use real butter. We also use real sugar. I stopped drinking Diet Pepsi and switched to regular. :001_smile:

 

We practice moderation around here.

[Parrothead]

For a long time, we try to avoid buying products with any hydrogenated vegetable oils. I am working on eliminating all sources of corn syrup, which means that I have been learning to make even more of my own stuff. Tonight I made homemade spaghetti sauce for the third time.

A couple of weeks ago I got some advice on the forum about how to cleanse my life of cream of bleck soups.

The next project is making homemade ranch dressing.

 

I also try to avoid products made with dried milk.

 

So really, other than buying canned tomatoes, canned tuna and salmon, canned black beans (because they are so hard to cook) and boxes of cereal, our food is homemade. OH, for pete's sake, I forgot the condiments that I buy. But I am learning--just give me a few more weeks.

If you are making homemade ranch dressing, you can cook up and freeze a pot of black beans from dried. ;)

 

Rinse the beans

Put them in a pot and cover with an inch or two of water

Cook until tender

Cool, drain and bag for the freezer.

 

You can add salt - you'll want more than you think to get them to taste good, and some onion and bell pepper.

Edited February 6, 2012 by Parrothead

[RoughCollie]

veal

gizzards

black beans - I *hate* the way they taste

imitation vanilla

grocery store dog food

[*********]

Phew! I was beginning to think my kitchen was the seventh circle of h3ll! :D

 

We, too, use real butter. We also use real sugar. I stopped drinking Diet Pepsi and switched to regular. :001_smile:

 

We practice moderation around here.

 

Well, we're not perfect by any stretch. And I do allow SOME HFCS, but I avoid it when I can. I took a college Nutrition couse last year, and learned about HFCS and how it's metabolized; that kinda ruined it for me, LOL.

 

In that regard, I wanted to mention that your regular Pepsi is sweetened with HFCS, not 'real' sugar. Which, IMO, is just as bad as any other 'fake' sweetener. Unless you're drinking the Throwback Pepsi; that has sugar instead of HFCS.

 

Not judging, just informing. :001_smile:

[Karen in CO]

My kitchen is a scary place for the uninitiated. There is NO:

 

Soy (allergies)

Shellfish (allergies)

Cinnamon (allergies)

HFCS (started with my corn allergy and spread to the rest of the family)

MSG in any of its strangely labeled forms

 

--wait I'm stopping at 5, right?

You also won't find a single marshmallow in my house. The cornstarch on them gets in the air too easily.

I'll go on.

GMO foods

BHT

Wheat bread

lunch meat treated with bacteriophages (yummy)

Milk from cows given hormones

chicken with added chicken flavor

tuna with broth added to it (read the label)

artificial sweeteners

anything with "spices" or "natural flavors"

pork that wasn't humanely raised

fish that wasn't wild caught in the ocean (local rivers test high for mercury)

I could continue but I have to go cook breakfast and make lunches.

Edited February 6, 2012 by Karen in CO

[Element]

MSG in any of its strangely labeled forms

 

 

 

WOW- I did not know that! Thank you for the informative link, Karen!

[SailorMom]

We're pretty laid back, and break our own rules sometimes, but as a general rule we try to avoid:

 

Trans-fats

pre-packaged bakery type snacks (i.e. Twinkies and such)

white flour (we occasionally use it, but hardly ever)

fake butter things

[Classical Country Mama]

We are TOTALLY a fake family. Sugar-free creamers, fat-free salad dressings, Diet Coke (just for me), skim milk, store-bought breads and lunchmeats, whatever the cheapest tub of yellow spreadable pretend butter is, etc.

 

I would LOVE to do natural things, mostly because it sounds like the kind of person I want to be. How do you do that?! We're already so fat (I just lost a bunch of weight but still have 20lbs to go); the idea of using sugar and fat terrifies me.

 

Otherwise, off-limits in my kitchen are:

 

1. Pepsi products

 

Actually, I think that's it.

[Dobela]

I hardly buy anything without reading labels. As more and more labels have more and more mystery chemical names and vauge 'natural seasonings', I make more and more from scratch at home.

 

1. MSG is the biggest here that I have to actively watch for in order to prevent its entrance. That stuff makes me sicker than sick. Add to that any thing hydrolized and well, that eliminates much more. However, dh likes his ramen nodles occassionally so those are bought occassionally. I just don't eat them. MSG in foods also means I am very careful about here I eat. My kids love Chik-Fil-A but nearly everything there except fries and drinks have MSG.

 

2.Because ds and I have dairy allergies, dairy products outside of cheese are rare. I can tolerate some cheeses. Dh will buy (or ask me to buy) his own milk sometimes.

 

3. I try to watch for anything artificially sweetened as aspertame will make me sick as well. However I will occassionally make koolaid for the kids as a rare treat.

 

4. HCFS is another. I hate finding it in crazy things - like tomato sauce.

 

5. Salt. I try to buy as much as possible that is low salt or no salt added.

[jujsky]

1. My MIL :D

2. Veal (I don't like the way the animals are treated before death)

3. Lamb because I think it tastes and smells gross

4. Fake sugar and margarine

 

That's about it. We fortunately have no food allergies/sensitivities here. We try to eat organic when we can, and are part of a local farm share that although not certified organic, practices sustainable agriculture.

Edited February 6, 2012 by jujsky

[happypamama]

In general, I try to avoid:

 

hydrogenated oils

high fructose corn syrup

soy

artificial colors/flavors

juice/soda

artificial sweeteners

 

None of us consume those things regularly, except for DH, who insists upon splenda in his homemade iced tea. He hates the aftertaste of stevia (though I like stevia just fine and use it myself and will occasionally make hot drinks for the kids that have stevia, whereas I don't want them consuming splenda or aspartame at all, ever), and splenda is the lesser of the evils (over aspartame).

 

I also don't worry too much about the occasional consumption of any of it. We don't eat large amounts of soy, but if I need an ingredient for occasional use that has some, eh, not the end of the world. If it's an ingredient we use frequently, or that is reasonable to pay a bit more for the non-HFCS version (like for ketchup, for instance), I'll buy the better one, but otoh, the pickles we bought for the burgers probably have artificial colors in them, and it's not the end of the world.