Not a diet
So, for the new year I decided to give up purchasing items from China, or containing corn syrup.
I tried a year of avoiding Chinese products once before, for human rights reasons. It is incredibly difficult to buy hair ties, headbands and the like, except from China. Same for children's shoes. I don't count buying a chinese-made product at a thrift store, but I could be hard pressed the next time the kids feet grow.
An interesting side note - my 5th grader listed as one of his life goals to "sue a crap chinese factory." (He also listed as a goal "learn how to build a bomb and detonate it." Maybe not the best life goal to list for the school project.)
But it's the corn syrup avoidance that is really hard. High Fructose Corn Syrup is not produced by the farmer down the road, but by the large agribusiness companies. I doubt that my neighbor gets much added income from the extensive use of HFCS. I've seen some debate about the health aspect of it. And man, it's in everything. I don't like "homemade" hot cocoa, and every brand I've checked at the store has corn syrup in it. My eating habits have changed, and mostly, it's just getting more expensive. But I've been getting to try a lot of lesser-known soda brands as I seek out my root beer fix. I suppose that's good, that I'm supporting the smaller businesses. I certainly drink less since it's harder to find and pricey.
We will see if there is any real change in body size or health over this year. (Of course, if I'd actually exercise, then maybe I could expect some changes.)
I tried a year of avoiding Chinese products once before, for human rights reasons. It is incredibly difficult to buy hair ties, headbands and the like, except from China. Same for children's shoes. I don't count buying a chinese-made product at a thrift store, but I could be hard pressed the next time the kids feet grow.
An interesting side note - my 5th grader listed as one of his life goals to "sue a crap chinese factory." (He also listed as a goal "learn how to build a bomb and detonate it." Maybe not the best life goal to list for the school project.)
But it's the corn syrup avoidance that is really hard. High Fructose Corn Syrup is not produced by the farmer down the road, but by the large agribusiness companies. I doubt that my neighbor gets much added income from the extensive use of HFCS. I've seen some debate about the health aspect of it. And man, it's in everything. I don't like "homemade" hot cocoa, and every brand I've checked at the store has corn syrup in it. My eating habits have changed, and mostly, it's just getting more expensive. But I've been getting to try a lot of lesser-known soda brands as I seek out my root beer fix. I suppose that's good, that I'm supporting the smaller businesses. I certainly drink less since it's harder to find and pricey.
We will see if there is any real change in body size or health over this year. (Of course, if I'd actually exercise, then maybe I could expect some changes.)