I thought I did. Wow was I wrong.
Today I was at Target and they had this marked down to a great price. I was about to stock up and buy three when I stopped to look at the ingredients. Now, I've bought this brand before, they sell them in Whole Foods. I've only bought it once before. I looked at the ingredients on this flavor. I wasn't thrilled about the corn- it made me hesitate, it wasn't organic. Also, it didn't say non-gmo and that is super important. ANd the cheese wasn't organic either, or rBST free. But then I noticed the carrageeenan. I remembered that yesterday I got an email from Dr. Mercola about MSG being the silent killer and that companies are allowed to put MSG under other names in ingredients lists. They do this because people are on the look out for MSG, mainly those who are "allergic." Carrageenan isn't MSG itself but he said it could either contain or create MSG. Hmmm, interesting. I wanted to know more.
I searched further and found this.Here is an excerpt:
Carrageenan is a commonly used food additive that is
extracted from red seaweed by using powerful alkali
solvents. These solvents would remove the tissues
and skin from your hands as readily as would any acid.
and
IS CARRAGEENAN REALLY NATURAL?So, after I learning about that I am totally bummed and grossed out- just that a seemingly innocent "natural" food company would have something like that. I was curious about GMO's. I found several things but this was interesting:
Carrageenan is about as wholesome as monosodium glutamate
(MSG), which is extracted from rice, and can equally be
considered natural. Aspartame (NutraPoison) is also natural,
as it is extracted from decayed plant matter that has been
underground for millions of years (oil). So too are many
other substances such as carrageenan that can also be
classified by FDA and USDA as wholesome and natural
food additives.
1. The lifespan of ladybugs (ladybirds) was reduced to half when they ate aphids that had fed on genetically altered potatoes in Scotland, according to a London Times article (10/22/97) by Science Editor, Nigel Hawkes.
The ladybugs also laid fewer eggs. Note that the ladybirds did not even eat the genetically modified food directly, as we are doing now. They ate something ELSE that had eaten the GMOs. The danger lived on in the food chain. For more information.
This made me more adamant about only eating meat that has been fed an organic grain/grass diet. Finley doesn't eat meat but if I eat a steak that has eaten GMO corn, perhaps he will be affected through my breastmilk. Ugh!
Needless to say I put back the "Peas of Mind"
Everywhere I turn there is something to be else aware of. Hopefully, this Earth Day has taught each person a little something about the things we are doing wrong. Not just to our atmosphere, our water, or our landfills but our selves, our bodies, and the bodies of our children's children, the lady bugs, the bees, and butterflys- the birds and even the dirt. And it is so overwhelmingly difficult to keep track of everything we have to look out for in our modern world!
