Steps To a Healthy Kitchen

Just as with so many other new things, the first step to start this nutritional program is the most challenging. The following are specifics to get started.

Step One:
Clean out your refrigerator. Make room in your like and kitchen for healthy foods. Throw away the high stress, empty "foods" listed in the "Strive to Avoid" tables. Make a grocery list. For every item thrown away, replace it with a wholesome substitute. For example.

Throw Away Replace With;

White bread - Whole grain bread
Frozen pizza with chemicals - Pizza with whole grain crust, no preservative
Sugar cookies - Whole grain Fruit juice cookies
Canned fruit - Fresh fruit
Commercial eggs - Fertile yard eggs
Soft drinks - Bottled juices organic lemonade hibiscus cooler
Shortening - Grape seed canola
Potato chips - Baked chips, toasted pita
Ice cream - Organic fruit sorbet, soy, rice dream
Processed cheese - Organic feta, low fat goat cheese, raw milk cheese
Coffee - Herbal teas
Boxed breakfast cereals - Organic whole grain cereals
Bacon - Non pork no nitrate bacon
Roasted salted nuts - Sun flower pumpkin seeds soy nuts
*Raisins - Organic raisins
Iodized salt - Real salt sea salt

*Steinman identifies commercial raisins as a red light food, that is, they are quite laden with toxins and chemicals. Raisins are a major food for children at home as well as in preschool and school lunches.

This exercise in substitution and replacement keeps you from doing without food and makes the transition easier. It is an essential step, particularly if you have a family. In time, you will think of other items that you want to replace.

Step Two:

Plan a week's menu. Avoid repetition.

Step Three:

Go shopping. Buy the items that you need to replace those you have thrown out.Proteins for non-vegetarians may include several kinds of fresh fish, shrimp, squid, organic chicken, game birds, buffalo burgers, several varieties of seeds, several varieties of sprouts, yard eggs, a few raw nuts (almonds), organic turkey roast, organic feta cheese, organic goat cheese, low fat cottage cheese, tahini, miso, tofu and tempeh.If possible, buy only organic vegetables. A second consideration is to buy vegetables in season rather than those imported from abroad. The same principles apply to a fruit.Vegetables may include a little of everything from the fresh produce department. Carrots, celery, bok choy, romaine lettuce, bib lettuce, red lead lettuce, cucumber, tomato, onion, garlic, parsley, green beans, green and red cabbage, green and red bell peppers, asparagus, beets with tops, chard, Brussels sprouts, kale, collards or spinach.