No sugar added and hold the margarine, please!

Last week, I went to the doctor to discuss an infection that I was experiencing. (Nothing big just needed some medications.) The thing I like about this doctor is that she will actually sit down and talk with you. Rare now days, I know! She also is good about giving you somewhat more "natural" alternatives than the regular prescriptions. We got to talking about why I had been having certain issues. Among other things, she said that she has been doing a lot of research about today's average diet and sugar intake. She suggested that I cut back on my sugar and look for more foods with "no sugar added' and that were sweetened only with the natural sugar. (I.E. fruit juice) We also discussed at length about the artificial sweeteners. I've never really been a big fan because I have always heard about the risk associated with their use. But, I will say that I ignored most of these risks because they can aid in weight loss. I know, I sound shallow. Let me explain...

Before my wedding, I wanted to loss weight and get fit. Some of you will roll your eyes. (I got a lot of that.) But hear me out. I do have a point :) So, Clint and I began Weight Watchers and over 5 months I lost a significant amount of weight and felt like I was in great shape. I've always exercised weekly, but I really picked up my pace during those months. I learned how to portion my meals and eat more fruits and veggies. However, the thing I realize now is that I ended up choosing the "low fat, light, fat-free, sugar-free" options over everything else. While some of these products aren't terrible. Most of them take out the fat and replace it with sugar. And I was drinking tons of diet soft drinks. All of these have either Splenda or Aspartame as a sugar replacement. Again, like I said, there is tons of research that speaks to the dangers of aspartame. I didn't even realize how many foods it was in:
(http://www.sweetpoison.com/articles/0706/aspartame_symptoms_submit.html)

Also, we used a lot of spray butter and margarine. I now realize that spray butter is basically chemicals with butter flavor. And that margarine often contains poor-quality, refined, artificially saturated vegetable oil.

So, the question that I asked myself was: Is it more important to loss weight or be healthy (truly healthy)? Of course the answer to me is obvious. Sadly, to others it is not. Anyway, over the past week and a half I have bee doing some research on organic foods. I'm really liking what I've been reading. I keep coming back to this question: What's so wrong with the things people were eating back in the day? Why not just get back to the basics.

I know this is a rambling post. It's really just me getting my thoughts out there. Do I think I will start eating everything organic instantly. No. I don't foresee that occurring. Do I think that I will cut all sugar out of my diet? No, if I want a cookie I'm going to eat a cookie. But,what I will be doing and have been doing is cutting back on the sugars, eating more natural foods (butter, the real deal), and only allowing myself few sodas a week. I would say this is a pretty bold statement coming from the wife of a soda distributor.

I'm not a nutritionist and don't claim to be one. I'm just a girl searching for the road to a healthier way of living.