Ingredient Substitues: Sweetener, Flour, Oil & Dairy

Refined sweeteners and flours fall into the same category. Both do not contain any beneficial nutrients and they spike your blood sugar levels. Not only do they not provide nutrients to your body, they actually deplete your body of existing nutrients and cause your body to be more acidic. Both of sugar and white flour can:

• Increase your risk for high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, obesity, diabetes and high cholesterol
• Increase risk of some cancers and inflammatory disease, such as arthritis
• Increase risk of fatty liver disease
• Can cause fatigue, anxiety, hypoglycemic, and other health problems

Sweeteners (BAD):

• White Sugar
• Brown Sugar
• Agave
• HFCS (high fructose corn syrup)
• Sweet N’ Low
• Equal
• Healthy Alternatives :
• Coconut palm sugar
• Coconut palm nectar
• Stevia
• Xylitol 

Flours (BAD):

• White Flour
• Whole Wheat Flour
• Healthy Alternatives:
• Almond Flour
  
• Buckwheat Flour
  
• Quinoa Flour
  
• Rice Flour
  
• Chickpea Flour
  
• Coconut Flour
  
• Flax Seed Meal
  
• Other Nut Flours (Cup for Cup from William’s & Sonoma, Bob’s Red Mill’s Gluten-Free Flour)

Not all oils are the same! Each contains their own types of fats and should be used  and consumed in different ways. Industrial seed oils were not part of the human diet until relatively recently when the American Heart Association promoting them as heart healthy. 

Using polyunsaturated (omega 6) cooking oils causes inflammation in the body. Omega 3 fatty acids are anti-inflammation. The ideal ratio is 1:1 for Omega 6 to Omega 3 fats- the average American is currently consuming a 20:1 or 25:1 ratio. Omega 6 fats can be found in most packaged food products and almost all restaurants cook with these poor quality fats. Most of these oils are inexpensive because they are not good quality ingredients. 

Cooking Oil To Avoid:

• Vegetable oil
• Canola oil
• Sunflower oil
• Safflower oil
• Margarine

Healthy Alternatives:

• Expeller pressed coconut oil
• Organic Ghee (clarified butter)
• Organic grass-fed butter (for low-heat cooking)
• Grapeseed Oil
• Seasame Oil
• Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Avocado Oil

 Conventional dairy products are loaded with hormones and antibiotics. Since these cows are treated with antibiotics and hormones regularly when they are raised, we ingest them too. This is part of the reason why we are seeing a rise in hormone imbalances, infertility, and auto-immune conditions. Choosing organic dairy products is the only way to ensure that no antibiotics or hormones were used. Additionally, many people have a hard time breaking down the ‘lactose’ protein that is found in milk products. Using a dairy alternative is a great idea because some of your guests might be sensitive to dairy. 

Dairy Products to Avoid:

• Conventional cream
• Conventional cheese
• Conventional milk

Dairy Alternatives:

• Grass-fed cheese
• Goat’s cheese
• Sheep’s milk cheese
• Coconut milk/ Coconut Cream
• Unsweetened almond milk
• Hemp Milk