The old adage Waste Not Want Not still stands strong. This doesn’t mean you have to be frugal or completely deprive yourself of the things you desire but maintaining a mindset of conscious living can really change things up in your household, and for the better. There is so much unnecessary waste surrounding us including food waste. Just look around you. So many people are wasteful, and it’s possible they don't even know it. For example, the vast majority of consumers have come to accept the use of plastic bottles for fresh water—it’s been estimated that 80 million plastic bottles are tossed away daily. In addition, one hundred million trees are cut down annually for junk mail that rarely gets opened or read. Need more evidence? The number of aluminum Americans throw away could be used to rebuild our commercial air fleet every three months. All of these facts are supporting proof that we are depleting resources faster than we can produce them or properly dispose of them.
But there’s no need to feel helpless. While you may not be able to control everything that goes on in the world around you, you can control your own actions, especially inside your home. On average, 133 billion pounds of food are wasted annually. That’s approximately $161 billion worth of food, meaning that 14% of the food purchased by an average American household is food waste. You don’t have to fall into this category. Start your own personal movement and learn how to make your lifestyle more environmentally friendly, starting with less food waste.
Eating is a necessity. Regardless of what nationality or religion you are, everyone must eat to survive. Many are conscious about what they eat, but not too many people are conscious of what they waste. Take a good look into your garbage can. Odds are you’re producing a fair bit of food waste that could instead be going towards a good cause – your health. The melon rinds from breakfast, unfinished apples from your lunch, or that chicken carcass from dinner can all be reused for other dishes and meals if you just knew how to do it. Scraps like these can be used to help you eliminate household food waste, lower your grocery bill, and conjure up some unique and healthy recipes.
You probably never realized how healthy those eggshells are that you regularly throw in the trash can. In fact, eggshell calcium may be one of the best natural sources of calcium available. The calcium found in eggshells is easy to absorb and digest and contains 27 additional trace elements. Any type of egg will work—chicken, goose, duck, or quail—but it’s important to only use organic egg shells. If the animal is lacking in nutrients, the eggshells will be, too. One regular eggshell yields about 750–800 mg of calcium—they are potent—and you don’t want to take more than necessary as there could be harmful effects. It’s important to thoroughly research potential negative effects prior to beginning any new nutritional regime.
Juicing is amazing! You receive a huge amount of nutrients from this good habit. But have you noticed that the amount of food waste generated from juicing? There’s a fair amount of unused pulp and skin left behind that is rich in fiber and natural sweetness. Don’t toss out this precious material! Placing 1 cup of pulp per 1 ½ cups of flour can enrich your favorite muffin recipe with flavor and nutrients.
Hands down, broccoli and cauliflower pack a tremendous health punch. But you know what’s even more nutritious? Their stalks. You know, the ones you usually dispose of as food waste? There are a multitude of ways to incorporate vegetable stalks into your diet. You can slice them into chips for dipping, spiralize them into veggie spaghetti, find a great recipe to make your own veggie nuggets, or use them for coleslaw.
Watermelon is enjoyed in many households during the summer season. All these years, you’ve probably only been enjoying the juicy center and tossing the rinds straight into the garbage. But did you know this apparent food waste is actually edible, too? The rind is full of many immune building nutrients including vitamin C. It can be shredded and used in stir fries, pickled for salads, or simply eaten as is.
Usually, there are some leftover fruit scraps whenever you’re dicing up pineapple or melon, or simply making a fruit salad. What we suggest is making smoothie bags using these little fragments. Place the odd bits into a freezer bag along with a banana and some greens. When it's time for a delicious nutrient-dense smoothie, place the contents into a blender along with some nut butter and liquid of your choice. Not only are you reducing food waste, you’re saving on preparation time for your next smoothie, possibly making your morning routine a bit easier.
Those brown bananas? They make the best natural sweeteners for your desserts! The almost spoiled raspberries and strawberries? They add some nutrition to your brownies, breads, cakes, and muffins. Almost any fruit that is only slightly past its prime can be used for cooking. Bruised apples? They make the best applesauce, a great topping for oatmeal, and a super side for pork chops. Rethink what you consider trash!
Studies have shown the zest from an orange, lemon, or lime contains many nutrients and disease-fighting phytochemicals. Don’t mistake these gems as food waste. For a refreshing zest full of fiber, use them in smoothies, or as a yogurt, ice cream, or cottage cheese topping. Why not grate them over salads, sandwiches, and grains. You can get creative here, the options are endless.
The bones from many types of meat make up a great deal of our food waste, so we might as well get the most out of them. Before you toss away your rotisserie chicken bones, consider the fact that you can make an entire delicious meal from something you’re about to dispose of. Fill a pot with water, add the carcass with some veggies, such as carrots, celery, and onions, and let them simmer for a few hours. You’ll find that the flavor that comes from this process is far better than any store-bought broth, and it has zero preservatives. The resulting broth will also be extremely high in minerals, and rich in calcium, magnesium, potassium, and phosphorus.
When you become conscious about your food waste, you’ll never look back. You’ll immediately see health benefits where they once didn’t exist. Your waste from food will decrease. You’ll begin eating with a cause and using every element of your food for a useful purpose. You should take every opportunity to enhance your meals and make them as nutritious as possible.
A healthy diet is important for everyone, and a key element in your recovery from Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome (AFS). A food-based approach can help remove some of the stress that has been placed on the adrenals. The adrenal fatigue diet is a well-balanced nutrient-dense regime that includes protein-rich foods, healthy fats, vegetables, and whole grains. The diet promotes proper functioning of your adrenal glands as well as healthy blood pressure, and aims to naturally increase your energy levels.
Adopting a healthy lifestyle that includes a nutritious diet will make you feel better both physically and mentally. However, if you suffer from AFS, your body is often under duress and highly sensitive to certain foods. Any diet changes should be discussed with a healthcare practitioner who specializes in nutrition and introduced slowly.
Life is busy and maybe at this point in time, you aren’t able to process all of your food waste. Don’t fret! There are many ways to live a waste-free lifestyle:
Glass containers from peanut butter, sauces, and jams can be reused to hold and transport food or used for drinking.
Cut napkins and paper towels out of the equation and go for cloth versions instead;
This way you not only eliminate tags, hangers, and more unnecessary packaging, but you reuse what would have been tossed
When you live consciously, you don’t have to sacrifice luxury. You’re just making smarter consumer choices and eliminating your carbon footprint. Your household can feel great about sending less waste to the already overflowing landfills.
Yes, those who suffer from Adrenal Fatigue can benefit greatly from learning how to get the most out of their food. By enriching every bite of food eaten with nutritious elements from food waste, sufferers of AFS can strengthen their adrenals for a quicker recovery.
