Adulterated!

When I was younger, hearing stories about adulterated masalas was not uncommon. There were always suspicions that lal mirch is adulterated with red brick particles to increase quantity, or something even worse- dhania powder adulterated with dried dung! The other popular one was that the doodhwala mixes chalk powder in water to make it look milky. So what does the urban middle class do about it? We switch to packaged masalas and milk made by huge corporations and we just pray to God that these corporations have a conscience and obligation to act responsibly. There is very little beyond this that a common man can do. However, it seems like a lot of stupid people mistook this as the common man's weakness. They forgot that we the consumers still have the most powerful tool of asking the right questions and making the right choice. But for that we need to know the source of adulteration- it can be as easily identifiable as an injection or pesticide spray which we can find out about by paying a visit to the farm that the local sabziwala gets his produce from or something as conspicuous as a modified gene!


News and journals are full of food adulteration cases exposed. Use of cheap Oxytocin to increase milk production in cattle, calcium carbide to ripen mangoes, adulterated ghee, ketchup, sugar, turmeric and so on. The list is endless. So much so that we can't even satisfy our sweet tooth without putting our nervous systems at risk because the chandi ka wark on our mithai could well be sheets of thinly pressed aluminium! A part of my mind thinks that these could be concoctions of some very imaginative journalists' brains to scare the common man. But the other part knows that these scenarios are very much possibile and that the health of my family is in my hands. And if there are steps that I can take to ensure there is no "poison on our platters", I would do it and save myself the paranoia.

The most important step to eating healthy is to be mindful of what we eat. A lot of our snacking, especially in front of the idiot box is mindless eating. It's really important to know what we are eating and only then can we worry about where it's coming from. The next thing to think about is how real is the food that we're consuming. So cow's milk vs soy milk, eggs vs egg substitute, cane sugar vs aspartame laden sugar free substitute, fresh juice vs canned juice are some good examples of real vs fakes. I feel the real deal is always more nutritious, great in taste, cheaper to afford and much less likely to be adulterated since it is abundantly available in nature.

Another great way to eat healthy is to opt for local or organic food. Those who live in suburbs where farms are easily accessible can purchase their produce straight from the farm. It's a great way to ensure that your food is fresh and leaves minimal carbon footprint and it is also an opportunity to directly interact with the farmers and learn about their farming practices. For those who don't have this option, almost every metropolitan city in India has come up with some great organic stores selling certified organic grains, spices, produce and dairy. But I think the best option, if your resources allow, is to have your own kitchen garden and grow your own food!

Eat Real!