Food Inc changed my life.

I have been sick for the last few days and during that time I didn't eat much food. I really didn't have much of an appetite. When I do have an appetite, my husband and I usually turn to bread and cheese from the deli for a late dinner. Protein, like chicken and turkey only find their way in to our diets about 3 times during the week, this partially due to watching the much publicized "Food, Inc." Although I was never a big red meat eater, Food, Inc had a huge impact on my life. As a semi-crunchy mama to a hungry toddler, I had my fair share of stops through the drive-thru window at McDonald's for french-fries and chicken nuggets, but knowing what I was allowing my son to put in to his body, makes me upset for being naive and angry at the corporations that are allowed to "create" food the way they do. It just doesn't seem right to me that they have so much control over not only the food that they produce, but much of what is put in to grocery markets all over the country. For this reason alone, my family has decided free range, grass fed, non-antibiotic, organic chicken is the only chicken allowed to enter our bodies.

Although the younger generation of parents I surround myself with completely understands this lifestyle change, try explaining this to the generation of parents that came before us. My family has been committed to eating organic since 2007, and during that time, I always new my own mom wondered what all the fuss was about. Why spend more money on product that looks the same. Well, I had my mom and dad sit down to watch Food Inc., and although they were interrupted multiple times by my son, I'm pretty sure they walked away feeling different about where food really comes from. It's hard to watch the many scene's of slaughter houses, chicken houses and cruel conditions and still want to eat a McDonald's hamburger.

I think with may of the small changes I see my own peers making with their families, we may even see a small impact on the larger food corporations, but may not see the big change that is needed during our lifetime. What I can guarantee is that I educate my own family about healthy alternatives that we can eat without worrying about the affects on our bodies.