What I Learned Today....

Bagged lettuces are triple-washed in chlorine and are gassed (Modified Atmosphere Packaging- MAP, to remove oxygen), to extend their shelf-life.  YUK, this doesn't sound like a healthy way to get your greens.  And frankly a lot of the time when I look at the bagged lettuce they are brown so this gassing doesn't seem to always work.

Thank goodness I purchase whole Romaine lettuce, it's healthier and more cost effective.  If you can buy organic but I've found that the organic Romaine at Safeway doesn't last as long as the brand I purchase at Lucky's.  I don't believe it's organic but maybe the vinegar tip below will help me with any pesticides until I can find a good cost effective organic lettuce.

I cut up my lettuce at the beginning of the week.  Wash it, spin it dry in the salad spinner and then store it in the refrigerator in the spinner.  It keeps longer than any other method I've used.  I did read this from Gorgeously Green, about how to keep it fresh.  I think I'll try adding vinegar to the wash.  Here is what I read "I wash mine in a sink full of cold water with a little white vinegar. The key is then to dry it really well. A good investment is a high quality salad spinner! Only if it's dry, will it keep crisp. I then keep it in a resealable plastic bag, in which I place one square of recycled kitchen towel - this absorbs any excess moisture. Also be sure to re-use the bag. I get at least 10-12 uses out of every new bag I pull out of the box."
As people trying to live a healthier life this is something that should either not be sold or should be written on the bags of lettuce letting us know what we are really eating and what long term side effects eating chlorine and what is it actually being "gassed" with so we know what other chemicals we are putting into our bodies.

Let's get back to what our grandparents use to eat and I guarantee it was gassed chlorine washed lettuce.

On a similar topic, I signed the petition today addressed to the president to revamp TSCA (Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976) so that the most dangerous chemicals are phased out or banned outright and that others are tested and regulated accordingly, all the while ensuring the public's right-to-know about the safety and use of chemicals in everyday products. Also, the coalition is calling for federal funding to expand research into greener alternative chemicals to replace those with known health hazards.  Check out  http://www.saferchemicals.org/ . Upwards of 80,000 chemicals commonly used in the United States have never been fully assessed for toxic impacts on human health and the environment.  This is a problem. 

Sign the petition and then lets stop purchasing (or better yet importing) products that contain cancer causing chemicals, when we know they exist.