[Smalmslobby]

I know that the whole trend in the last few years in the US has been all about eating natural/going organic etc, but does anyone here worry about eating processed foods? I just saw a study that showed that people who consume diet soda have a 2x increased chance of getting a stroke, and there is always talk (valid or not) about aspartame causing different kinds of cancer or having other negative impacts on health (slows metabolism, etc). High Fructose Corn Syrup seems to be another one I hear a lot of people say that we nee to avoid.

It seems like a lot of people attribute the rise in cancer rates in the US to increased consumption of unnatural chemicals through processed foods. The rise in chronic heart burn and osteoporosis is seen by many as a result of a pH imbalance caused by not eating too much meat/grains/sugar and not enough fresh fruits and vegetables.

I don't have a clue about much of this stuff since I'm no doctor, but it has led me to start skipping the oreos (in favor of my own freshly baked cookies), start buying whole-grain bread that has all-natural (no high fructose corn syrup) ingredients, and foregoing cereal in favor of a home-made fruit smoothie for breakfast. Cancer doesn't run in my family, but it still concerns me to look at the back of some food items and read all of the synthetic chemicals found in them.

I haven't cut anything out completely, and I still drink diet coke occasionally, eat foods with HFCS, and eat a lot of meat/probably not enough veggies, but I think that the changes I have made are more or less for the better.

Does anyone else worry about all of this diet related stuff or do you think it is all BS? A marketing ploy to get people to pay more? Or is it a legitimate concern?