Since I entered the holistic health space about 10 years ago, I have heard a variety of comments regarding assumptions about what I do to stay healthy. “You must be vegetarian,” or “You obviously don’t drink wine or coffee,” or “that must suck not being able to eat bacon,” etc. Well, guess what! I’m not vegetarian, I do enjoy my wine and coffee, and I absolutely love bacon!
I have learned over the years how to make my healthy habits part of my lifestyle and it’s made a huge impact on my overall health. It’s all about food quality and moderation! One of the easiest strategies that I always recommend to my clients (because it has been so helpful for me) is to make food swaps. Coconut wraps instead of Whole wheat wraps, Organic Pasture-Raised eggs instead of conventional eggs, Organic produce instead of pesticide-sprayed produce, Almond milk instead of whole milk… Make sense? I could go on and on with my list but my point is that making swaps in your diet rather than completely eliminating any particular food may help you follow a healthier way of living.
So is there such a thing as healthy wine? I’m thrilled to say, yes! I’ve loved red wine for years but never loved how I would feel the following day. After researching the detrimental effects of drinking wine I began cutting back and felt guilty any time I had a glass. Did you know the grapes used to make wine in the United States are one of the highest sprayed crops? Years ago I began seeking out wines from organically-grown grapes because it meant no synthetic pesticides, fungicides, insecticides or fertilizers. Woohoo, I found the answer! Well, not exactly…
Have you ever heard of glyphosate? It’s the active ingredient found in Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide and it should NOT be used on organic wine. However, a recent test found every organic wine tested had levels of glyphosate. This is a pretty in-depth topic so if you’re interested, check out Dr. Mercola’s article here.
Now, for the good news! I finally found my healthy wine swap option in 2016 and it comes from the company Dry Farm Wines. This wine gets rid of all the junk while providing the delicious taste of wine that I love. All of the wines are sugar-free (less than 1g/L), low sulfites (less than 75ppm), mycotoxin/mold-free, organic or biodynamic, no additives, and are even allowed on a Paleo or Keto diet. I’m so grateful to have found this company and if you love wine like me you can try it here for only a penny!
