Chocolate .... whats not to love?
I remember all too well being told to cut out dairy, wheat, alcohol, coffee and worst of all chocolate, when I was breastfeeding Maisie. She had bad eczema and apparently these are all foods that can contribute to causing this skin problem.
Never in my life was there a time that I was so conscious of what I was eating. Parenting is hard work, and we deserve to let ourselves have some treats. I was determined I would find a substitute. I searched all through the supermarket isles for a replacement and finally found Green and Blacks Dark chocolate. Hallelujah!
I also discovered how many nasties are in our everyday supermarket chocolate bars. Mainly anti caking agent...
What are Anti-Caking agents you ask and why are they in chocolate?
Anti-caking agents are small chemicals that absorb moisture and prevent other compounds from sticking together. You will find them in added to many household foods such as table salt. They often contain aluminium, such as sodium alumino-sicate, alumino-calcium silicate and aluminum silicate. It's now known how toxic aluminium can be to our bodies and high levels can cause kidney damage.
It’s also quite scary that because anti-caking agents are an ingredient in chocolate chips, when added to make up a product you may never actually see it included in the ingredients list.
Here’s an example from a popular chocolate bar.
Milk, sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, vegetable fats (palm, shea) emulsifiers (E442, E476) flavourings.
Firstly don’t get me started on the Palm oil... have you seen that photo of the starving orangutan.. I will never forget.
I generally stay well clear of anything with an E number before it. In particular the above number E442 is the anti-caking agent.
Flavourings... what are they?
In New Zealand and Australia anti-caking agent is often added as it helps to keep the chocolate from melting in our hotter temperatures. Occasionaly you may find melted chocolate on the inside of our Chocolate Chip Lactation cookies. We think it’s a small price to pay for providing the best quality chocolate for you and your baby without the added nasties.
(I just lick it off the bag .. sshhh)
The best way to ensure you're eating the safest chocolate possible is to buy quality organic chocolate or look for ingredients that contain only organic choc chips like our Choc Chip Lactation Cookies .https://totallydevoted.co.nz/collections/cookies/products/feeding-cookies-with-dark-chocolate
Another really great alternative is raw chocolate. There are some great companies making this now such as Pana Chocolate... (The cherry and vanilla is to die for) https://panachocolate.com/
Or Girl MadeChocolate
https://girlmadechocolate.com.au/
Raw Chocolate is a quality, pure product when combined with other fruits and nuts it makes a delicious and nutrient dense treat.