STOP!!!

Please. Stop whatever you are doing right now. Have you stopped yet???

Now, get on Netflix.com and add Food, Inc. to your Instant Queue. Now watch it. And then watch it again. And then promise yourself to "be the change." (Although I am happy that I started making changes in my life BEFORE I watched this film...)

Now that you've watched it... does your chest feel tight? Are you sick to your stomach? Are you ready to sprint to Whole Foods Market, to your local farmer's market, or even to your backyard to plant your own garden???

The wonderful Food, Inc. people have a few recommendations for you...

1. Stop drinking sodas and other sweetened beverages. You can lose 25 lbs in a year by replacing one 20 oz soda a day with a no calorie beverage (preferably water).

2. Eat at home instead of eating out. Children consume almost twice (1.8 times) as many calories when eating food prepared outside the home. (Let's not EVEN get started on how many more calories adults are eating when they eat outside of the home. If you are going to eat out, try a local restaurant serving local food. We are heading to Margot Cafe for my birthday dinner.)

3. Bring food labeling into the 21st century. (Head to Takepart.com for more information.) Half of the leading chain restaurants provide no nutritional information to their customers.

4. Tell schools to stop selling sodas, junk food, and sports drinks. Over the last two decades, rates of obesity have tripled in children and adolescents aged 6 to 19 years.

5. Meatless Mondays - go without meat one day a week. An estimated 70% of all antibiotics used in the United States are given to farm animals. (Sam and I have committed to eating grass-fed beef and chicken and wild caught fish. We are also going Meatless several days a week.)

6. Buy organic or sustainable food with little or no pesticides. According to the EPA, over 1 billion pounds of pesticides are used each year in the U.S. (We are eating about 80% organic now! And I am always looking for the non-GMO project seal on my food. To learn more about GMOs, visit the Institute for Responsible Technology and learn all about Monsanto and their introduction of the genetically modified soybean.)

7. Protect family farms; visit your local farmer's market. Farmer's markets allow farmers to keep 80 to 90 cents of each dollar spent by the consumer. (If you live in Nashville, join me and Sam on May 7th from 9-12 at http://www.woodbinefarmersmarket.com/. Local and organic is the way to be this summer!)

8. Make a point to know where your food comes from - READ LABELS. The average meal travels 1500 miles from the farm to your dinner plate. (I've read more labels this week than anything else. With the exception of "Goodnight Moon" and "Baby Happy, Baby Sad." Eli loves those books.)

9. Tell Congress that food safety is important to you. Each year, contaminated food causes millions of illnesses and thousands of deaths in the U.S. (Try not to cry as you watch Food, Inc. and listen to the woman who lost her 2.5 year old to E Coli poisoning from infected beef.)

10. Demand job protections for farm workers and food processors, ensuring fair wages and other protections.

I'm starting here.