By Lauren Levin, Health Coach @ EMBODY Wellness Company. Follow Lauren @wellroundedmama for so many ways to upgrade your routines, clean up your ingredients and boost your overall wellbeing!
Upgrade your Valentine’s Day: EMBODY Wellness Style
This year I am looking forward to Valentines Day, mostly because I have nothing else to do these days!!! I will take any excuse to cook, craft and celebrate with my family. This year my kids and I will be baking black bean brownies and grain-free chocolate chip cookies.
Although I prefer to make my desserts from scratch so I can use healthy ingredients like maple syrup versus refined sugar, I definitely splurge sometimes on store bought candy and treats. When I do, I try my best to avoid conventional candy and opt for healthier – less toxic, organic options. Navigating the candy isle can be extremely overwhelming, so I have included a quick and easy “ingredients to avoid” list as well as my favorite Valentines Day candy swaps below.
Ingredients to Avoid List
????artificial flavors – made from cheap toxic chemicals derived from petroleum, along with solvents, emulsifiers, flavor modifiers, preservatives that aren’t labeled, so you don’t know what you’re really ingesting
????artificial colors (like Red 40 and Blue 1) – also derived from petroleum, these dyes are linked to hyperactivity in children and some cancers
????Growth Hormones – Unless it’s certified organic, much of the dairy in chocolate comes from conventionally raised cows raised with synthetic hormones that are banned in other countries and linked to an increased risk of cancer
???? BHT- A preservative linked to cancer
Favorite Healthy Valentine’s Day Candy Swaps
- Instead of Hershey Bars, try Hu Kitchen Vegan Chocolate Bars or Pacari Chocolate Bars
- Instead of truffles, try Alter Ego Chocolates
- Instead of Dum Dum’s, try Yum Earth Organic LolliPops
- Instead of fruit snacks, try Black Forest Organic Gummy Hearts & Bears
- Instead of Granola Bars, try Made Good Valentines Day Bars
- Instead of M&Ms, try Unreal Chocolate Gems
Wishing everyone a safe and happy Valentines Day.
What’s your favorite way to celebrate Valentine’s Day? #valentinesday #healthycandy #chocolate #candy #organiccandy
