Originally Posted by
bokuseki
I found the food recommendations in this article very disturbing. Nutrition is not going to be found in frosted Pop-Tarts, instant oatmeal, peanut butter crackers, Ritz crackers, Mac-n-cheese, and most especially not in Kool-Aid. These recommendations are very irresponsible for an article meant for novice backpackers. Many people are not aware that these kinds of foods are in fact junk food, poisons, and should not be consumed at all, and certainly not on a long distance hike where nutritional quality of food is the most important consideration.
The human body needs quality, nutritious food in order to function well, especially in a physically demanding situation such as hiking for many miles a day. People in the American culture have been deceived by advertising and their taste buds into believing that the mainstream, mass-produced and packaged food offered in stores, with its crackers, sodas, sugar-coating and preservatives is going to supply one's body with the essential nutritional requirements it needs. It is a big lie, these companies' primary motivation is profit, not in feeding people good food. They package and sell "imitation" food, and tell people through clever advertising and packaging that the box of Mac-n-Cheese or Pop-Tarts they hold in their hands at the supermarket will give one what is needed to sustain life. And people believe it, and keep buying the products, and get sicker and sicker and don't understand why.
They believe it mainly because of one ingredient that is put in almost all of these foods: sugar. Refined sugar is actually a poison to the human body, but when eating it, the taste buds are tricked into thinking it is good, otherwise people wouldn't eat it. The sugar industry knows this, and has been continuing this scam for a long time, and companies put sugar in almost everything, including products some think as "healthy", such as fruit bars and granola mixes. Constant intake of refined sugar causes many physical and emotional problems, including chronic fatigue, stress and anxiety, and leads to worse diseases including heart disease and cancer. Sugar not only rots one's teeth, but puts a terrible burden on all of the internal organs, glands and muscles. Our bodies are complex, amazing machines that require food which has life-force in it, food that can help in the process of rebuilding and healing the cells in the body's structure. And sugar is a toxin that inhibits the body's ability to rebuild and heal itself.
I urge people who are going to hike the trail to consider buying foods that do not have any sugar, artificial flavorings, preservatives, or partially hydrogenated oil. Read the labels and simply don't buy those foods. By eating those foods, you are putting your health and survival at risk.
Some recommendations of foods that have high nutrition content and would be good for the trail are:
1) Spirulina Powder/Chlorella Powder
2) Maca Powder
3) Cacao Nibs
4) Goji Berries
5) Acai Powder
6) Matcha Green Tea Powder
7) Quinoa
8) Coconut Butter
9) Almond Butter
10) Raisins
11) Raw, unheated honey
12) Sunflower Seeds
and other dried fruits and nuts
All of these foods are lightweight, concentrated sources of good nutrition. The ones in powder form can be easily mixed with water in the amount you need.
Living green foods such as wheat grass, blue-green algae and chlorella, are probably the food most lacking in the diets of most people in the world, and are what the human body needs the most. Spirulina powder should be at the top of every hiker's list. More scientific research is coming out all the time on the benefits of this "food of the future." Only one teaspoon of this powder gives you the nutritional equivalent of more than a pound of raw green vegetables.
Quinoa is similar in consistency to rice, but is a complete protein. Wheat pasta just does not provide as much nutrition, nor does brown rice. Quinoa would also be the only thing I would cook. Cooking food destroys most of the nutritional properties of it, it is better for the body to take in food that is alive, has not been heated to high temperatures. Use Quinoa instead of oatmeal in the morning or as a substitute to pasta or rice in the evening. It cooks faster than either, and the seeds are more compact in your pack too. Adding some spices such as curry powder, cinnamon, garlic and ginger helps a lot.
All of these special foods can be ordered online, eBay is a great source to get good prices on bulk items.
I hope some of this info is useful to someone, and please spread the word that Pop-Tarts, Mac-n-Cheese, and Kool-aid are not recommended as suitable foods for hiking the trail.
I *think* Nutella is decently peanut safe, but I am uncertain. But eating vast quantities of chocolate hazelnut spread (which is very, very sweet) doesn't sound appealing to me for long.
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