What’s Really in Your Food? A Deep Dive Into Food Quality

So I started digging deeper. I researched, questioned, and slowly began to uncover the truth: that real, high-quality, nutrient-dense food is foundational to health at a cellular level.

Over a short period of time, my body began to shift—physically and physiologically. My acne cleared. My energy returned. My mood lifted. My bloating and brain fog disappeared. For the first time in my life, I felt like myself—my mind became clearer and calmer, and I felt a genuine connection to my body. It was a transformative realization that for so long, I had been disconnected from the fundamentals of me.

This post is for anyone who’s ever wondered why they don’t feel their best—even when they think they’re doing everything right. Let’s take a deeper look at what’s really on your plate.

Why Organic Produce Matters

Most people assume fruits and vegetables are healthy by default—but how they’re grown plays a massive role in how they affect your health.

Conventional produce is often sprayed with a cocktail of synthetic pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides. One of the most notorious is glyphosate, a widely used herbicide linked to endocrine disruption, gut microbiome damage, and increased intestinal permeability (leaky gut). Over time, consistent exposure to these chemicals can burden your liver, disrupt your hormones, and inflame your immune system.

Your gut isn’t just where food is digested—it’s a core pillar of your immune system. In fact, about 70% of your immune cells reside in your gut lining, forming a critical defense barrier between your internal body and the outside world. When that lining becomes irritated or compromised by chemical exposure (like from pesticide residues), it can trigger chronic inflammation, autoimmune responses, and digestive distress.

Organic produce, on the other hand, is grown without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers. Choosing organic isn’t just about avoiding chemicals—it’s about protecting the delicate ecosystem of your gut, supporting your immune system, and reducing the overall toxic load on your body.

And there’s more: studies not only show that organic fruits and vegetables contain higher levels of antioxidants, polyphenols, and essential micronutrients compared to their conventional counterparts, but also that the very genetic makeup of conventional produce is often chemically altered or genetically modified. These changes don’t just impact the plant—they impact us. Genetically modified and chemically treated crops tend to be more nutrient-poor, and our repeated consumption of these altered foods can negatively affect our internal chemical balance, further disrupting hormones, digestion, and cellular communication over time.

When you eat organic, you’re not only avoiding harmful inputs—you’re increasing your intake of the very compounds that support healing, energy, and resilience at the cellular level.

Meat, Eggs & Dairy: It’s Not Just About Protein

When we think about meat, eggs, and dairy, most people reduce them down to one thing: protein. And yes, they are powerful sources of complete protein—but that’s only scratching the surface.

High-quality animal products offer an entire ecosystem of nutrients that are essential for optimal human health. These include healthy fats, cholesterol, bioavailable vitamins and minerals, and unique compounds that support everything from hormone production to immune resilience.

But just like produce, how these foods are raised matters deeply.

Let’s start with meat. Conventionally raised beef often comes from animals kept in feedlots, fed genetically modified grains, soy, or corn, and treated with antibiotics and growth hormones. These inputs alter the fatty acid profile of the meat itself—raising levels of inflammatory omega-6s while lowering protective omega-3s like DHA and EPA. In contrast, grass-fed and finished beef is naturally richer in omega-3s, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), vitamin E, zinc, iron, and B vitamins. These nutrients support everything from inflammation control to brain health and immune function.

Your body processes fats through your liver and gallbladder, two organs that play a central role in fat digestion and detoxification. Here’s how it works:

When you consume dietary fat, your liver produces bile, a substance made up of water, cholesterol, bile salts, and waste products like bilirubin. Bile is essential for breaking fats down into smaller molecules (emulsification) so your body can absorb and use them. This bile is stored in the gallbladder, which contracts and releases it into the small intestine when fat is detected in your meal.

Once in the intestine, bile emulsifies fat molecules, making them easier for digestive enzymes—like pancreatic lipase—to act upon. These enzymes then break fats down into fatty acids and glycerol, which your body can absorb and shuttle into cells for energy, hormone production, and cellular repair.

But here’s the critical part: not all fats are processed equally.
• Omega-3 fats (from grass-fed meat, wild-caught fish, pasture-raised eggs, and raw dairy) are anti-inflammatory and generally easier for the body to digest and assimilate.
• Omega-6 and omega-9 fats—especially those found in conventional meat and seed oils—are more likely to be oxidized, which creates stress on the liver and contributes to inflammation. These damaged fats can thicken bile and impair flow, leading to bile stasis (sluggish bile movement), impaired fat digestion, and even gallbladder issues over time.

If you’ve had your gallbladder removed, this process becomes even more complicated. Without the gallbladder to store and release bile on demand, the liver trickles bile continuously in small amounts—often not enough to fully digest a higher-fat meal. This makes it even more important to choose high-quality, easily digestible fats (like omega-3s) and to minimize your intake of processed, damaged, or high-omega-6 fats that can overwhelm your liver.

Over time, a diet rich in grass-fed, high-quality animal fats supports healthy bile flow, nourishes the liver, and promotes hormone production and fat-soluble vitamin absorption. In contrast, a diet high in oxidized, inflammatory fats can contribute to fatty liver disease, sluggish digestion, and systemic inflammation.

Now let’s talk eggs. Factory-farmed eggs are often laid by hens kept in cramped conditions and fed a low-quality, grain-based diet. The result? Nutrient-poor eggs with pale yolks and an imbalanced fat profile. Pasture-raised eggs, however, come from hens that forage freely and eat a natural diet. They contain higher levels of omega-3s, vitamin D, vitamin A, vitamin E, and choline—a vital nutrient for brain development, liver detox, and cellular function.

Lastly, there’s dairy. Much of the store-bought dairy in the U.S. has been ultra-pasteurized and stripped of its beneficial properties. Pasteurization kills not just potential pathogens—but also the natural enzymes and probiotics that make dairy digestible and healing. Raw dairy, where legal and accessible, offers bioavailable calcium, fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K2), beneficial bacteria, and digestive enzymes that actually support gut health, immune regulation, and hormone balance.

And here’s the thing: your hormones are built from the nutrients found in these foods. Your reproductive system, your thyroid, your adrenals, your brain—they all rely on cholesterol, saturated fat, B vitamins, iron, and other compounds found in high-quality animal products. When you eat poor-quality versions, your body is left to rebuild itself with inadequate materials.

So no—it’s not just about protein. It’s about what those proteins are packaged with. Are you feeding your body with inflammatory, hormone-disrupting inputs? Or with nutrients that regulate, heal, and support at a cellular level?

Not All Olive Oil Is Created Equal

Olive oil is often praised as one of the healthiest fats you can consume—and rightfully so. When sourced and processed correctly, it’s rich in monounsaturated fats, polyphenols, and antioxidants that support brain function, cardiovascular health, and inflammation regulation.

But here’s the problem: much of the olive oil on store shelves isn’t what it claims to be.

Many conventional olive oils—especially those labeled as “pure,” “light,” or even “extra virgin”—are cut with cheaper, lower-quality oils like soybean or sunflower oil. These blends may still carry the olive oil name, but they don’t provide the same health benefits—and worse, they may be inflammatory and heavily processed.

And it doesn’t stop there.

Even if a bottle is labeled “100% extra virgin,” if it’s not cold-pressed, stored properly, or sourced from a reputable producer, it may still be oxidized or rancid by the time it hits your plate. Exposure to high heat, light, or plastic leaching during processing or packaging breaks down the beneficial compounds in the oil—turning a once-nourishing fat into something that can burden the liver, promote inflammation, and disrupt your cellular health.

The truth is, most olive oils in the U.S. have been found to be fraudulent in some form. Studies from the University of California, Davis, have repeatedly shown that up to 70% of imported “extra virgin” olive oils on American shelves fail to meet basic quality and purity standards.

To protect your health and get the most out of this beautiful food, here’s what to look for:
• Cold-pressed: This means no heat was used in the extraction process, preserving antioxidants and minimizing oxidation.
• Dark glass bottle: Light exposure accelerates degradation. Dark glass helps preserve freshness.
• Harvest date and origin: Quality producers list when and where the oil was harvested. Look for a single-country origin, preferably from Italy, Spain, or Greece.
• Third-party certification: Seals like COOC (California Olive Oil Council) or PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) are signs of quality control and purity.

Olive oil is a staple in the Mediterranean diet for a reason—but only when it’s truly pure. Choosing a high-quality bottle of olive oil means you’re consuming a heart-healthy fat that reduces inflammation, protects your cells from oxidative damage, and supports your brain, hormones, and immune system.

Flour & Grains: Why Source and Processing Matter

Flour may seem simple—it’s just ground grain, right? But the truth is, not all flour is created equal. In fact, the way grains are grown, processed, and refined can make or break their impact on your health.

Let’s start with conventional white flour, the kind commonly found in breads, pastas, baked goods, and packaged snacks in the U.S.

This type of flour is typically:
• Made from genetically modified wheat
• Grown with heavy use of pesticides, including glyphosate, a known endocrine disruptor and probable carcinogen
• Highly refined, stripping away the bran and germ where most of the nutrients and fiber are found
• Then “enriched” with synthetic vitamins and minerals to make up for what was removed

The enrichment process may sound helpful, but it’s largely cosmetic. Synthetic nutrients like folic acid and iron are added back in forms that are less bioavailable to the body—and do not compensate for the loss of the natural vitamins, minerals, and fiber that were originally present in the whole grain. What you’re left with is a highly processed, nutrient-poor starch that spikes blood sugar, fuels inflammation, and contributes to gut dysbiosis, hormonal imbalances, and metabolic dysfunction.

Now contrast that with traditional Italian flour—like type 00 flour used in authentic European bread and pasta.

Italian wheat is often:
• Grown with stricter regulations around pesticides and glyphosate use (and in many cases, glyphosate is banned altogether)
• Derived from ancient or heritage wheat varieties that are lower in gluten and more digestible for many people
• Milled using lower-heat, slower methods that help preserve nutrient content
• Not enriched, because it hasn’t been stripped in the first place

This makes a world of difference in how your body responds. Many people who are sensitive to U.S. wheat products report feeling much better when eating bread or pasta made in Europe. That’s not a coincidence—it’s chemistry.

And it goes even deeper. Glyphosate, the common pesticide used on U.S. grains, has been shown to:
• Damage the tight junctions of the intestinal wall, contributing to leaky gut
• Disrupt the gut microbiome, reducing beneficial bacteria
• Burden the liver and detox pathways, especially when consumed frequently
• Interfere with enzyme pathways, hormone metabolism, and nutrient absorption

If you struggle with bloating, fatigue, skin issues, or irregular digestion after eating bread or pasta, it might not be “carbs” that are the issue—it might be the quality and source of your flour.

When possible, look for:
• Organic, stone-ground flour
• Heritage grain varieties like einkorn, emmer, or spelt
• Italian or European flour from reputable sources
• Products labeled “glyphosate-residue free” or certified organic

The more we learn about the gut-brain axis, hormone regulation, and inflammatory pathways, the clearer it becomes: every ingredient matters—even the ones we were taught to think of as “just carbs.”

Choosing better flour isn’t about restriction—it’s about real nourishment. It’s about giving your body what it needs to thrive, not just survive.

Why This All Matters

You can eat all the right macros—the perfect balance of carbs, fats, and protein—and still struggle with fatigue, brain fog, acne, digestive issues, or hormone imbalances. That’s because nutrition isn’t just about what you eat—it’s about the quality of how it was grown, raised, and processed.

Everything we put in our bodies either contributes to healing and vitality or adds to the burden our systems are already carrying. The pesticides on our produce, the hormones in our meat, the oxidized fats in our oils, and the synthetic additives in our grains may seem invisible—but their effects are not. Over time, they accumulate, quietly disrupting the very systems that keep us energized, focused, and resilient.

This isn’t about fear—it’s about informed choices. It’s about recognizing that our food environment has changed dramatically in the last 100 years—and our bodies are still designed to thrive on real, whole, unadulterated food.

And here’s what’s really empowering: when you start choosing higher-quality ingredients—organic produce, grass-fed and pasture-raised meats, raw or low-processed dairy, cold-pressed oils, and clean grains—your body notices. Your gut begins to heal. Your liver catches a break. Your hormones stabilize. Your mind becomes clearer. You gain energy, focus, and a deeper connection to your body. That’s the power of nourishment.

You don’t have to overhaul your life overnight. But when you start asking questions—Where did this come from? What’s actually in it? How was it made?—you begin to reclaim your power. And that awareness alone is the beginning of real, lifelong wellness.

The Bottom Line

Food is more than just calories—it’s communication. It speaks to your cells, your hormones, your gut, your brain. And every bite you take is either reinforcing health or slowly undermining it.

When you start paying attention to where your food comes from and how it’s grown, raised, and processed, you begin to see that health isn’t about restriction or perfection—it’s about reconnection. Reconnection to nature. To simplicity. To your body’s innate wisdom.

And when you feed your body the way it was designed to be fed, everything shifts. Your energy. Your mood. Your skin. Your digestion. Your sense of clarity and calm. You don’t need extremes. You need nourishment.

Ready to Understand What’s Really on Your Plate?

If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing everything “right” and still not feeling your best—this post was for you.

You deserve to feel energized, grounded, and confident in the choices you’re making for your body. And that starts with truly understanding what’s on your plate.

If you’re ready to take the guesswork out of healthy eating:

👉 Download my guide: Understanding Food Quality — a practical breakdown of how to choose better foods, spot misleading labels, and nourish yourself with clarity and intention.

👉 Book a 1:1 consultation to talk through your personal goals, symptoms, and create a plan that’s built for you.

Because it’s not just about eating “clean”—it’s about eating intentionally. And I’m here to help you do just that.