We live in a world where our food is making us sick, tired, and overweight. Big Food brands design their packaged products to be addictive, so we over consume unhealthy ingredients, including cheap additives that are banned in other countries. Product labels are deceiving, hiding risky chemicals that contaminate our food and tout approval from organizations we’re led to believe are protecting our health, but in reality are doing anything but that. 

On today’s Broken Brain Podcast, our host Dhru talks to Vani Hari, the revolutionary food activist behind foodbabe.com, co-founder of organic food brand Truvani, New York Times best selling author of, The Food Babe Way, and Feeding You Lies. She has led campaigns against food giants like Kraft, Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, Subway and General Mills that attracted more than 500,000 signatures, and led to the removal of several controversial ingredients used by these companies. Through corporate activism, petitions, and social media campaigns, Vani and her Food Babe Army have become one of the most powerful populist forces in the health and food industries. 

Her drive to change the food system inspired the creation of her new company, Truvani, where she produces real food without added chemicals, products without toxins, and labels without lies. Vani has been profiled in the New York Times and The Atlantic, and has appeared on Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, CNN, The Dr. Oz Show, The Doctors, and NPR. 

In this episode, Dhru and Vani talk about tactics used by the food industry, scientists, and the media to disguise the unnecessary harms in our food supply. They discuss the many food companies selling similar products overseas with healthier ingredients, and why the food industry doesn’t remove these ingredients from their American products. Vani also shares her advice for reading food labels, including the top things we need to look out for, and what it means when a product includes “natural flavors.”

In this episode, we dive into: 

-Vani’s personal health journey that led her to food activism (4:22)

-The prevalence of harmful food additives and chemicals in our food supply (11:08)

-Individual responsibility vs governments role when it comes to our food choices (18:09) 

-How Starbucks removed controversial ingredients in their pumpkin spice latte (20:05)

-Three question to train your mind to eat real food (33:49)

-How Vani consulted with Chick-fil-A to change the ingredients in their food (36:10) 

-The importance of reading food labels and ingredient lists on our food (44:14)

-Recipes highlights from Vani’s new cookbook (48:07)

-What “natural flavors” really mean (57:06)

For more on Vani Hari you can follow her on Instagram @thefoodbabe, on Facebook @thefoodbabe, on Twitter @thefoodbabe, and through her website https://foodbabe.com/. Get Vani’s new cookbook, “Food Babe Kitchen: More than 100 Delicious, Real Food Recipes to Change Your Body and Your Life,” at https://foodbabekitchen.com/.

For more on Dhru Purohit, be sure to follow him on Instagram @dhrupurohit, on Facebook @dhruxpurohit, on Twitter @dhrupurohit, and on YouTube @dhrupurohit. You can also text Dhru at (302) 200-5643 or click here https://my.community.com/dhrupurohit.

Interested in joining Dhru’s Broken Brain Podcast Facebook Community? Submit your request to join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2819627591487473/.

This episode is brought to you by the Pegan Shake.

How you start your morning sets the tone for the day. I’m a huge fan of morning routines, because I think they can transform your ability to focus, sleep well, and get the most out of your day, especially in this busy, modern world. 

What I’ve found is that the best way to begin your day is to feed your body the right information or the right nutrients. That’s why Dr. Mark Hyman and I created the Pegan Shake. It’s a nutritionally packed morning blend designed to support healthy blood sugar, energy, and brain power.  

It contains some of my most favorite brain boosting foods like MCT and avocado. It also features acacia fiber for healthy gut function and collagen, pumpkin, and pea protein to support muscle synthesis. Check it out at getfarmacy.com/peganshake.

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