Enrich Your Life

Have you ever looked at a food product in the grocery store and wondered just what that word "enriched" means? It's a little bit abstract when you think about it. The claim that the quality or value of the product has been improved or enhanced in some way doesn't exactly tell you what they've done to your bread, pasta, rice, etc. That's why you need to be an informed consumer!

The enrichment nutrients are (drum roll please)...  

IRON! THIAMIN! RIBOFLAVIN! 

NIACIN! FOLIC ACID! 

These vitamins and minerals are required to be added at specified levels (minimum and maximum) according to the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations. The term enriched, when used with food products, means that things are added back in that may have been lost during manufacturing of the product. You're likely to see this word on bread bags, pasta boxes, flour sacks, rice bags, and more. The term fortified  means that vitamins or minerals have been added to a product that were not originally there. You're likely to see this word on milk containers, juice cartons, and cereal boxes. Often products are fortified with vitamin D, calcium, omega-3s, and other healthful things like that.

Your best bet is always to get vitamins and minerals from their most natural source, but people don't tend to get enough that way, which is why fortifying and enriching has to happen. Should you eat tons of dark leafy greens for your folic acid or 10 pieces of enriched toast? Definitely get it from the greens, but rest more comfortably knowing you're getting an extra boost from your toast in the morning.

Once you've eaten plenty of iron-fortified or enriched foods, you can buy yourself this t-shirt!