Refrigerator Redesign

by Leanne Ely, C.N.C

Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to ask each of you, if you would, kindly open your refrigerator door.

So how's it looking? A little messy? Maybe it's so full of food you can't even see the shelves anymore? If it's really bad, does it have a peculiar odor? And what kind of food do you have stored in there? A beautiful array of produce? Or a bunch of stuff you wouldn't want to tell your favorite Dinner Diva? :-)
 
Everything in life demands order; even in something as small as a refrigerator. Maintaining order reinforces a sense of peace instead of a stressed frenzy that comes hand in hand with disorder. And along with an orderly fridge comes what you keep in your refrigerator and where you keep it. This will affect, believe it or not, your choices. The what and where of food in your fridge can actually benefit a healthier diet if you take control of location and the actual food being stored.

Health.yahoo.net pointed at a study practiced by Cornell University, which was that if you fill your top shelf with fruits and veggies and other nutritionally benefiting foods, you're more liking to snack and eat those initially, instead of grabbing some easy snacky not so good for you food. According to this article, placement is king and not just in regard to your choices.

Some refrigerated foods can affect others and not for the good. For example any raw meats, you really need to keep them on the bottom. If they leak there's a greater chance for salmonella or E. coli to sneak into your other food. See why placement is so critical?

I wrote an article about storing leftovers that can go hand in hand with what I have to say in this article. One of my points that coincide with that article is that you have to be aware of what is in your refrigerator. Know what leftovers you have, and pair leftovers accordingly. Maybe you still have leftover meat from the day before and you now have leftover veggies from today's meal, mix and match and make the two of them a meal for the next day. Be mindful of your space, be mindful of your leftovers, and be mindful of what you need versus what you want.

If you can ensure some basic organization in what you buy, where you're placing it, and what is already in there in conjunction to what you need - you'll save time and money and even manage a healthier constitution. I would like to encourage you to take five extra minutes out of each week to quickly wipe down the surfaces of your refrigerator with a disinfectant cloth or wipe. If you are what you eat, don't you want to eat something being stored in a clean place so you don't get sick?


Avoid leftovers completely with our Cook Once Eat Twice menus!
Copyright (C) 2011 www.savingdinner.com Leanne Ely, CNC All rights reserved.