Eliminating ultra processed foods per WSJ

[Anonymous]

So we're thinking of experimenting with eliminating ultra processed foods, as described in the Wall Street Journal.
https://www.wsj.com/health/wellness/my-family-went-off-ultra-processed-foods-for-a-month-the-results-surprised-us-ac8015b1?mod=lifestyle_trendingnow_article_pos1

We already do pretty well but there are a few items in regular rotation that I think will have to go, for a while anyway, and I wondered if folks had come up with good replacements.

Buns: we turn lots of things into burgers-- beans, lentils, ground turkey-- and we love brioche buns
Lunch: gotta be quick! and portable! No more frozen pizza
Snacks: I love cheese and crackers. But I think both cheese and crackers are UPFs
Breakfast: Cold cereal has to go. Steel cut oats seem minimally processed, but they take so long to cook. How about rolled oats?

Tl;dr: What substitutions have you made that worked to remove highly processed foods from your kitchen?

[Anonymous]

Lunch is a bun with deli turkey and cheese for my kids. I can make my own turkey but I'm keeping the cheese. Maybe changing to a less processed bun/bread.
I'm trying to limit tortillas but kids really do eat better when we have things in wraps. They will wrap meat and roasted veggies.

[Anonymous]

My advice to to cut it out and don’t substitute.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lunch is a bun with deli turkey and cheese for my kids. I can make my own turkey but I'm keeping the cheese. Maybe changing to a less processed bun/bread.
I'm trying to limit tortillas but kids really do eat better when we have things in wraps. They will wrap meat and roasted veggies.

I didn't think cheese was ultra processed. Who is saying this?

[Anonymous]

For buns, only sub I can think of is to bake your own bread. Quick and easy, IF you have a breadmaker. And with so many going carb free these days, you can probably pick one up free or super cheap

Lunch - leftovers from dinner, or, make big pots of various stew and/or soups over the weekend and take for lunch, or a salad

Snacks - for me it's veggies or fruit

Breakfast - yogurt or cottage cheese

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For buns, only sub I can think of is to bake your own bread. Quick and easy, IF you have a breadmaker. And with so many going carb free these days, you can probably pick one up free or super cheap

Lunch - leftovers from dinner, or, make big pots of various stew and/or soups over the weekend and take for lunch, or a salad

Snacks - for me it's veggies or fruit

Breakfast - yogurt or cottage cheese

So processed is OK as long as we process it ourselves? Including the flour?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For buns, only sub I can think of is to bake your own bread. Quick and easy, IF you have a breadmaker. And with so many going carb free these days, you can probably pick one up free or super cheap

Lunch - leftovers from dinner, or, make big pots of various stew and/or soups over the weekend and take for lunch, or a salad

Snacks - for me it's veggies or fruit

Breakfast - yogurt or cottage cheese

If you are using the distinction between UPF and PF, then bread from the bakery section of a grocery store (or a bakery) is not considered UPF. A rule of thumb is whether something is long-term shelf-stable that could not be without a lot of additives.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lunch is a bun with deli turkey and cheese for my kids. I can make my own turkey but I'm keeping the cheese. Maybe changing to a less processed bun/bread.
I'm trying to limit tortillas but kids really do eat better when we have things in wraps. They will wrap meat and roasted veggies.

I didn't think cheese was ultra processed. Who is saying this?

I think it depends on the cheese.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For buns, only sub I can think of is to bake your own bread. Quick and easy, IF you have a breadmaker. And with so many going carb free these days, you can probably pick one up free or super cheap

Lunch - leftovers from dinner, or, make big pots of various stew and/or soups over the weekend and take for lunch, or a salad

Snacks - for me it's veggies or fruit

Breakfast - yogurt or cottage cheese

So processed is OK as long as we process it ourselves? Including the flour?

Read this -- it explains unprocessed, minimally processed, processed, and high or ultra processed foods. The latter are the ones to avoid.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/what-are-ultra-processed-foods-and-are-they-bad-for-our-health-2020010918605

So bread made simply with flour, water, and yeast is processed, but bread can also be ultra processed when nutrients like the germ is removed from the flour, and salt, oil, and chemicals are added to prevent it from going stale. Green beans might be processed by cutting and freezing the beans, but if canned with chemicals, added salt, oil and maybe even sugar then it is ultra processed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lunch is a bun with deli turkey and cheese for my kids. I can make my own turkey but I'm keeping the cheese. Maybe changing to a less processed bun/bread.
I'm trying to limit tortillas but kids really do eat better when we have things in wraps. They will wrap meat and roasted veggies.

I didn't think cheese was ultra processed. Who is saying this?

I think it depends on the cheese.

if it says “cheese product”. It’s definitely ultra processed.

[Anonymous]

Snacks and packed lunches can be the hardest. A few things we did:

- set an area in the pantry with clear containers of nuts, seeds, dried fruits so we can make our own little mixed bowls. If there is a favored combination, make one container of that so it's easy to grab. Helps to have small lidded containers so you can throw these into the lunch box. Sometimes I add chocolate chips.
- pick a day to chop fresh veggies and store them, so it is just as easy to grab carrots and hummus as it would have been to grab chips and dip.
- get bento style boxes for lunch so you can easily pack nuts in one, cut veggies in another, cheese and chunks of chicken in anther, hummus or PB or guacamole in another, etc. Think of lunch as a salad bar or hors d'oeuvres board instead of a sandwich shop.
- get used to buying fresh bread in smaller quantities more often.
- make jars of overnight oats or yogurt parfaits one day a week and store them in the fridge so it's easy to grab.
- always have hard boiled eggs available in the fridge.
- learn to love avocado toast - so many things to top it with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lunch is a bun with deli turkey and cheese for my kids. I can make my own turkey but I'm keeping the cheese. Maybe changing to a less processed bun/bread.
I'm trying to limit tortillas but kids really do eat better when we have things in wraps. They will wrap meat and roasted veggies.

I didn't think cheese was ultra processed. Who is saying this?

I think it depends on the cheese.

if it says “cheese product”. It’s definitely ultra processed.

or if you can squirt it out of a can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For buns, only sub I can think of is to bake your own bread. Quick and easy, IF you have a breadmaker. And with so many going carb free these days, you can probably pick one up free or super cheap

Lunch - leftovers from dinner, or, make big pots of various stew and/or soups over the weekend and take for lunch, or a salad

Snacks - for me it's veggies or fruit

Breakfast - yogurt or cottage cheese

So processed is OK as long as we process it ourselves? Including the flour?

Read this -- it explains unprocessed, minimally processed, processed, and high or ultra processed foods. The latter are the ones to avoid.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/what-are-ultra-processed-foods-and-are-they-bad-for-our-health-2020010918605

So bread made simply with flour, water, and yeast is processed, but bread can also be ultra processed when nutrients like the germ is removed from the flour, and salt, oil, and chemicals are added to prevent it from going stale. Green beans might be processed by cutting and freezing the beans, but if canned with chemicals, added salt, oil and maybe even sugar then it is ultra processed.

The link you provided is clear that canned green beans would be considered processed not ultra processed.

[Anonymous]

I agree that snacks and packed lunches are hardest. I still eat things like yogurt and hummus that are technically processed, otherwise I would not be able to get enough food volume.

I recommend getting a cookbook for inspiration and ideas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For buns, only sub I can think of is to bake your own bread. Quick and easy, IF you have a breadmaker. And with so many going carb free these days, you can probably pick one up free or super cheap

Lunch - leftovers from dinner, or, make big pots of various stew and/or soups over the weekend and take for lunch, or a salad

Snacks - for me it's veggies or fruit

Breakfast - yogurt or cottage cheese

So processed is OK as long as we process it ourselves? Including the flour?

Read this -- it explains unprocessed, minimally processed, processed, and high or ultra processed foods. The latter are the ones to avoid.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/what-are-ultra-processed-foods-and-are-they-bad-for-our-health-2020010918605

So bread made simply with flour, water, and yeast is processed, but bread can also be ultra processed when nutrients like the germ is removed from the flour, and salt, oil, and chemicals are added to prevent it from going stale. Green beans might be processed by cutting and freezing the beans, but if canned with chemicals, added salt, oil and maybe even sugar then it is ultra processed.

It is way easier to think of it as just eating whole foods vs. trying to understand and categorize every kind of processed food.