What was ultra-processed from what I ate yesterday?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So bacon, turkey, bread are the main UP foods. I was hoping the turkey breast sliced at home and the sourdough multi-grain from the bakery were not ultra processed.

Bacon and turkey are NOT ultra processed, and neither is the bread if it does not have additives. If you bought the bread in the regular supermarket aisle is probably is ultra processed.

The most commonly used research definition of ultra processed would put bacon in the processed category, not ultra processed, along with other preserved foods. Bread that has a bunch of additives and artificial ingredients is ultra processed. Turkey (which sounds like it came from a turkey breast and not cold cut) would be unprocessed or minimally processed.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nova_classification

Costco almost certainly counts as mass-produced, and they package their bread. According to the NOVA rules, the bread must not be packaged.

Did you actually read that link? That is not what it says.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Thanks PP for linking. Interesting, except for bread and pasta most of the stuff I eat is in categories 1 and 2. Never would have thought that salt is considered “processed”.

That’s where these lists get a little ridiculous. Humans would literally die without salt. Most of this stuff is fine in moderation. My attitude is that if people ate it in the 19th century (sugar, flour, olive oil,mustard, bacon), it’s probably fine in limited quantities.

I just had salmon and eggplant fitters for lunch, which is considered pretty healthy. But I used breadcrumbs (processed) as binder, olive oil (processed) to fry them, and topped it with a drizzle of a flavored mayonnaise (probably highly processed). By I’m not going to eat just a plain eggplant and unflavored salmon, so I figure this all comes out as a net positive.

The lists are just to put foods in categories, not make nutritional judgments about them. Eg if you have no fresh fruit then canned fruits and veg are good for you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So bacon, turkey, bread are the main UP foods. I was hoping the turkey breast sliced at home and the sourdough multi-grain from the bakery were not ultra processed.

Bacon and turkey are NOT ultra processed, and neither is the bread if it does not have additives. If you bought the bread in the regular supermarket aisle is probably is ultra processed.

The most commonly used research definition of ultra processed would put bacon in the processed category, not ultra processed, along with other preserved foods. Bread that has a bunch of additives and artificial ingredients is ultra processed. Turkey (which sounds like it came from a turkey breast and not cold cut) would be unprocessed or minimally processed.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nova_classification

Costco almost certainly counts as mass-produced, and they package their bread. According to the NOVA rules, the bread must not be packaged.

Did you actually read that link? That is not what it says.

I am going by the pretty colored chart that's based on NOVA. According to that chart, if bread has any packaging, it's bad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Thanks PP for linking. Interesting, except for bread and pasta most of the stuff I eat is in categories 1 and 2. Never would have thought that salt is considered “processed”.

That’s where these lists get a little ridiculous. Humans would literally die without salt. Most of this stuff is fine in moderation. My attitude is that if people ate it in the 19th century (sugar, flour, olive oil,mustard, bacon), it’s probably fine in limited quantities.

I just had salmon and eggplant fitters for lunch, which is considered pretty healthy. But I used breadcrumbs (processed) as binder, olive oil (processed) to fry them, and topped it with a drizzle of a flavored mayonnaise (probably highly processed). By I’m not going to eat just a plain eggplant and unflavored salmon, so I figure this all comes out as a net positive.

Olive oil is a processed culinary ingredient. Let's be precise here.

[Anonymous]

Interestingly, found this article criticizing the NOVA rankings as overly simplistic, noting that something like humus might be classified as Highly processed if it has a stabilizer in it, but it still clearly more healthy that say Doritos (also highly processed), and potentially more healthy that some of the stuff in other categories, and it's actually possible to eat a pretty healthy diet of "highly processed foods" if you are picking the right ones (e.g., humus, whole grain cereals, etc.).

https://www.eatrightpro.org/news-center/practice-trends/examining-the-nova-food-classification-system-and-healthfulness-of-ultra-processed-foods

Basically, most of these rules need to be applied with a heavy dose of common sense.

[Anonymous]

Rather than worry about what is/isn’t processed, I recommend just being focused on eating a ton of fiber. Fiber is very protective against colon cancer and I wouldn’t be surprised if the presence of processed foods isn’t actually as damaging as the lack of fiber most people have when they eat significant processed foods.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rather than worry about what is/isn’t processed, I recommend just being focused on eating a ton of fiber. Fiber is very protective against colon cancer and I wouldn’t be surprised if the presence of processed foods isn’t actually as damaging as the lack of fiber most people have when they eat significant processed foods.

For a while, my goal was basically to just look at the protein and fiber in any packaged food and always pick the ones with more fiber and protein and then to try to get 5-9 fruits and vegetables a day. I can’t quite maintain that but I feel like this is actually a pretty easy way to eat that will basically lead you in the right direction. I think if you focus on 25 grams of fiber a day, you’ll probably be pretty healthy (although might need more protein depending on how you’re getting the fiber).

Some of the underlying studies about highly processed food are pretty shocking in not differentiating between something like Cheetos and something like Dave’s bread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So bacon, turkey, bread are the main UP foods. I was hoping the turkey breast sliced at home and the sourdough multi-grain from the bakery were not ultra processed.

It’s not the slicing that makes something UPF. What an odd idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Interestingly, found this article criticizing the NOVA rankings as overly simplistic, noting that something like humus might be classified as Highly processed if it has a stabilizer in it, but it still clearly more healthy that say Doritos (also highly processed), and potentially more healthy that some of the stuff in other categories, and it's actually possible to eat a pretty healthy diet of "highly processed foods" if you are picking the right ones (e.g., humus, whole grain cereals, etc.).

https://www.eatrightpro.org/news-center/practice-trends/examining-the-nova-food-classification-system-and-healthfulness-of-ultra-processed-foods

Basically, most of these rules need to be applied with a heavy dose of common sense.

A baked potato moves from group 1 to group 3 if you put a little salt and butter (from group 2) on it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Thanks PP for linking. Interesting, except for bread and pasta most of the stuff I eat is in categories 1 and 2. Never would have thought that salt is considered “processed”.

That’s where these lists get a little ridiculous. Humans would literally die without salt. Most of this stuff is fine in moderation. My attitude is that if people ate it in the 19th century (sugar, flour, olive oil,mustard, bacon), it’s probably fine in limited quantities.

I just had salmon and eggplant fitters for lunch, which is considered pretty healthy. But I used breadcrumbs (processed) as binder, olive oil (processed) to fry them, and topped it with a drizzle of a flavored mayonnaise (probably highly processed). By I’m not going to eat just a plain eggplant and unflavored salmon, so I figure this all comes out as a net positive.

Humans are much healthier now than in the 19th century, thanks in large part to modern food preservation methods

[Anonymous]

I would say only your dinner was unprocessed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here's a link to the turkey breast for a PP - it's really good and convenient

https://www.costcobusinessdelivery.com/kirkland-signature-turkey-breast%2C-oven-browned%2C-4-lb-avg-wt.product.100343513.html

That looks minimally processed.

Thanks for the lnk!

Definitely ultra processed. This looks exactly like the big balls of Boarshead or whatever turkey breast deli meat sitting behind the counters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Breakfast:
coffee (whole beans bought at costco -Mayorga brand - ground at home) with a splash of organic whole milk
french toast - made with purchased brioche bread from costco, eggs, whole milk, cinnamon, sugar, organic maple syrup grade A
bacon (yeah, I know that one!)

Lunch:
turkey sandwich with multigrade sourdough from whole foods bakery, turkey from a pre-cooked costco turkey breast sliced at home, lettuce and tomato from our CSA, peach from our CSA

Dinner:
stirfry with pork tenderloin, bok choy from our CSA, ginger, garlic, spices
white jasmine rice in instant pot

Obviously the bacon is ultra-processed. Is the turkey breast? Is the bread? Just really curious - thanks!

I would not call the brioche ultra processed, just processed. I looked up the ingredients and the only ones that connotes ultra processing are modified food starch (the very last one in the list of items that are less than 2% and enzymes. Enzymes aren't an ingredient in your kitchen, but they are produced by yeast or if you were to add lactobacillus to the dough the bacteria would add enzymes. They would be used to make rising consistent. No preservatives other than cultured wheat flour, which is natural. Bakery sourdough I would also consider processed.

Bacon is processed, not ultra processed or even highly processed( it's still a slice off the pork belly). Your turkey breast contains turkey broth and a little sea salt, sugar. USDA definition of broth is water meat is cooked in, plus seasonings). So it's processed, but no more than you could do in your own kitchen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Breakfast:
coffee (whole beans bought at costco -Mayorga brand - ground at home) with a splash of organic whole milk
french toast - made with purchased brioche bread from costco, eggs, whole milk, cinnamon, sugar, organic maple syrup grade A
bacon (yeah, I know that one!)

Lunch:
turkey sandwich with multigrade sourdough from whole foods bakery, turkey from a pre-cooked costco turkey breast sliced at home, lettuce and tomato from our CSA, peach from our CSA

Dinner:
stirfry with pork tenderloin, bok choy from our CSA, ginger, garlic, spices
white jasmine rice in instant pot

Obviously the bacon is ultra-processed. Is the turkey breast? Is the bread? Just really curious - thanks!

I would not call the brioche ultra processed, just processed. I looked up the ingredients and the only ones that connotes ultra processing are modified food starch (the very last one in the list of items that are less than 2% and enzymes. Enzymes aren't an ingredient in your kitchen, but they are produced by yeast or if you were to add lactobacillus to the dough the bacteria would add enzymes. They would be used to make rising consistent. No preservatives other than cultured wheat flour, which is natural. Bakery sourdough I would also consider processed.

Bacon is processed, not ultra processed or even highly processed( it's still a slice off the pork belly). Your turkey breast contains turkey broth and a little sea salt, sugar. USDA definition of broth is water meat is cooked in, plus seasonings). So it's processed, but no more than you could do in your own kitchen.

If your bacon has smoke flavor, I would say that's group 4. Smoke flavor has nothing to do with preservation.

As for the enzymes, I wonder if that's just a by product of yeast products and you can't eliminate it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Interestingly, found this article criticizing the NOVA rankings as overly simplistic, noting that something like humus might be classified as Highly processed if it has a stabilizer in it, but it still clearly more healthy that say Doritos (also highly processed), and potentially more healthy that some of the stuff in other categories, and it's actually possible to eat a pretty healthy diet of "highly processed foods" if you are picking the right ones (e.g., humus, whole grain cereals, etc.).

https://www.eatrightpro.org/news-center/practice-trends/examining-the-nova-food-classification-system-and-healthfulness-of-ultra-processed-foods

Basically, most of these rules need to be applied with a heavy dose of common sense.

Apply with a heavy dose of common sense?

So, you mean, ignore NOVA completely?