Eliminating ultra processed foods per WSJ

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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?

Less than 5 minutes, what are you talking about?

I think you are confusing rolled oats (flakes which are basically instant) with steel cut oats, often called Irish oats. They are shaped like hard little nuggets and take longer to cook -- 35 to 40 minutes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

Snacks are the easiest! Only eat fruits and veggies.

For blood sugar and hormone balance as well as satiety, I try to have a balanced snack with protein, carb and fat. So, while it may include fruit or veggie, that won’t be the only thing I eat for a snack. Also, veggies aren’t necessarily easy, they require prep!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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?

Less than 5 minutes, what are you talking about?

Were these magic grits?

Objection your honor!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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?

Less than 5 minutes, what are you talking about?

Were these magic grits?

Objection your honor!

I have found my people. Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand the desire to avoid processed foods. Do you avoid medicine, too? What other scientific advances do you shun?

Oh come on. You know darn well many 'food' items are not food at all and contribute significantly to disease which makes you need medicine.

NP. I am also a bit confused by what people are hoping to achieve by avoiding processed foods. Processed foods span a huge range of food types. I completely understand ruling out fast food and Doritos, but the posts on this thread seem to be going in a more extreme direction.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand the desire to avoid processed foods. Do you avoid medicine, too? What other scientific advances do you shun?

Oh come on. You know darn well many 'food' items are not food at all and contribute significantly to disease which makes you need medicine.

NP. I am also a bit confused by what people are hoping to achieve by avoiding processed foods. Processed foods span a huge range of food types. I completely understand ruling out fast food and Doritos, but the posts on this thread seem to be going in a more extreme direction.

The body is healthiest on a completely unprocessed diet. Try it for a month. Your skin will glow, your energy will improve and you will feel amazing. It’s hard to sustain though and a little bit of processed food is reasonable. But, most people convince themself they can have way more than they should, even in a “healthy” diet - powders, bars, and other stuff are still processed food and not ideal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand the desire to avoid processed foods. Do you avoid medicine, too? What other scientific advances do you shun?

Oh come on. You know darn well many 'food' items are not food at all and contribute significantly to disease which makes you need medicine.

Whether a substance is toxic or carcinogenic is entirely orthogonal to whether it is processed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand the desire to avoid processed foods. Do you avoid medicine, too? What other scientific advances do you shun?

Oh come on. You know darn well many 'food' items are not food at all and contribute significantly to disease which makes you need medicine.

NP. I am also a bit confused by what people are hoping to achieve by avoiding processed foods. Processed foods span a huge range of food types. I completely understand ruling out fast food and Doritos, but the posts on this thread seem to be going in a more extreme direction.

The body is healthiest on a completely unprocessed diet. Try it for a month. Your skin will glow, your energy will improve and you will feel amazing. It’s hard to sustain though and a little bit of processed food is reasonable. But, most people convince themself they can have way more than they should, even in a “healthy” diet - powders, bars, and other stuff are still processed food and not ideal.

You know what's crazy, right? I can't tell if that was a serious reply.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand the desire to avoid processed foods. Do you avoid medicine, too? What other scientific advances do you shun?

Oh come on. You know darn well many 'food' items are not food at all and contribute significantly to disease which makes you need medicine.

NP. I am also a bit confused by what people are hoping to achieve by avoiding processed foods. Processed foods span a huge range of food types. I completely understand ruling out fast food and Doritos, but the posts on this thread seem to be going in a more extreme direction.

The body is healthiest on a completely unprocessed diet. Try it for a month. Your skin will glow, your energy will improve and you will feel amazing. It’s hard to sustain though and a little bit of processed food is reasonable. But, most people convince themself they can have way more than they should, even in a “healthy” diet - powders, bars, and other stuff are still processed food and not ideal.

You know what's crazy, right? I can't tell if that was a serious reply.

How so?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand the desire to avoid processed foods. Do you avoid medicine, too? What other scientific advances do you shun?

Oh come on. You know darn well many 'food' items are not food at all and contribute significantly to disease which makes you need medicine.

NP. I am also a bit confused by what people are hoping to achieve by avoiding processed foods. Processed foods span a huge range of food types. I completely understand ruling out fast food and Doritos, but the posts on this thread seem to be going in a more extreme direction.

The body is healthiest on a completely unprocessed diet. Try it for a month. Your skin will glow, your energy will improve and you will feel amazing. It’s hard to sustain though and a little bit of processed food is reasonable. But, most people convince themself they can have way more than they should, even in a “healthy” diet - powders, bars, and other stuff are still processed food and not ideal.

You know what's crazy, right? I can't tell if that was a serious reply.

How so?

Sarcasm is hard to detect without visual or auditory clues. The post reads like a parody, but it is so hard to tell what was intended sometimes...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I don't know anyone using spray cheese to make sandwiches. Spray cheese is for your Doritos.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand the desire to avoid processed foods. Do you avoid medicine, too? What other scientific advances do you shun?

Oh come on. You know darn well many 'food' items are not food at all and contribute significantly to disease which makes you need medicine.

NP. I am also a bit confused by what people are hoping to achieve by avoiding processed foods. Processed foods span a huge range of food types. I completely understand ruling out fast food and Doritos, but the posts on this thread seem to be going in a more extreme direction.

The body is healthiest on a completely unprocessed diet. Try it for a month. Your skin will glow, your energy will improve and you will feel amazing. It’s hard to sustain though and a little bit of processed food is reasonable. But, most people convince themself they can have way more than they should, even in a “healthy” diet - powders, bars, and other stuff are still processed food and not ideal.

You know what's crazy, right? I can't tell if that was a serious reply.

How so?

Sarcasm is hard to detect without visual or auditory clues. The post reads like a parody, but it is so hard to tell what was intended sometimes...

So in other words, you’ve got nothing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I don't know anyone using spray cheese to make sandwiches. Spray cheese is for your Doritos.

Velveeta and American cheese are processed. Cream cheese. Etc.

[Anonymous]

Use fresh rolls for buns (though family may complain). If you want to go hardcore, you can make your own. Same for making pita, it should be pretty easy once you get into the habit.

Crackers: You can also make your own, but it's probably best to just not eat crackers. You can pair cheese with nuts and fruit and olives. If carbs are needed, buy fresh bread or make the non-knead NYT bread (recipe easily found online, it's very easy once you get the hang of it, and you can prep dough for multiple loaves at a time).

Breakfast: look into grains other than oats. People around the world make porridge from millet, buckwheat, rice, etc. Dress with dried fruit/nuts/honey for kids. I like to stir in cheese in mine.

[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.

I agree with this. High-quality aged cheese is totally fine. Kraft slices absolutely not. THat's not even cheese.