If you try to avoid processed foods or certainly ultra processed foods …

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve been reading up on UPF, too, and trying to cut down. Honestly, it seems like I almost anything that comes in a package is going to have some UP ingredients. So I’ve been working to find ways to make the things we like to eat most. The baking is easy— I make all the cookies, muffins, cakes my family eats. Those things freeze well, too, so even for the busy times I can have something available.
Like someone else, I now make my own granola.
Wish I had a book or website to recommend but I haven’t found one. I did read Ultra Processed People and found it very interesting, but very short on resources.

Forks over Knives

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks to those whole replied usefully rather than scathingly. Does anyone have recipes/recs for convenience toddler snacks? Obviously we do fruit, but sometimes I want something with a bit more protein and sometimes my younger kid needs a carb hit and I’d love to avoid stocking crackers/goldfish/etc all the time! Older child can have nuts/trail mix (dead easy to make myself) and but it’s a chocking hazard for my younger. I often make quick breads/muffins/etc but I’d love some ideas for options with a longer shelf life.

If there aren’t allergy concerns, an apple with peanut butter or almond butter is my absolute favorite high protein snack. Fiber, protein, fat - all the things you need in a healthy snack. Obviously allergies makes this harder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Correction- those things didn’t USED to be expensive. Grocery inflation hasn’t left any foods unscathed. Nuts, in particular, are quite expensive in my world, not sure about yours.

And in this context “time consuming” is an utterly meaningless term. How much time is “time consuming” to you? I for one don’t think eat raw potatoes, or uncooked rice, or unsoaked uncooked beans…

At what point did I say to eat the foods raw. Dump the rice into a pot with water and boil. Done in 20-30 minutes depending on the type of rice. No work required from you and you can do other things while it cooks. Put the potato in the microwave and done in 8-10 minutes with no work from you.

And they’re still less expensive than other foods.

30 minutes is a decent chunk of time - it’s not a lot, but it’s not nothing, and one could easily make tons of other meals in less time than that. The other things you do while your rice cooks include preparing and cooking your other food. If you’re feeding a family with any sort of desire to eat food that tastes good, you’re probably going to be making sauces, which also “consumes” time. I buy most of my produce organic from the farmers market - it takes a decent amount of time to wash all the dirt and bugs off. You didn’t address the expense of nuts, either.

I am vegan but my family is not. I watch my macros very carefully and we could for sure SAVE money if I was willing to get more of my protein from chicken or ground beef, at least one of which is always on sale somewhere, rather than my lovely but expensive nuts and seeds. And in terms of ease of preparation, throwing a whole chicken in the oven with some onions, potatoes, and carrots hardly takes any time at all, either.

All that being said I agree that it’s perfectly doable both time and money wise but it IS going to be an adjustment. So maybe try a little more helpfulness and a little less sanctimony.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Correction- those things didn’t USED to be expensive. Grocery inflation hasn’t left any foods unscathed. Nuts, in particular, are quite expensive in my world, not sure about yours.

And in this context “time consuming” is an utterly meaningless term. How much time is “time consuming” to you? I for one don’t think eat raw potatoes, or uncooked rice, or unsoaked uncooked beans…

At what point did I say to eat the foods raw. Dump the rice into a pot with water and boil. Done in 20-30 minutes depending on the type of rice. No work required from you and you can do other things while it cooks. Put the potato in the microwave and done in 8-10 minutes with no work from you.

And they’re still less expensive than other foods.

30 minutes is a decent chunk of time - it’s not a lot, but it’s not nothing, and one could easily make tons of other meals in less time than that. The other things you do while your rice cooks include preparing and cooking your other food. If you’re feeding a family with any sort of desire to eat food that tastes good, you’re probably going to be making sauces, which also “consumes” time. I buy most of my produce organic from the farmers market - it takes a decent amount of time to wash all the dirt and bugs off. You didn’t address the expense of nuts, either.

I am vegan but my family is not. I watch my macros very carefully and we could for sure SAVE money if I was willing to get more of my protein from chicken or ground beef, at least one of which is always on sale somewhere, rather than my lovely but expensive nuts and seeds. And in terms of ease of preparation, throwing a whole chicken in the oven with some onions, potatoes, and carrots hardly takes any time at all, either.

All that being said I agree that it’s perfectly doable both time and money wise but it IS going to be an adjustment. So maybe try a little more helpfulness and a little less sanctimony.

Haha, PP here. Sorry I got mixed up thinking about vegan vs. non-vegan rather than processed vs. not processed! So chicken and veg is a good option anyway! But nuts are in fact expensive!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:… are there websites or blogs you like to read for inspiration or encouragement? I’m thinking something like Marks Daily Apple except for ultra processed food thoughts, not primal/paleo.

I mean, bread is a processed food. Yogurt. Cheese. Wine. Processed foods (and drinks).

I would call those “minimally processed.” Anything they were making thousands of years ago is fine. Processed food is all the crap that’s made in an industrial lab and manufactured in a factory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Correction- those things didn’t USED to be expensive. Grocery inflation hasn’t left any foods unscathed. Nuts, in particular, are quite expensive in my world, not sure about yours.

And in this context “time consuming” is an utterly meaningless term. How much time is “time consuming” to you? I for one don’t think eat raw potatoes, or uncooked rice, or unsoaked uncooked beans…

At what point did I say to eat the foods raw. Dump the rice into a pot with water and boil. Done in 20-30 minutes depending on the type of rice. No work required from you and you can do other things while it cooks. Put the potato in the microwave and done in 8-10 minutes with no work from you.

And they’re still less expensive than other foods.

Agree. People have been cooking whole and simple foods for centuries. It’s only in recent decades that everyone suddenly became too busy to make themselves a meal, therefore they must get take out and buy microwave food. In reality, people waste time all day on their phones, computers, waiting in drive thrus, placing takeout orders and we have more conveniences than ever in our lives in just about every way

This is so true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One of my old WW leaders from decades ago suggested shopping the perimeter of the grocery store (fruits and veggies, milk, eggs), and meat. Skip going up and down the aisles where all the processed food is

Micheal Pollan says that too

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Correction- those things didn’t USED to be expensive. Grocery inflation hasn’t left any foods unscathed. Nuts, in particular, are quite expensive in my world, not sure about yours.

And in this context “time consuming” is an utterly meaningless term. How much time is “time consuming” to you? I for one don’t think eat raw potatoes, or uncooked rice, or unsoaked uncooked beans…

At what point did I say to eat the foods raw. Dump the rice into a pot with water and boil. Done in 20-30 minutes depending on the type of rice. No work required from you and you can do other things while it cooks. Put the potato in the microwave and done in 8-10 minutes with no work from you.

And they’re still less expensive than other foods.

30 minutes is a decent chunk of time - it’s not a lot, but it’s not nothing, and one could easily make tons of other meals in less time than that. The other things you do while your rice cooks include preparing and cooking your other food. If you’re feeding a family with any sort of desire to eat food that tastes good, you’re probably going to be making sauces, which also “consumes” time. I buy most of my produce organic from the farmers market - it takes a decent amount of time to wash all the dirt and bugs off. You didn’t address the expense of nuts, either.

I am vegan but my family is not. I watch my macros very carefully and we could for sure SAVE money if I was willing to get more of my protein from chicken or ground beef, at least one of which is always on sale somewhere, rather than my lovely but expensive nuts and seeds. And in terms of ease of preparation, throwing a whole chicken in the oven with some onions, potatoes, and carrots hardly takes any time at all, either.

All that being said I agree that it’s perfectly doable both time and money wise but it IS going to be an adjustment. So maybe try a little more helpfulness and a little less sanctimony.

Haha, PP here. Sorry I got mixed up thinking about vegan vs. non-vegan rather than processed vs. not processed! So chicken and veg is a good option anyway! But nuts are in fact expensive!

So don’t do nuts. They are not required. A vegan diet can be expensive if someone does it that way but it can easily be inexpensive as well. There are an infinite number of expensive and non expensive options across whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables. Just as there are time consuming and non time consuming options.

I was simply making a counter argument to the previous posters who argued that plant based is prohibitively expensive and time consuming. I think those individuals need to broaden their thinking.

I’m sorry if you read sanctimony into that. I had thought it was really just simple truth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks to those whole replied usefully rather than scathingly. Does anyone have recipes/recs for convenience toddler snacks? Obviously we do fruit, but sometimes I want something with a bit more protein and sometimes my younger kid needs a carb hit and I’d love to avoid stocking crackers/goldfish/etc all the time! Older child can have nuts/trail mix (dead easy to make myself) and but it’s a chocking hazard for my younger. I often make quick breads/muffins/etc but I’d love some ideas for options with a longer shelf life.

If there aren’t allergy concerns, an apple with peanut butter or almond butter is my absolute favorite high protein snack. Fiber, protein, fat - all the things you need in a healthy snack. Obviously allergies makes this harder.

Thank you for the reply! Yeah we love apples and peanut butter at home! But it’s messy and difficult to transport and I worry about allergy concerns for other kids (we once gave a friend an allergic reaction after having peanut snacks) when we need snacks on the go. I often bring plain apples, carrot sticks, the aforementioned muffins or quick breads, etc, but sometimes it’s just not quite enough if we’re at the playground or the zoo for hours at a time. I’m thinking I need to start looking into making my own granola bars maybe? For a while onigiri were a great option packed lunches but unfortunately both my kids have taken against seaweed recently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks to those whole replied usefully rather than scathingly. Does anyone have recipes/recs for convenience toddler snacks? Obviously we do fruit, but sometimes I want something with a bit more protein and sometimes my younger kid needs a carb hit and I’d love to avoid stocking crackers/goldfish/etc all the time! Older child can have nuts/trail mix (dead easy to make myself) and but it’s a chocking hazard for my younger. I often make quick breads/muffins/etc but I’d love some ideas for options with a longer shelf life.

If there aren’t allergy concerns, an apple with peanut butter or almond butter is my absolute favorite high protein snack. Fiber, protein, fat - all the things you need in a healthy snack. Obviously allergies makes this harder.

Thank you for the reply! Yeah we love apples and peanut butter at home! But it’s messy and difficult to transport and I worry about allergy concerns for other kids (we once gave a friend an allergic reaction after having peanut snacks) when we need snacks on the go. I often bring plain apples, carrot sticks, the aforementioned muffins or quick breads, etc, but sometimes it’s just not quite enough if we’re at the playground or the zoo for hours at a time. I’m thinking I need to start looking into making my own granola bars maybe? For a while onigiri were a great option packed lunches but unfortunately both my kids have taken against seaweed recently.

Homemade air popped popcorn is my go to. I make a batch on weekends and put in a large ziploc bag. Dip into it all week for the kids lunches or snacks (smaller ziploc travels well) or if DH and I are hungry and want something light and not fruit. Fruit is good too but we often serve it at meals and don’t want it in between.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Correction- those things didn’t USED to be expensive. Grocery inflation hasn’t left any foods unscathed. Nuts, in particular, are quite expensive in my world, not sure about yours.

And in this context “time consuming” is an utterly meaningless term. How much time is “time consuming” to you? I for one don’t think eat raw potatoes, or uncooked rice, or unsoaked uncooked beans…

At what point did I say to eat the foods raw. Dump the rice into a pot with water and boil. Done in 20-30 minutes depending on the type of rice. No work required from you and you can do other things while it cooks. Put the potato in the microwave and done in 8-10 minutes with no work from you.

And they’re still less expensive than other foods.

30 minutes is a decent chunk of time - it’s not a lot, but it’s not nothing, and one could easily make tons of other meals in less time than that. The other things you do while your rice cooks include preparing and cooking your other food. If you’re feeding a family with any sort of desire to eat food that tastes good, you’re probably going to be making sauces, which also “consumes” time. I buy most of my produce organic from the farmers market - it takes a decent amount of time to wash all the dirt and bugs off. You didn’t address the expense of nuts, either.

I am vegan but my family is not. I watch my macros very carefully and we could for sure SAVE money if I was willing to get more of my protein from chicken or ground beef, at least one of which is always on sale somewhere, rather than my lovely but expensive nuts and seeds. And in terms of ease of preparation, throwing a whole chicken in the oven with some onions, potatoes, and carrots hardly takes any time at all, either.

All that being said I agree that it’s perfectly doable both time and money wise but it IS going to be an adjustment. So maybe try a little more helpfulness and a little less sanctimony.

Haha, PP here. Sorry I got mixed up thinking about vegan vs. non-vegan rather than processed vs. not processed! So chicken and veg is a good option anyway! But nuts are in fact expensive!

So don’t do nuts. They are not required. A vegan diet can be expensive if someone does it that way but it can easily be inexpensive as well. There are an infinite number of expensive and non expensive options across whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables. Just as there are time consuming and non time consuming options.

I was simply making a counter argument to the previous posters who argued that plant based is prohibitively expensive and time consuming. I think those individuals need to broaden their thinking.

I’m sorry if you read sanctimony into that. I had thought it was really just simple truth.

C’mon, be real. No one who responds to someone else’s opinion/reason/excuse (regardless of whether or not you agree with said opinion/reason/excuse) by leading off with “False.” is doing it for any other reason than to be sanctimonious. But you know that, which is why you followed up with the classic “I’m sorry you feel that way” non-apology!

I don’t really care, but why respond to someone else’s earnest request for advice and deliberately be an AH?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One of my old WW leaders from decades ago suggested shopping the perimeter of the grocery store (fruits and veggies, milk, eggs), and meat. Skip going up and down the aisles where all the processed food is

This is such a dumb piece of advice.

[Anonymous]

OP just be careful as you move more towards unprocessed, whole foods that you don’t fall into the trap of sitting around all day smelling your own farts like some of these ladies…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not really. The reward is in eating the food itself: I find “whole”/unprocessed foods delicious and I know how to cook them well. I also prefer how my body feels and how my temperament is after eating these foods.

Maybe get a whole foods/plant based foods cookbook for some inspiration!

One of the biggest misconceptions of those eating the standard American diet is that eating whole foods cannot be enjoyable and delicious. Hence the need to "motivate" themselves to make the change.

I actually think that for most, the need for motivation is because of the additional time and money required to eat this way.

False. Rice, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green vegetables, pasta, fruit, nuts, seeds, etc are not expensive. And preparing them does not need to be time consuming.

Correction- those things didn’t USED to be expensive. Grocery inflation hasn’t left any foods unscathed. Nuts, in particular, are quite expensive in my world, not sure about yours.

And in this context “time consuming” is an utterly meaningless term. How much time is “time consuming” to you? I for one don’t think eat raw potatoes, or uncooked rice, or unsoaked uncooked beans…

At what point did I say to eat the foods raw. Dump the rice into a pot with water and boil. Done in 20-30 minutes depending on the type of rice. No work required from you and you can do other things while it cooks. Put the potato in the microwave and done in 8-10 minutes with no work from you.

And they’re still less expensive than other foods.

30 minutes is a decent chunk of time - it’s not a lot, but it’s not nothing, and one could easily make tons of other meals in less time than that. The other things you do while your rice cooks include preparing and cooking your other food. If you’re feeding a family with any sort of desire to eat food that tastes good, you’re probably going to be making sauces, which also “consumes” time. I buy most of my produce organic from the farmers market - it takes a decent amount of time to wash all the dirt and bugs off. You didn’t address the expense of nuts, either.

I am vegan but my family is not. I watch my macros very carefully and we could for sure SAVE money if I was willing to get more of my protein from chicken or ground beef, at least one of which is always on sale somewhere, rather than my lovely but expensive nuts and seeds. And in terms of ease of preparation, throwing a whole chicken in the oven with some onions, potatoes, and carrots hardly takes any time at all, either.

All that being said I agree that it’s perfectly doable both time and money wise but it IS going to be an adjustment. So maybe try a little more helpfulness and a little less sanctimony.

Haha, PP here. Sorry I got mixed up thinking about vegan vs. non-vegan rather than processed vs. not processed! So chicken and veg is a good option anyway! But nuts are in fact expensive!

So don’t do nuts. They are not required. A vegan diet can be expensive if someone does it that way but it can easily be inexpensive as well. There are an infinite number of expensive and non expensive options across whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables. Just as there are time consuming and non time consuming options.

I was simply making a counter argument to the previous posters who argued that plant based is prohibitively expensive and time consuming. I think those individuals need to broaden their thinking.

I’m sorry if you read sanctimony into that. I had thought it was really just simple truth.

C’mon, be real. No one who responds to someone else’s opinion/reason/excuse (regardless of whether or not you agree with said opinion/reason/excuse) by leading off with “False.” is doing it for any other reason than to be sanctimonious. But you know that, which is why you followed up with the classic “I’m sorry you feel that way” non-apology!

I don’t really care, but why respond to someone else’s earnest request for advice and deliberately be an AH?

I said it was false because the claim is indeed false. Or it can easily be false if someone is willing to explore different options which are not hard to find. Not sure why that’s so offensive to you.

[Anonymous]

Np, and I cook from scratch nearly all meals. We happen to be Indian and that's how I grew up too. However, it's not accurate to say it can be super quick and easy. It's just not - not if you use fresh vegetables and ingredients that you yourself wash and clean. I probably spend 60-90 mins on dinner alone - that's to make 1 dal (lentil soup), 1 vegetable dish (subzi), rice and flatbread. And I work full time, exercise daily, and have 2 kids that I drive around everywhere for activities. It's not at all easy, it's not fast, and I resent the suggestion it is easy (either from other posters or my mother in law!). I completely get why people do takeout + eat out. We do not because we have crappy genetics and we have to look out for our health. I have about 20 tricks that I use to make it all more efficient, and we do leftovers daily for lunch, but its still a lot of work and takes a fair bit of planning. Also - my family won't eat the same thing all week. So I cook something different every night and it's a total slog. I don't know anyone from a legitimate 'food culture' trying to keep it going who doesn't spend an hour or more cooking.