Am I a bad person?!

chandelierbee

I've been tracking my food and I've realized I eat a lot of processed foods. I'm a vegetarian so it seems as though that's my source of protein besides nuts, like quest bars. Can someone please look into my food diary and tell me, am I putting useless chemicals into my body or what? I've been losing weight but I have a thing for cheese.... I was "milk-less" for a few weeks but forced myself to eat cheese so I can get my protein in but I'm hating the saturated fat. If you see anything processed, I need advise for a healthy alternative or vegetable recipes. I eat leaves mainly because I don't know the nutrition facts of each dish so I'm scared.... Please help me with my fear to cook food and so-called "bad" chemicals.

Lrdoflamancha

First you will have to make your food diary public.

GWehsling

First off, no, you're not a bad person, so let that one go.

Secondly being a vegetarian is not easy and some people will find that they are surrounded by poorer sources of nutrition than others. I've been a very strict vegetarian for about 25 years and I recall in my twenties I ate a lot of processed foods because that was easy and what everybody else ate. Most likely this did nothing for my skin and lack of form, but everybody starts somewhere and learns a thing or two as they go along.

Only recently have I started to purge myself of quick fixes and I wish I had started this process when I was 20-something. Cheese is a processed food, but not all chesses are equal and in moderation and in conjunction with a balanced and varied diet, they are fine.

Feel free to friend me, my diary is open and although not what I would consider role-model worthy, it does show gradual improvement. As I still think of eating as a chore and still prefer quick fixes rather than massive tasty feasts you will see that my diary and my days are filled with basic but essential snacks and readily available foods.

Lately I have found oats for breakfast to be filling and good for protein, I like bread and found a bread variety that is filled with protein and I actually like beans, nuts and seeds, so it's easy to source protein outside of dairy.

I will be starting a local blog here this week and I'm happy to include details around my eating habits if it helps.

All the best and don't beat yourself up, you're awesome, deal with it.

kissesdahling

You will have to open your food diary for more detailed advice, but in general you will find most people here don't believe in "bad foods" or "bad chemicals" in food. And there's reason for that; a lot of the chemicals people fear in processed foods aren't as bad as they sound; conversely, there are some things that are best to stay away from, so really, again, you need to open your diary so people can see what you're actually eating.

My mother was a vegetarian and she always managed to get her protein in. One tried and true method is lentils and beans; also eggs. Some grains have more protein than others; some vegetables have more proteins than others.

That said, this sentence confuses me:

chandelierbee wrote:

I eat leaves mainly because I don't know the nutrition facts of each dish so I'm scared

If you're properly logging your food with My Fitness Pal, you should be able to figure out the nutritional facts of what you're eating. There is a recipe builder where you can even figure out the nutritional facts on homemade meals, so if you're logging, I don't really understand how you wouldn't know the nutritional facts of each dish. Not trying to be a smarty-pants, I'm just saying, that's what MFP is for--to figure out and keep track of our nutrition.

Also, you can't really survive very long eating only leaves. It's easy to get protein and variety in one's diet even with a vegetarian diet.

JoRocka

do you drown kittens for fun?

If yes- then yes- you're a bad peson.
If not- you're not a bad person-it's fine.


As far as the chemicals- as long as you are getting a varied diet and eating a variety of good and getting plenty of macro/micro nutrients and hitting your calorie goals- then you're totally fine. Don't drink things that live under your bathroom sink and you'll be okay.

glassyo

If you think you're a bad person for eating processed foods, then bend the knee to your queen.

(Sorry, I've been reading the Game of Thrones books.)

It's great that you want to eat more healthy but...what exactly do you think is going to happen if you do eat processed foods?

hoopla101

There are lots of vegetarian options for protein! Tofu, beans, quinoa, hemp, chia seeds, edamame, meat substitutes, non-dairy milk, eggs (so much protein!), buckwheat, and so many more I'n probably forgetting

Nuts are super high calorie for the amount of protein so I personally only have those once in a while, but there is a lot of stuff you can experiment with! Quest bars and such aren't necessarily bad, but keep in mind that most protein bars also have added sugar and higher calories than the same amount of another proteins source like eggs, etc and they're not always as filling

Good luck!!!

DylanThomas2

its been proven that eating processed foods will cause you to beat your spouse and destroy your friends lives and careers so yes you are a horrible person

chandelierbee

Okay it's public. And I've seen Greeley the banana girl and food babe and I just don't feel like a good person when I eat meat but id never say a persons bad if they do. I'm just worried if I'm eating some sort of meat or animal fat. And the bad chemicals will take its toll bc I could eat like this for the rest of my life

MamaBirdBoss

Useless...chemicals.....

You realized that EVERYTHING you eat is made of chemicals, right?

And so are you?

Freelee the banana girl is a nutcase who's still an active bulimic. And the "Food Babe" is an idiot who believes the most ludicrous things: http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2015/04/08/get-out-the-popcorn-science-babe-vs-the-food-babe/

Don't feel bad about other people's stupidity.

None of the "bad chemicals" that you're eating will take any kind of toll because you aren't eating anything that's unsafe in reasonable quantities unless you are eating non-foods or some whacked-out, super exclusionary diet...like Freelee.

PlumpKitten

Of course you're not a bad person!
Do what Asians do. Eat alot of tofu. There are endless recipes - firm tofu pan-fried and tossed in curry sauce. Chinese tofu and veggie stir-fry. There are even tofu desserts - though I don't know if you can get the fresh (non-processed) ones where you are.

We also eat alot of beans and Middle Eastern foods like hummus.

I now eat low-fat yogurt almost every day.

Raw nuts, like almonds, replace the fat and protein of meat. But be careful, as they have alot of calories.

Good luck!

tomatoey

You're not a bad person.

I'm not a vegetarian, but friends are, and they eat tons of lentil burgers (I guess like this) and Mexican style black bean salads.

I love this veggie chili (and I'm a huge meat eater)
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/236609/black-bean-chilli
Top that with avocado and Greek yogurt and you're good.

People offered some great ideas in this thread (where I needed help feeding my friends )
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10186292/whats-a-great-veggie-main-for-a-hot-day#latest

Also mushroom risotto

460mustang

dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) sounds like this is some bad stuff, but it's a chemical name for water

Kalikel

Nobody is better or worse based on what they eat.

Visit vegetarian sites online. They can help you learn about how to get your protein without meat.

Also, consider a dietitian. You can find them online, but seeing one IRL will be more helpful. They will help you set up a healthy diet that you like.

tomatoey

As far as the chemicals, I haven't thought that much about it (I often cook), but meh not an issue - although if you're only eating canned or packaged foods, you are eating a lot of preservatives (like sodium), and it wouldn't be a bad idea to mix it up with some non-preserved foods.

hmm, quick google found this thing on emulsifiers possibly affecting gut health (in mice)

MamaBirdBoss

tomatoey wrote: »

As far as the chemicals, I haven't thought that much about it (I often cook), but meh not an issue - although if you're only eating canned or packaged foods, you are eating a lot of preservatives (like sodium), and it wouldn't be a bad idea to mix it up with some non-preserved foods.

hmm, quick google found this thing on emulsifiers possibly affecting gut health (in mice)

Geez. Sodium in "processed" foods is there for FLAVOR, not as a preservative.

You are eating only tiny, trace amounts of preservatives in most foods--if any at all! You will find almost none in frozen foods and none at all in canned and jarred foods, for instance.

Most preservatives are in deli meats and dried foods.

Your link is quackery, sorry.

Emulsifiers aren't even preservatives. The most common one is soy lecithin. It gives a smooth texture to stuff like ice cream, and it's in TONS of vegan foods to improve the texture without cream or diary. And it's 100% fine.

You shouldn't feel guilty for eating meat. If you're vegetarian, fine. There is zero reason to be guilted into it because of food quacks.

MamaBirdBoss

Did you know that if you drink too much diet soda in a day, you can actually DIE?

Okay. Now guess what can kill you. Guess what THE MOST TOXIC THING IN DIET SODA IS.

Unless you guessed "water," you're wrong: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_intoxication

tomatoey

MamaBirdBoss wrote: »

tomatoey wrote: »

As far as the chemicals, I haven't thought that much about it (I often cook), but meh not an issue - although if you're only eating canned or packaged foods, you are eating a lot of preservatives (like sodium), and it wouldn't be a bad idea to mix it up with some non-preserved foods.

hmm, quick google found this thing on emulsifiers possibly affecting gut health (in mice)

Geez. Sodium in "processed" foods is there for FLAVOR, not as a preservative.

You are eating only tiny, trace amounts of preservatives in most foods--if any at all! You will find almost none in frozen foods and none at all in canned and jarred foods, for instance.

Most preservatives are in deli meats and dried foods.

Your link is quackery, sorry.

Emulsifiers aren't even preservatives. The most common one is soy lecithin. It gives a smooth texture to stuff like ice cream, and it's in TONS of vegan foods to improve the texture without cream or diary. And it's 100% fine.

You shouldn't feel guilty for eating meat. If you're vegetarian, fine. There is zero reason to be guilted into it because of food quacks.

I don't have a huge issue with preservatives or anything, found that at the top of results after a 1-second search, but Nature is a prestigious peer-reviewed journal, just saying

MamaBirdBoss

tomatoey wrote: »

MamaBirdBoss wrote: »

tomatoey wrote: »

As far as the chemicals, I haven't thought that much about it (I often cook), but meh not an issue - although if you're only eating canned or packaged foods, you are eating a lot of preservatives (like sodium), and it wouldn't be a bad idea to mix it up with some non-preserved foods.

hmm, quick google found this thing on emulsifiers possibly affecting gut health (in mice)

Geez. Sodium in "processed" foods is there for FLAVOR, not as a preservative.

You are eating only tiny, trace amounts of preservatives in most foods--if any at all! You will find almost none in frozen foods and none at all in canned and jarred foods, for instance.

Most preservatives are in deli meats and dried foods.

Your link is quackery, sorry.

Emulsifiers aren't even preservatives. The most common one is soy lecithin. It gives a smooth texture to stuff like ice cream, and it's in TONS of vegan foods to improve the texture without cream or diary. And it's 100% fine.

You shouldn't feel guilty for eating meat. If you're vegetarian, fine. There is zero reason to be guilted into it because of food quacks.

I don't have a huge issue with preservatives or anything, found that at the top of results after a 1-second search, but Nature is a prestigious peer-reviewed journal, just saying

Doesn't make the article one bit better, and the original research that it links to is...shady, to say the least.

Red flags:

Food preservatives linked to obesity and gut disease: Mouse study suggests that emulsifiers alter gut bacteria, leading to the inflammatory bowel condition colitis.

1) Emulsifiers aren't preservatives, so the headline doesn't even match the subtitle.
2) Mouse studies are extraordinarily weak first hints at the best of times. For dietary issues, we should be especially suspicious as a healthy mouse-diet and a healthy person-diet can be lightyears apart. Remember, chocolate poisons dogs!


Let's look at the article more in depth:

Artificial preservatives used in many processed foods could increase the risk of inflammatory bowel diseases and metabolic disorders, according to research published on 25 February in Nature1. In a study done in mice, chemicals known as emulsifiers were found to alter the make-up of bacteria in the colon — the first time that these additives have been shown to affect health directly.

Um. Okay, so sentence 1 is supposedly talking about preservatives and sentence 2 about emulsifiers. Again, this is the lowest of the low kind of quality here.

Next paragaph:

About 15 different emulsifiers are commonly used in processed Western foods for purposes such as smoothing the texture of ice cream and preventing mayonnaise from separating. Regulatory agencies such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rule that emulsifiers are “generally regarded as safe”, because there is no evidence that they increase the risk of cancer or have toxic effects in mammals.

Hey, some accurate statements! Cool.

Anyway, moving on:

Gewirtz says that previous studies may have missed these links because newly developed food additives are tested in large swathes of the population, masking any subtle effects in people whose genetics or gut-microbe composition predispose them to these diseases.

Soooo......he admits that human studies have found zero effects because the humans being studied aren't like the specially-bred mice.

Um, no duh.

Let's suppose he's right for a moment. In that case, we would have discovered a certain population of bariatric surgery patients who are on post-surgery diets and somehow can't lose weight or lose far less weight than the expected range of weightloss.

Miraculously, NO SUCH POPULATIONS have ever appeared. That's because they don't exist. The cumulative effects of all the different metabolic quirks you can possibly name that could "slow" someone's metabolism really don't make all that much difference in the real world.

If a group of people emerged who actually have a really unusually hard time losing weight from obese levels, we would find out about it from weight-loss treatment centers discovering people resistant to treatment. But we don't. So we already know that this effect, if it possibly exists for anyone at all, would be quite modest. The evidence for ANY kind of metabolic disease of that sort is incredibly small, and evidence for its effect is even smaller. When an article then goes to pull in even MORE questionable research about "saccharin and other artificial sweeteners"--as if they are the same--it's even more questionable.

The very fact that Gewirtz found the same effect with two profoundly different substances BUT NOT ANY THE OTHERS that should have the same mode of action makes his research even more questionable. And the fact that he OH SO CONVENIENTLY left out lecithin makes it pretty much absurd. Lecithin is a natural emulsifier and surfactant found in tons and tons of foods we all eat. If emulsifiers were a huge risk, cutting out the ones on his hit list wouldn't do a bit of good for anyone because they're found in everything.

Another whiff of quackery:

“When it comes to people making their own decisions, between our studies and others out there, it’s better to eat less processed food,” he says.

If you go on to read his research, you come to the SWIFT conclusion that he's full of crap (pun intended) but it might actually mean a little something to someone with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis--that emulsifiers might be a bit rough on your insides if they're already diseased.

Also, you would note that EVEN HE ADMITTED that the fat mice got fat because they ate more. =_=

Seriously, now. He's claiming "metabolic syndrome" when he himself flatly admits that the mice just plain ate more. "Stuffing one's face" syndrome, yes. "Metabolic syndrome," nooooooo.

Maybe those mice, bred to have messed-up guts, got upset tummies when their guts were damaged and ate more to try to make it feel better. We don't know. But we do know that there's no "metabolic syndrome" at play.

MamaBirdBoss

Anyhow, I'm extremely, EXTREMELY suspicious of his dosage rates and more. As one person in the comments notes, the dosage is highly suspect.