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What is clean eating?
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diannethegeek wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »FunkyTobias wrote: »megang2188 wrote: »Plain and simple with clean eating, if you can't pronounce an ingredient in the food, then DON'T EAT IT.
quinoa should be in that pic
It is.
But it's in an unclean box so it doesn't count.
I'll bet that box even has a bar code on it. Egads, the horror.1 -
diannethegeek wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »FunkyTobias wrote: »megang2188 wrote: »Plain and simple with clean eating, if you can't pronounce an ingredient in the food, then DON'T EAT IT.
quinoa should be in that pic
It is.
Doh! So it is. I totally missed it.0 -
The whole "my food is clean because I wash it, har har!" is a like a dad joke that will never, ever, ever go away (apparently)...0
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lemurcat12 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »stevencloser wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »I haven't seen many people in that camp who define processed to include things like cottage cheese though, but maybe I just haven't been around MFP long enough. In a similar way to them meaning more nutrient-dense by "clean" they most often seem to mean "more calorie-dense" when they say "processed." For example, that guy who included the homemade rhubarb pie as junky processed stuff seemed to equate processed foods with calorie-dense foods.
But cottage cheese simply IS processed. I find it annoying that people use words to mean something bizarre (like "processed" = anything I think is unhealthy and therefore protein powder is not processed).
However, I agree we are going around in circles on this.
I agree with this.
But I also find it annoying when people try to say things such as picking a vegetable or shelling an almond = processed food. Yes, yes, those are technically "processes" but I don't believe for one second anyone really believes that's what anyone means by the term "processed foods".
Indeed, what people mean when they say "processed foods" is "processed foods I don't approve of".
Yeah? Because I think Fritos are a processed food you assume I don't approve of Fritos? I guess again I'm the weirdo in the group because I think Fritos are not clean, are a processed food and would even call them junk food but I still enjoy eating them.
If I genuinely considered a food "not clean," I would avoid eating it. But yes, my issue is with those who say "cut out unclean foods" or "NO processed foods" or the like. Since you acknowledge that just being processed doesn't make a food bad (or something to be always avoided or impossible to include in a healthful diet) and that your meaning of "clean" is distinct from "processed," you strike me as quite different from the usual MFP "clean eater" and I probably wouldn't bother arguing about "clean foods" if the usual person using it shared your views. (I'd still not care for the term for the reasons I've explained, and I don't agree with your own definitions of "natural" vs. not, but it wouldn't bug me the way it does.)
I think one of my main issues is the assumption that any level of processing makes a food worse and that "processing" in general is bad. (Also, the idea that "junk food" can't be included in a healthful diet by anyone -- so the fact I like ice cream makes my diet unclean and unhealthful, no matter what else I eat.)
I believe more than you imagine might share my definition of the word. I think it is the usage of the word processing that gets many hung up. Trying to apply any level of processing when it's usually not what was meant. A good number of the arguments I see are about what constitutes a "processed food" rather than what constitutes a "clean food". My definition would include processing because the more a food is processed the further it is likely to be from it's natural state.
Take the 3 ingredient Frito for example. It's highly processed. The corn must be shucked, removed from the cob and ground. The oil must be removed through a process and likely via a chemical process because the odds that Frito Lay is using naturally pressed oil are pretty slim. The salt is also obtained via a chemical process. All this processing is what makes it junk food and keeps it from being clean.
I disagree that processing is what makes it "junk food." My understanding of the slang term "junk food" is that it means low nutrients for the calories, and so what makes Fritos junk food is that they aren't particularly high in nutrients and have lots of calories, 56% of which are from corn oil.
I have this Vega protein and greens powder I decided to try since I was interested in checking out vegan protein powder options. Sadly, it's not tasty, and it's super processed and not "clean" (as I understand your use of the term), but I would not consider it junk food.
The pasta you post about sometimes with fiber added also strikes me as less "clean" AND more processed than standard pasta (homemade or purchased), but it's possible to argue that it's better for a weight loss plan and less "junk food" (I don't consider any pasta junk food, but I've seen others on MFP argue that it is), since it has fewer calories and more fiber (even compared with pasta made from whole grain flour).
Oh yeah, Fiber Gourmet pasta is absolutely not clean because it's highly processed. It's highly processed and I would agree not a junk food. I never said or meant to suggest all processed foods are junk food.
But yes, I concede your point about Fritos. If the end product were a nutritional powerhouse I suppose I would not consider it junk. Though if it were low calorie and low on nutrition I might consider it a junk food. I think of rice cakes as junk food.0 -
As is the suggestion of eating twinkles all day...Bry_Lander wrote: »The whole "my food is clean because I wash it, har har!" is a like a dad joke that will never, ever, ever go away (apparently)...0 -
What bugs me the most is the "No chemicals" thing.
Chemistry is LITERALLY the study of all matter. It has a well defined and specific definition. Everything on the planet is matter. A human is matter. EVERYTHING IS A CHEMICAL OR MIX OF CHEMICALS!! UUUUGGGHH. LOL.
Anyone who says no chemicals better stop breathing and drinking then. And also stop existing. It's the only way to not have or be chemicals.1 -
What bugs me the most is the "No chemicals" thing.
Chemistry is LITERALLY the study of all matter. It has a well defined and specific definition. Everything on the planet is matter. A human is matter. EVERYTHING IS A CHEMICAL OR MIX OF CHEMICALS!! UUUUGGGHH. LOL.
Anyone who says no chemicals better stop breathing and drinking then. And also stop existing. It's the only way to not have or be chemicals.
Oh come on...you know this is how they make doritos...
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What bugs me the most is the "No chemicals" thing.
Chemistry is LITERALLY the study of all matter. It has a well defined and specific definition. Everything on the planet is matter. A human is matter. EVERYTHING IS A CHEMICAL OR MIX OF CHEMICALS!! UUUUGGGHH. LOL.
Anyone who says no chemicals better stop breathing and drinking then. And also stop existing. It's the only way to not have or be chemicals.
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*sigh*. About salt. Refining does not necessarily involve a "chemical" purification process. Salt crystals are formed from a brine inside a steel tank with heating tubes in it. Heat. That's it.
Do you think that clear distilled water has been produced chemically? How about pure white salt crystals? Do you know what pure means?
http://www.siftocanada.com/en/about-us/salt-canada/siftos-goderich-mine/
I think table salt is likely what is used on Fritos and I think that is a fairly highly processed product, usually with iodine added and often with an anti-caking agent added. Therefore I do not believe it to be a clean food.0 -
stevencloser wrote: »*sigh*. About salt. Refining does not necessarily involve a "chemical" purification process. Salt crystals are formed from a brine inside a steel tank with heating tubes in it. Heat. That's it.
Do you think that clear distilled water has been produced chemically? How about pure white salt crystals? Do you know what pure means?
http://www.siftocanada.com/en/about-us/salt-canada/siftos-goderich-mine/
Let's not forget "refined" sugar either. It's just cleaned. With water.
Right. Just wash some cane or beets and voila, sugar crystals.
Even the sugar association says there is more to it than that.
http://www.sugar.org/how-we-get-sugar/0 -
I am being baited. Bait bait bait. I can let it sit on the table and NO I won't even nibble. Lalalalala I can't see it. It does not exist.
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Need2Exerc1se wrote: »stevencloser wrote: »*sigh*. About salt. Refining does not necessarily involve a "chemical" purification process. Salt crystals are formed from a brine inside a steel tank with heating tubes in it. Heat. That's it.
Do you think that clear distilled water has been produced chemically? How about pure white salt crystals? Do you know what pure means?
http://www.siftocanada.com/en/about-us/salt-canada/siftos-goderich-mine/
Let's not forget "refined" sugar either. It's just cleaned. With water.
Right. Just wash some cane or beets and voila, sugar crystals.
Even the sugar association says there is more to it than that.
http://www.sugar.org/how-we-get-sugar/
"At the end, hot water is sprayed over the light brown crystals to remove the remaining molasses, leaving pure naturally white sugar crystals."
The difference between "raw" brown sugar and "evil" refined sugar. Putting it through a centrifuge and spraying it with water.0 -
stevencloser wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »stevencloser wrote: »*sigh*. About salt. Refining does not necessarily involve a "chemical" purification process. Salt crystals are formed from a brine inside a steel tank with heating tubes in it. Heat. That's it.
Do you think that clear distilled water has been produced chemically? How about pure white salt crystals? Do you know what pure means?
http://www.siftocanada.com/en/about-us/salt-canada/siftos-goderich-mine/
Let's not forget "refined" sugar either. It's just cleaned. With water.
Right. Just wash some cane or beets and voila, sugar crystals.
Even the sugar association says there is more to it than that.
http://www.sugar.org/how-we-get-sugar/
"At the end, hot water is sprayed over the light brown crystals to remove the remaining molasses, leaving pure naturally white sugar crystals."
The difference between "raw" brown sugar and "evil" refined sugar. Putting it through a centrifuge and spraying it with water.
OIC0 -
2snakeswoman wrote: »To me, it means foods that are not processed, that you can take directly from nature and eat or drink with 0 to minimal preparation.
Would Greek yogurt be "clean" or not. It is processed, is not taken "directly from nature", preparation is over 8 hours.0 -
Bry_Lander wrote: »The whole "my food is clean because I wash it, har har!" is a like a dad joke that will never, ever, ever go away (apparently)...
It is a joke to think you can wash all the stuff that is sprayed on food away by washing it.
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stevencloser wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »stevencloser wrote: »*sigh*. About salt. Refining does not necessarily involve a "chemical" purification process. Salt crystals are formed from a brine inside a steel tank with heating tubes in it. Heat. That's it.
Do you think that clear distilled water has been produced chemically? How about pure white salt crystals? Do you know what pure means?
http://www.siftocanada.com/en/about-us/salt-canada/siftos-goderich-mine/
Let's not forget "refined" sugar either. It's just cleaned. With water.
Right. Just wash some cane or beets and voila, sugar crystals.
Even the sugar association says there is more to it than that.
http://www.sugar.org/how-we-get-sugar/
"At the end, hot water is sprayed over the light brown crystals to remove the remaining molasses, leaving pure naturally white sugar crystals."
The difference between "raw" brown sugar and "evil" refined sugar. Putting it through a centrifuge and spraying it with water.
Also I just noticed the irony that the clean sugar becomes unclean after washing it.1 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »*sigh*. About salt. Refining does not necessarily involve a "chemical" purification process. Salt crystals are formed from a brine inside a steel tank with heating tubes in it. Heat. That's it.
Do you think that clear distilled water has been produced chemically? How about pure white salt crystals? Do you know what pure means?
http://www.siftocanada.com/en/about-us/salt-canada/siftos-goderich-mine/
I think table salt is likely what is used on Fritos and I think that is a fairly highly processed product, usually with iodine added and often with an anti-caking agent added. Therefore I do not believe it to be a clean food.
Your body does not produce iodine on its own, though, and iodine is necessary for the body to produce certain thyroid hormones. So, while adding it may make it less "clean", it also helps prevent iodine deficiency. And again, see the comparison to the Himalayan sea salt. While table salt may be processed, the arguably "cleaner" Himalayan sea salt apparently has a lot of stuff in it that I'd rather not eat.
Huh, interesting paradox: by your logic, removing impurities from something (cleaning it) makes it less "clean".0 -
ClosetBayesian wrote: »Need2Exerc1se wrote: »*sigh*. About salt. Refining does not necessarily involve a "chemical" purification process. Salt crystals are formed from a brine inside a steel tank with heating tubes in it. Heat. That's it.
Do you think that clear distilled water has been produced chemically? How about pure white salt crystals? Do you know what pure means?
http://www.siftocanada.com/en/about-us/salt-canada/siftos-goderich-mine/
I think table salt is likely what is used on Fritos and I think that is a fairly highly processed product, usually with iodine added and often with an anti-caking agent added. Therefore I do not believe it to be a clean food.
Your body does not produce iodine on its own, though, and iodine is necessary for the body to produce certain thyroid hormones. So, while adding it may make it less "clean", it also helps prevent iodine deficiency. And again, see the comparison to the Himalayan sea salt. While table salt may be processed, the arguably "cleaner" Himalayan sea salt apparently has a lot of stuff in it that I'd rather not eat.
Huh, interesting paradox: by your logic, removing impurities from something (cleaning it) makes it less "clean".
Only a paradox if you insist that cleaner = better.0 -
Bry_Lander wrote: »The whole "my food is clean because I wash it, har har!" is a like a dad joke that will never, ever, ever go away (apparently)...
This is true. Good way to think of it.0 -
2snakeswoman wrote: »To me, it means foods that are not processed, that you can take directly from nature and eat or drink with 0 to minimal preparation.
Would Greek yogurt be "clean" or not. It is processed, is not taken "directly from nature", preparation is over 8 hours.
Depends on how you define clean. I wouldn't consider it clean, though I would consider Greek yogurt without additives much cleaner than with.0
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