Limiting and or Eliminating Processed Foods.

bluesheeponahill

Hello all!

It's been a while since I have been in here. I need some nutrition help, please!

So I've been told my gut is now too sensitive for most foods, so ideally, the less processed it is, the better. (it's taken a year of specialists to reach this conclusion.) I have an appointment with a nutritionist, but not for another couple weeks, in the mean time, I'm trying to overhaul my diet now while I can.

I've successfully lost and kept 13kgs off the past 2 years, but getting the weight creep back in thanks to COVID. Currently up by about 4kgs. Not wanting to undo all my hard work, Can someone please point me to some fabulous websites where the food is unprocessed as possible, or least I have to make the items from scratch, without spending 24/7 chained to the kitchen? I'm happy to prep, like I can make batches of tomato sauces, so doing a day of prep isn't the issue, it's making sure I'm not spending 2 hours creating a dinner that doesn't involve ensuring every item I put in doesn't have added chemicals or presertatives. Oh and also not high in calories. I'm trying to keep to the 300-350 calories per main meal. It's been the most successful method for me.

Any help would be ever so appreciated.

Thank you!!

psychod787

bluesheeponahill wrote: »

Hello all!

It's been a while since I have been in here. I need some nutrition help, please!

So I've been told my gut is now too sensitive for most foods, so ideally, the less processed it is, the better. (it's taken a year of specialists to reach this conclusion.) I have an appointment with a nutritionist, but not for another couple weeks, in the mean time, I'm trying to overhaul my diet now while I can.

I've successfully lost and kept 13kgs off the past 2 years, but getting the weight creep back in thanks to COVID. Currently up by about 4kgs. Not wanting to undo all my hard work, Can someone please point me to some fabulous websites where the food is unprocessed as possible, or least I have to make the items from scratch, without spending 24/7 chained to the kitchen? I'm happy to prep, like I can make batches of tomato sauces, so doing a day of prep isn't the issue, it's making sure I'm not spending 2 hours creating a dinner that doesn't involve ensuring every item I put in doesn't have added chemicals or presertatives. Oh and also not high in calories. I'm trying to keep to the 300-350 calories per main meal. It's been the most successful method for me.

Any help would be ever so appreciated.

Thank you!!

The simpler the better imho. When you stick to the protein, starch and 2 veg routine, prepping is far easier. Jmho

wizzybeth

Here are some pins I found by searching for "clean eating recipes" - good luck!

Clean Eating Recipes - Pinterest

Also, MFP has some good recipes too!

MFP Recipes

lemurcat2

Just cook from meats, eggs, dairy (if you can have that, obv anything but plain milk is processed), whole food starches (dried beats, potatoes, sweet potatoes, tons of dried grain options), plus (of course!) whole fruits and veg, and you are good.

I'd buy a cookbook or two that look appealing. The Bittman ones are pretty easy and fast if you are a beginner cook (the Fish one is great if you like fish). There are vegetable themed ones, and I love as inspiration the ones that focus on cooking seasonally and from their own gardens. A nice website is https://www.101cookbooks.com/.

dragon_girl26

lemurcat2 wrote: »

Just cook from meats, eggs, dairy (if you can have that, obv anything but plain milk is processed), whole food starches (dried beats, potatoes, sweet potatoes, tons of dried grain options), plus (of course!) whole fruits and veg, and you are good.

I'd buy a cookbook or two that look appealing. The Bittman ones are pretty easy and fast if you are a beginner cook (the Fish one is great if you like fish). There are vegetable themed ones, and I love as inspiration the ones that focus on cooking seasonally and from their own gardens. A nice website is https://www.101cookbooks.com/.

I have gotten SO much inspiration from cookbooks lately! I'll second the recommendation here for 101 Cookbooks...Heidi Swanson is great and I have a few of her books. Lots of good seasonal stuff there. I think I'll be making the heirloom apple salad soon.
https://www.loveandlemons.com is pretty nice too, and I've found good stuff on Skinnytaste blog as well (https://www.skinnytaste.com).

Recipes can function more like a template, anyway, so you can always swap out things as needed.

I always recommend checking out your local library for cookbooks and ideas. Amazon is also still running their 3 for the price of 2 sale on a lot of books right now, too, so that's another good place for them. I may or may not have went a little nuts on that sale recently.... 🙄

HeidiCooksSupper

Look up "sheet pan dinners" and you'll find lots of recipes for simple meals that are made with "unprocessed" foods. Although many ask for a marinade or specific spices, remember you can adjust these to fit what works for you.

kshama2001

bluesheeponahill wrote: »

Hello all!

It's been a while since I have been in here. I need some nutrition help, please!

So I've been told my gut is now too sensitive for most foods, so ideally, the less processed it is, the better. (it's taken a year of specialists to reach this conclusion.) I have an appointment with a nutritionist, but not for another couple weeks, in the mean time, I'm trying to overhaul my diet now while I can.

I've successfully lost and kept 13kgs off the past 2 years, but getting the weight creep back in thanks to COVID. Currently up by about 4kgs. Not wanting to undo all my hard work, Can someone please point me to some fabulous websites where the food is unprocessed as possible, or least I have to make the items from scratch, without spending 24/7 chained to the kitchen? I'm happy to prep, like I can make batches of tomato sauces, so doing a day of prep isn't the issue, it's making sure I'm not spending 2 hours creating a dinner that doesn't involve ensuring every item I put in doesn't have added chemicals or presertatives. Oh and also not high in calories. I'm trying to keep to the 300-350 calories per main meal. It's been the most successful method for me.

Any help would be ever so appreciated.

Thank you!!

My mother does a lot of cooking from scratch, and does spend a LOT of time in the kitchen. She used to make all our bread. Heck, she used to grind the flour for bread from wheat berries with a hand-grinder! (We've been working on cleaning out her attic and barn and just got rid of a bunch of items, including her and my grandfather's grinders. I wonder which of her neighbors took them...)

If you want to expand from a protein, starch, and vegetable, there may be some trade-offs you can safely make and simplify things for yourself.

When I look at labels in supermarkets, I sometimes ask myself, "Is this how I would have made it myself?" If the answer is essentially "Yes" I have no problems buying it. I just looked at Newman's Sockarooni spaghetti sauce and Hunt's tomato sauce, and with the exception of citric acid, yes, I do use all of those ingredients. Citric acid occurs naturally in citrus fruits, and I do not have a problem with its inclusion. YMMV.

I wonder if it would be useful for you to consider the model the government of Brazil has recently adopted, which divides processed food into three categories:

1. Natural or minimally processed
2. Processed
3. Ultra-processed, with the recommendation to avoid consumption of this

http://www.fao.org/nutrition/education/food-dietary-guidelines/regions/brazil/en/

Ten Steps to Healthy Diets:

1. Make natural or minimally processed foods the basis of your diet

Natural or minimally processed foods, in great variety, and mainly of plant origin, are the basis for diets that are nutritionally balanced, delicious, culturally appropriate, and supportive of socially and environmentally sustainable food systems. Variety means foods of all types – cereals, legumes, roots, tubers, vegetables, fruits, nuts, milk, eggs, meat – and diversity within each type – such as beans and lentils, rice and corn, potato and cassava, tomatoes and squash, orange and banana, chicken and fish.

2. Use oils, fats, salt, and sugar in small amounts when seasoning and cooking natural or minimally processed foods and to create culinary preparations

As long as they are used in moderation in dishes and meals based on natural or minimally processed foods, oils, fats, salt, and sugar contribute to diverse and delicious diets without making them nutritionally unbalanced.

3. Limit consumption of processed foods

The ingredients and methods used in the manufacture of processed foods – such as vegetables in brine, fruits in syrup, cheeses and breads – unfavourably alter the nutritional composition of the foods from which they are derived. In small amounts, processed foods can be used as ingredients in dishes and meals based on natural or minimally processed foods.

4. Avoid consumption of ultra-processed foods

Because of their ingredients, ultra-processed foods such as salty fatty packaged snacks, soft drinks, sweetened breakfast cereals, and instant noodles, are nutritionally unbalanced. As a result of their formulation and presentation, they tend to be consumed in excess, and displace natural or minimally processed foods. Their means of production, distribution, marketing, and consumption damage culture, social life, and the environment.

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Full guide:

http://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/publicacoes/dietary_guidelines_brazilian_population.pdf