What exactly is "Processed Food"?

Silverkittycat

Can you pick it, catch it or kill it? If not, it's probably processed.

TriforceRaven

Usually I define "processed food" as food that is different than it's original state. Food that humans have messed with. So everything you named would be "processed food". However, not all processed food is "bad" for you. The canned veggies should be fine, although fresh veggies taste LOADS better (and are fresher!). Same with the peanut butter and the bread. I am not a fan of whole grain bread, but I love whole grain buns. I'm not fond of any bread anymore, really. EXCEPT for my grandma's homemade french bread! It's made out of flour, water, salt, and yeast (nothing too unhealthy!) and she makes 2-3 big loaves of it all the time! It's fresh, warm, yummy, and is useful for other things as well. It doesn't have anything that "bad" for you (besides maybe the flour). She lets me help her bake it sometimes. It's also really yummy to use to mop up the extra italian dressing on my salads. If you have the time, I urge you to try and find a recipe and bake some of this! You won't regret it, I promise. I don't even eat any other kind of bread anymore!

CapsFan17

I don't really like to eat canned veggies, but sometimes we run out of fresh stuff before we get a chance to go shopping, but they are terribly high in sodium! I know that now!

And Spam!! LOL!! That is so wrong! :sick:

When ever I use canned beans or vegetables I drain and rinse them. It helps reduce the sodium.

vjrose

Good place to start, is there an ingredient that you have no idea what it is, pretty good time to say, hmm, not eating that!

Silverkittycat

(Thank GOD for chocolate trees!!!!)

LuckyLeprechaun

I tend to consider processed food as anything that has multiple ingredients crushed up and mushed together into a whole new item by someone who is not you,

it is still processed even if the person who did these things IS you.

30yearssincebikini

If you're trying to stay away from processed food, shop the outer walls of the grocery store and avoid the aisles.

This is correct. Peanut butter is ok, and so is bread. Processed food is prepackaged food made to be more convenient. Things like Tuna Helper, canned foods, rice a roni, stuff like that. Frozen veggies are fine, because they tend to only have the veggies in them, without all the preservatives and crap. In other words, making stuff fresh like meat and potato meals, is better than spam and chips!

estjames

I don't really like to eat canned veggies, but sometimes we run out of fresh stuff before we get a chance to go shopping, but they are terribly high in sodium! I know that now!

And Spam!! LOL!! That is so wrong! :sick:

Do frozen as mentioned above. In addition to tasting better, they are not precooked as they are in canned, so frozen veggies tend to have more nutrients than canned.

lipglossjunky73

(Thank GOD for chocolate trees!!!!)

:blushing: :drinker:

Honestly, I don't subscribe to extreme anything. I like to eat as clean as *I* can, but do I eat chocolate, drink coffee, and eat Cliff bars and the occasional ice cream or bowl of Doritoes? Yup. In fact, as a vegetarian,. all of that soy crap is processed. I try to balance it out with lots of whole grains, fresh fruit and veggies, and an occasional green juice. It works for me. if I had more money and time, I would be a raw foody, but I don't. One day I will, maybe. If not, I am doing OK.

Silverkittycat

(Thank GOD for chocolate trees!!!!)

:blushing: :drinker:

Honestly, I don't subscribe to extreme anything. I like to eat as clean as *I* can, but do I eat chocolate, drink coffee, and eat Cliff bars and the occasional ice cream or bowl of Doritoes? Yup. In fact, as a vegetarian,. all of that soy crap is processed. I try to balance it out with lots of whole grains, fresh fruit and veggies, and an occasional green juice. It works for me. if I had more money and time, I would be a raw foody, but I don't. One day I will, maybe. If not, I am doing OK.

There's no soy protein isolates running around? Could swear I saw some in my yard earlier.

Not a vegetarian, but I'm with you. :drinker:

Unknown

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MrsCon40

Unless you pull it out of the dirt or off the tree, or gnaw on it while it's still standing on it's hooves - it's processed.

bbygrl5

Most foods we eat are processed to some degree. The more unprocessed you can eat, the better, but you're not going to be able to cut processing out completely, unless you work on a farm and want to spend 6-10 hours a day completely preparing every step of your food.

What most people mean when they say processed is a high level of processing, like someone else mentioned, it has instructions on the box that say pour and heat.

Silverkittycat

It seems like a stupid question, but it's not that clear. OK, some things are clear. Twinkies are processed food. Raw carrots are not. I've got that part down.

But what about bread? Would you call that processed? I am talking about the hearty, healthy, whole grain goodness kind of bread. Not wonder bread.

What about canned veggies? I don't care for them, but sometimes eat them. Like beans, black beans and kidney beans. I usually eat those from a can. Is that processed?

What about peanut butter? I could buy a bunch of peanuts and smash them up myself, but it's a lot easier for me to buy it already made. I get the "Adams" kind with no sugar. Do you consider that processed?

I'm trying to eat healthier and eliminate processed foods from my diet, but I do still eat some (yes, I eat frozen entrees for lunch 3 x a week! Don't judge me!) So yes, I know those are processed. But there are lots of gray areas. Your thoughts?

Eat less, move more. Life is too short to worry about the "right" food. Enjoy.

bcattoes

What most people mean when they say processed is a high level of processing, like someone else mentioned, it has instructions on the box that say pour and heat.

Unless, of course, it's a pack of frozen vegetables.

vs1023

I go by "5 ingredients or less" principle. Bread should have 5 or less, yogurt 5 or less etc... Beyond that I've never really seen the point of frozen or canned vegetables.

Same.

I do buy some things for convenience as I'm very busy like I just ate some hummus and tzatziki, but the ingredient list was really short. I prefer fresh veggies and buying in season keeps it cheaper.

I don't eat frozen meals like lean cuisine, etc. I don't eat crackers, cookies, chips, etc. I shop the perimeter of the supermarket. I do buy diced tomato sometimes for making pots of sauce cause it's just a time saver for me, but in a cardboard box, less BPA that way.

Bentley2718

"Processed food" is a completely arbitrary distinction some people (myself often included) make about food. It's a label we apply as a "better sounding" way to define some food as "good" and other food as "bad." That's it.

I don't like the 5 or 7 ingredient rule, because I think it's a little silly, the number of ingredients is only somewhat related to the health value of foods. When I make homemade soup, completely from scratch, it totally fails the 5/7 ingredient test. However, I typically make it from fresh veggies; dried, frozen, or canned beans; and maybe canned or packaged tomatoes (I try to avoid tomatoes canned in metal cans, because of the BPA in the can liner). I don't consider this unhealthy, and I don't think it qualifies as "processed" in the ways most people think of "processed food."

All of that said, I try to eat food that is at least somewhat recognizable. I ask myself, can I tell what the constituent parts are? I have no idea what really went into cheese-its, I'm pretty sure I know what's in a can of beans, rice (even white rice), or veggies. It's arbitrary, but I'd say think carefully about what matters to you. If you don't want to buy your own peanuts to make peanut butter, buy natural peanut butter that lists only peanuts, salt, and maybe oil on the label (like Adams, which you mention), or maybe even try raw nut butter. I do this sometimes. Similarly, I'll eat canned beans, although other veggies I eat fresh or sometimes frozen.

I do sort of like the, would your grandmother, or great-grandmother (or someone's great grandmother) have recognized this as food guideline. Ground nuts? Grannies get it, if nothing else as nut flour. Low-salt canned beans/veggies? My grandmother, etc. canned their own. Quinoa? Not my grandmother, but someone's grandmother ate it. Brightly colored, cheese flavored, fish shaped crackers? Not so much.

Bentley2718

Oh, and my favorite food rule of all. Never, ever, eat anything with dihydrogen monoxide in it. Chemicals are evil.

jcstanton

there are different degrees of processing so it depends on the person and how much they want to cut out.

technically, anything that is not in its original form is processed, so that would include wheat bread, peanut butter etc.

I would define processed as ready meals / convenince food / some canned foods (veggies are not as bad as they are just plain veggies with water / salt, but meat in a can like Spam is just so wrong :sick: ) / bread that stays fresh for weeks / things that take some thinking about to work out what it is actually made out of!

^^^THIS! Especially the part about canned meat...and even things like frozen chicken patties. I look at the ingredient label and if it says "mechanically separated ________" anything, I don't buy it. I don't even like bologna and hot dogs because of that.

I don't eat any white bread, white pasta, or white rice. I look for labels that say "whole grain", and I check the fiber content...I like at least 3g per serving. Anything that has an unusually high sodium or sugar content is also usually over processed.

I'm with you on the canned veggies. I stay away from most of them with the occasional exception of canned legumes just because it takes so long to cook the dry version. I'll also use lower sodium or no sodium added canned tomato products to make my own tomato sauces and soups. Other than that I eat mostly fresh or frozen veggies and fruits.

If I drink juices, it usually go with organic or juices that go straight from the press into the bottle without any additives.

Also, on butter spreads and such, look for NON-HYDROGENATED products. As far as peanut butter, you can go organic and that helps. However, I have a grocery store near my house that has a bulk nut and granola counter. You can take your favorite nuts, like peanuts, almonds, and cashews, and put them through their industrial grinder right there in the store so you know there's nothing else in there. It's a little more expensive that way, but if you're like me, you don't use that much so a single pound will last me for a month or more.

A good rule of thumb....and I've heard Jillian Michaels say this, as well...ALWAYS read the ingredient label. If there's anything on the list that you can't pronounce or you don't have a clue what it is, then it's probably not a good idea to put it in your body. The shorter the ingredient list, the better.

Silverkittycat

_LilPowerHouse

If you have a smart phone you could use the app called fooducate.. you scan the barcode of the item in question and if its in their database it will give you all the info you need..

JfMarrs

If the ingredients list has items that your grandmother wouldn't recognize as food then it's processed.

langababy

Oh, and my favorite food rule of all. Never, ever, eat anything with dihydrogen monoxide in it. Chemicals are evil.

*gasp!* Not the dihydrogen monoxide! (As a chemist that one always makes me giggle)

My thought on the processed foods is, everything in moderation. It's probably not all that great to eat lean cuisines for every meal, but if I eat a bowl of cereal, or have some whole wheat bread or pasta with my veggies, that should be just fine (for me at least).

JPDad

Oh, and my favorite food rule of all. Never, ever, eat anything with dihydrogen monoxide in it. Chemicals are evil.

I try to get at least 8 cups of that in a day. Sometimes I run it through some ground roasted coffee beans first.

I always liked the shop on the perimeter of the supermarket rule of thumb. Make most your meals from those raw ingredients.