What is "Processed Food"?
Replies
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Very good definition.0
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Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Pantothenic acid, Pyridoxine, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Folate, Calcium, Copper, Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Sodium, Zinc, Phytosterols, Amino acids, Alanine,Arginine, Aspartic acid, Cystine, Glutamic acid, Glycine, Histidine, Isoleucine, Leucine,Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalanine,Proline, Serine,Threonine, Tryptophan,Tyrosine, Valine
^ This is an apple.
This isn't even close to the chemical composition of an apple. It's missing lipids, sugars, fibers, flavor compounds, water, and things we haven't even isolated yet and also don't forget toxins like acetaldehyde.
Regardless, I appreciate this post.
I get really tired of people being like "TEH CHEMICALS!!!"
Exactly what I was thinking! I couldn't come up with any foods in my mind that were pretty much straight vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.
Correct. I did omit water, fiber, sugar and only a couple other that were easily identified. You got the jist of it tho.0 -
I do think processed varies from person to person. I usually mean stuff that isn't close to its natural form. It doesn't necessarily mean I won't eat it, but I will minimize it if I can't find a compelling reason to include it more regularly in my diet. (I drink non-dairy milk in my coffee daily because I love the taste and can easily fit it into my macros and calories. I don't eat non-dairy ice cream daily because I can't fit that in as easily. 25 calories for the milk versus 140-200 calories for the ice cream. The milk is a small daily sacrifice, the ice cream costs me more than is usually worth. Except for days like tonight.) I don't minimize them because of allegiance to clean eating but because I just generally seem to feel better.0
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Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Pantothenic acid, Pyridoxine, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Folate, Calcium, Copper, Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Sodium, Zinc, Phytosterols, Amino acids, Alanine,Arginine, Aspartic acid, Cystine, Glutamic acid, Glycine, Histidine, Isoleucine, Leucine,Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalanine,Proline, Serine,Threonine, Tryptophan,Tyrosine, Valine
^ This is an apple.
The thing is, the apple grows that way. Some corporation isn't injecting these substances in it artificially.0 -
Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Pantothenic acid, Pyridoxine, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Folate, Calcium, Copper, Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Sodium, Zinc, Phytosterols, Amino acids, Alanine,Arginine, Aspartic acid, Cystine, Glutamic acid, Glycine, Histidine, Isoleucine, Leucine,Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalanine,Proline, Serine,Threonine, Tryptophan,Tyrosine, Valine
^ This is an apple.
The thing is, the apple grows that way. Some corporation isn't injecting these substances in it artificially.
And you think your body knows or cares if that aspartic acid was put there by a tree or a guy in a lab?0 -
^true. The body breaks nutrients down into individual components, so it "sees" the food as the same, whether you eat an apple or ingest its components from a laboratory slushie.0
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^true. The body breaks nutrients down into individual components, so it "sees" the food as the same, whether you eat an apple or ingest its components from a laboratory slushie.
Exactly.
You can make the claim that the apple or broccoli spear or whatever has some compounds in it not found in another food of similar macronutrient content and therefore the apple or broccoli spear is better.
However, you cannot pretend that it makes any difference whether an individual amino acid molecule was placed into a food by a factory or a tree.0 -
^true. The body breaks nutrients down into individual components, so it "sees" the food as the same, whether you eat an apple or ingest its components from a laboratory slushie.
Exactly.
You can make the claim that the apple or broccoli spear or whatever has some compounds in it not found in another food of similar macronutrient content and therefore the apple or broccoli spear is better.
However, you cannot pretend that it makes any difference whether an individual amino acid molecule was placed into a food by a factory or a tree.
it actually does make a difference in how quickly/easily food is absorbed. an apple "slushie" will get absorbed faster and more easily than an apple. same reason we chew our food before swallowing.
OP, for a comprehensive list of processed foods, see jonnythan's food diary.
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Would you all eat this piece of food?
Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Pantothenic acid, Pyridoxine, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Folate, Calcium, Copper, Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Sodium, Zinc, Phytosterols, Amino acids, Alanine,Arginine, Aspartic acid, Cystine, Glutamic acid, Glycine, Histidine, Isoleucine, Leucine,Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalanine,Proline, Serine,Threonine, Tryptophan,Tyrosine, Valine
those also aren't ingredients.
they're also natural.
i don't see phosphates. I don't see nitrates. I don't see HFCS. I don't see anything that's been bleached or enriched or fortified. i don't see anything that was synthetically added to the apple...
yeah... not all long lists of words are created equal.
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^true. The body breaks nutrients down into individual components, so it "sees" the food as the same, whether you eat an apple or ingest its components from a laboratory slushie.
Exactly.
You can make the claim that the apple or broccoli spear or whatever has some compounds in it not found in another food of similar macronutrient content and therefore the apple or broccoli spear is better.
However, you cannot pretend that it makes any difference whether an individual amino acid molecule was placed into a food by a factory or a tree.
it actually does make a difference in how quickly/easily food is absorbed. an apple "slushie" will get absorbed faster and more easily than an apple. same reason we chew our food before swallowing.
But it's still an apple whether you chew or swallow. And the body cannot physically absorb it from your small intestine until it's broken down into individual molecules so that's kind of irrelevant anyway.0 -
I guess I use the term processed incorrectly. To me healthy "unprocesed" means limited ingredients, nothing I can't pronounce, and if it was an item available to mankind before the industrial revolution, it is worth considering. No corn syrup or modified anything. If it came from a tree, plant or the ground, and still has the skin or stem, even better. Happy, uncaged animals taste better and don't need hormones or antibiotics.
Whole, clean foods, organic if possible, and if it was grown or made in my state thats a bonus. Artificial is not a flavor. Neither is sodium. Genetically modified scares the heck out of me. I prefer things modified by Mother Earth. Naive? Maybe, but I'm hopeful I can make conscious choices. And make the best choices I have available to me.0 -
Exactly, it's just a matter of opinion. For example some people say that pop tarts taste good, while others say it taste like hard cardboard with a kinda sweet goo stuck to it, neither are right or wrong, it's what you believe it to be.I studied nutrition science in college, and "processed food" wasn't a term I remember being used. I looked up the definition today, and here's what I found:
"Food processing is the transformation of raw ingredients into food, or of food into other forms."
By that definition, processed food seems to include just about everything at the supermarket except for raw produce. Milk, flour, meats, orange juice, granola ect. This sounds like a stringent raw diet to me. However, I've seen many people on here saying that they've cut out processed foods, so I doubt that they're defining processed food in the same way. Is there a general connotation for this term, or is it something like "clean eating", where everyone has their own rules?0 -
^true. The body breaks nutrients down into individual components, so it "sees" the food as the same, whether you eat an apple or ingest its components from a laboratory slushie.
Exactly.
You can make the claim that the apple or broccoli spear or whatever has some compounds in it not found in another food of similar macronutrient content and therefore the apple or broccoli spear is better.
However, you cannot pretend that it makes any difference whether an individual amino acid molecule was placed into a food by a factory or a tree.
it actually does make a difference in how quickly/easily food is absorbed. an apple "slushie" will get absorbed faster and more easily than an apple. same reason we chew our food before swallowing.
But it's still an apple whether you chew or swallow. And the body cannot physically absorb it from your small intestine until it's broken down into individual molecules so that's kind of irrelevant anyway.
truth, but not all food gets broken all the way down to the point that it's absorbable. more so, the more quickly and easily food is absorbed makes it more likely that you'll get all the nutrients out of it. apple mush assimilates much faster than... say... peanut pieces, that need to stay in the stomach for a long period of time for the hcl/enzymes to break it down.
anyway, we're splitting hairs. no biggie.
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I guess I use the term processed incorrectly. To me healthy "unprocesed" means limited ingredients, nothing I can't pronounce, and if it was an item available to mankind before the industrial revolution, it is worth considering. No corn syrup or modified anything. If it came from a tree, plant or the ground, and still has the skin or stem, even better. Happy, uncaged animals taste better and don't need hormones or antibiotics.
Whole, clean foods, organic if possible, and if it was grown or made in my state thats a bonus. Artificial is not a flavor. Neither is sodium. Genetically modified scares the heck out of me. I prefer things modified by Mother Earth. Naive? Maybe, but I'm hopeful I can make conscious choices. And make the best choices I have available to me.
love. this.
ain't nothin' naive about it.0 -
I stick to single ingredient foods (there are exceptions) when I am at the grocery store, and if I want something I make it myself.
I feel better, I stay full longer, I make better choices, I'm a better cook, and I rarely overeat.
It's awesome!0 -
I guess I use the term processed incorrectly. To me healthy "unprocesed" means limited ingredients, nothing I can't pronounce, and if it was an item available to mankind before the industrial revolution, it is worth considering. No corn syrup or modified anything. If it came from a tree, plant or the ground, and still has the skin or stem, even better. Happy, uncaged animals taste better and don't need hormones or antibiotics.
Whole, clean foods, organic if possible, and if it was grown or made in my state thats a bonus. Artificial is not a flavor. Neither is sodium. Genetically modified scares the heck out of me. I prefer things modified by Mother Earth. Naive? Maybe, but I'm hopeful I can make conscious choices. And make the best choices I have available to me.
That is, frankly, a nonsensical definition of unprocessed. None of the things you mentioned have anything to do with the act of processing. You're talking about whole foods, "clean" foods, or "organic" foods. Not "unprocessed" foods.
Heck, we all know what a "food processor" is. It's not a device that puts chemicals you've never heard of into food. It's a device that chops food into little tiny bits.0 -
I guess I use the term processed incorrectly. To me healthy "unprocesed" means limited ingredients, nothing I can't pronounce, and if it was an item available to mankind before the industrial revolution, it is worth considering. No corn syrup or modified anything. If it came from a tree, plant or the ground, and still has the skin or stem, even better. Happy, uncaged animals taste better and don't need hormones or antibiotics.
Whole, clean foods, organic if possible, and if it was grown or made in my state thats a bonus. Artificial is not a flavor. Neither is sodium. Genetically modified scares the heck out of me. I prefer things modified by Mother Earth. Naive? Maybe, but I'm hopeful I can make conscious choices. And make the best choices I have available to me.
That is, frankly, a nonsensical definition of unprocessed. None of the things you mentioned have anything to do with the act of processing. You're talking about whole foods, "clean" foods, or "organic" foods. Not "unprocessed" foods.
Heck, we all know what a "food processor" is. It's not a device that puts chemicals you've never heard of into food. It's a device that chops food into little tiny bits.
whole, clean, organic foods are also unprocessed smartypants.
dude, you've got your opinions and others have theirs. neither are invalid, sad to say. stop trying to convince people they're wrong.
(before you throw it back at me, you're the only person who I will straight up say is "wrong" about their diet/choices/opinions, because you're the only person I've run into on here who just doesn't give a **** about their health and doesn't believe that whole foods are better for you than processed foods)0 -
I stick to single ingredient foods (there are exceptions) when I am at the grocery store, and if I want something I make it myself.
I feel better, I stay full longer, I make better choices, I'm a better cook, and I rarely overeat.
It's awesome!
kick *kitten* 0 -
I processed the rosemary from my garden....I picked it.:bigsmile:0
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I processed the rosemary from my garden....I picked it.:bigsmile:
:huh:0 -
This is a term I've struggled with recently. I've modified my thoughts on what processed means, but it is still hard to define. I tend to think of unprocessed foods as things that haven't had anything AT ALL done to them. I think of cold pressed extra virgin olive oil, and whole wheat flour, ground beef and tea and things like that as "minimally processed". I consider bread, pasta, and cocoa as slightly more processed. By the time it gets to things I would have a hard time making in my own kitchen, I start to avoid those things: things like soybean oil, breakfast cereals, and "cream of...." soups. Then there are things like poptarts and pringles that are highly processed.
The thing is that "processed" doesn't always translate into "empty calories". Every single 20g protein bar on the market is very highly processed, but it is still pretty nutrient dense. I'm leery of them because of the weird ingredients and all, and I'm pretty sure they aren't as healthy as it would appear that they are based on their macro nutrients. But I've been known to resort to them, at times, just to get me to where I want to be.
But when someone asks me how many times a week I eat processed foods, I have no idea what to say! I eat olive oil almost every day! I eat bread, and corn chips several times a week. But I'm not sure I typically eat any foods that many people would define as processed. Or at least not when I eat what I think I should. I eat crap that I know I shouldn't at least 5 days a week.0 -
Is food considered processed if I chew it before I swallow it? Is mastication regulated by the FDA?0
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The term processed really has no meaningful definition, nor does the term organic. This is an excellent site for consumer protection explaining the issue
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/organic.html0 -
Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Pantothenic acid, Pyridoxine, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Folate, Calcium, Copper, Iron, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Sodium, Zinc, Phytosterols, Amino acids, Alanine,Arginine, Aspartic acid, Cystine, Glutamic acid, Glycine, Histidine, Isoleucine, Leucine,Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalanine,Proline, Serine,Threonine, Tryptophan,Tyrosine, Valine
^ This is an apple.
i wonder what it is in that list that makes my temperature shoot through the roof and me throw up violently within 30 mins of eating it??0 -
Technically all food is processed, even from my garden. Not to be confused with cinnamon roll Captain Crunch with rosemary.I processed the rosemary from my garden....I picked it.:bigsmile:
:huh:0 -
This is a term I've struggled with recently. I've modified my thoughts on what processed means, but it is still hard to define. I tend to think of unprocessed foods as things that haven't had anything AT ALL done to them. I think of cold pressed extra virgin olive oil, and whole wheat flour, ground beef and tea and things like that as "minimally processed". I consider bread, pasta, and cocoa as slightly more processed. By the time it gets to things I would have a hard time making in my own kitchen, I start to avoid those things: things like soybean oil, breakfast cereals, and "cream of...." soups. Then there are things like poptarts and pringles that are highly processed.
Degrees of processing-I like that! Makes more sense than processed vs. unprocessed.0 -
This is a term I've struggled with recently. I've modified my thoughts on what processed means, but it is still hard to define. I tend to think of unprocessed foods as things that haven't had anything AT ALL done to them. I think of cold pressed extra virgin olive oil, and whole wheat flour, ground beef and tea and things like that as "minimally processed". I consider bread, pasta, and cocoa as slightly more processed. By the time it gets to things I would have a hard time making in my own kitchen, I start to avoid those things: things like soybean oil, breakfast cereals, and "cream of...." soups. Then there are things like poptarts and pringles that are highly processed.
The thing is that "processed" doesn't always translate into "empty calories". Every single 20g protein bar on the market is very highly processed, but it is still pretty nutrient dense. I'm leery of them because of the weird ingredients and all, and I'm pretty sure they aren't as healthy as it would appear that they are based on their macro nutrients. But I've been known to resort to them, at times, just to get me to where I want to be.
But when someone asks me how many times a week I eat processed foods, I have no idea what to say! I eat olive oil almost every day! I eat bread, and corn chips several times a week. But I'm not sure I typically eat any foods that many people would define as processed. Or at least not when I eat what I think I should. I eat crap that I know I shouldn't at least 5 days a week.
this highlights the problem with the term. which is the SAME problem that "clean" or "IIFYM" or "paleo" or "primal" or - wait for it - ANY term used to define large groups of foods or styles of eating.
there are differing definitions for every single one of these words depending on who you talk to. are ALL processed foods "bad"? of course not. are you going to inevitably eat some processed foods daily? of course you are. Is that a bad thing? No, obviously not.
The point is this. Trying to eat MORE "clean" foods and FEWER "processed" foods is the name of the game. No one needs to be perfect, and no one SHOULD be perfect.
generally speaking, I consider the word processed to mean anything made in a factory with added ingredients that aren't present in the foods natural state. if it's got more than one ingredient, it's processed. however, as I said, that doesn't inherently make it bad. what makes certain processed foods "bad" is certain added ingredients that were created by people in a lab, such as enriched/bleached/fortified flours, preservatives, flavorings, HFCS, etc, etc.
IMO0 -
This is a term I've struggled with recently. I've modified my thoughts on what processed means, but it is still hard to define. I tend to think of unprocessed foods as things that haven't had anything AT ALL done to them. I think of cold pressed extra virgin olive oil, and whole wheat flour, ground beef and tea and things like that as "minimally processed". I consider bread, pasta, and cocoa as slightly more processed. By the time it gets to things I would have a hard time making in my own kitchen, I start to avoid those things: things like soybean oil, breakfast cereals, and "cream of...." soups. Then there are things like poptarts and pringles that are highly processed.
Degrees of processing-I like that! Makes more sense than processed vs. unprocessed.
this is something I've always talked about but seems to get overlooked (maybe it's my inflammatory delivery... )
but yeah, there's absolutely a huge difference between a loaf of bread made with a couple ingredients and the typical mass-produced brands like wonder bread. one is LESS processed than the other and has fewer (or no) questionable ingredients0 -
Technically all food is processed, even from my garden. Not to be confused with cinnamon roll Captain Crunch with rosemary.I processed the rosemary from my garden....I picked it.:bigsmile:
:huh:
picking =/= processing
processing = adding of ingredients or denaturing the natural state of the food. picking and apple does not denature the apple.0 -
when i think of processed, i generally think of things that can sit at room temperature on the shelf with long use by dates.
fresh fruit and veg, raw meats/seafood and fresh dairy i consider as being close to their natural state, even though technically they aren't.
if it can be removed from a box/packet, warmed through and served, then i look at it as being processed. i know that description can cover frozen veg, but again frozen veg is close to its original state.
i've got bread in one cupboard that i forgot about. it's been there for at least 6 months and hasn't gone bad. processed in the extreme and never to be eaten...0
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