Lean Cuisine - good or bad?

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tash313
tash313 Posts: 11 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I eat Lean Cuisine frozen meals quite a lot when I'm at work, but I'm wondering if they are actually doing me any good. I love how convenient they are, and I think they are delicious, but I'm worry when it comes to pre-packaged stuff. Thoughts??
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Replies

  • mamaturner
    mamaturner Posts: 2,533 Member
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    I love 'em, but I don't eat them very often. I keep them in the freezer so there handy if I end up making something for dinner that doesn't fit in for the day. I wouldn't recommend eating them all the time. Pre made salads or even making your own salad for lunch the night before (or a sandwich) and some fruit deffinitly coulnd't hurt to throw in!
  • dremonas1220
    dremonas1220 Posts: 2 Member
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    I eat them for lunch M-F. They really are pretty good, but I am wondering if they are actually good for me? They have a TON of sodium. I am having a really hard time meeting my calories for the day too, so I am wondering if packing a sandwich would be better for me - not only to bump up my calories, but because it is not a frozen meal.
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
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    My take on them is that they're not real food.
    I was eating them very occasionally -- perhaps twice a month but I recently stopped buying them altogether because I kind of felt like I was cheating myself.

    They may be better than a daily fast food burger & fries (sometimes the best choice may just be the lesser of 2 evils), but you'd be doing your body a lot more favors by cooking up a little extra for dinner & taking leftovers for lunch. :smile:
  • xchrysalisx
    xchrysalisx Posts: 101
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    I eat these quite often for lunch when at work. They are so convenient and also low in fat and calories. My only concern with them is the amount of sodium that is in some of the meals. My BP and cholesterol is something my GP has me keeping an eye on lately so I'd love any suggestions that other people may have when it comes to something healthy for lunch that is also low in sodium.
  • Buzzkitty1
    Buzzkitty1 Posts: 134
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    I think they're okay once in a while, but I wouldn't make a habit out of them personally. I like some of the pizzas.
    I am far more satisfied if I bring last night's leftovers to work, or a big salad. It's real food and keeps me satisfied so much longer. It also does not blow me up like a tick with all that sodium.
  • LeeiaL
    LeeiaL Posts: 40
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    In general I try to stay away from processed foods, particularly frozen dinners, low in calories or not. There's still a lot of junk in there that is not good for you to consume...preservatives, extra sodium, sugar (yes!) additives, etc.

    I would consume sparingly only in a pinch. But I try to stay away from them completely. Agree with the above poster that recommends cooking up some extra healthy dinner to take for lunch.

    In general, processed foods are not good.
  • ambervargo
    ambervargo Posts: 67 Member
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    I would get into phases where I ate them at lunch or dinner. I recently saw a nutritionist and she has banned them. However, she did recommend alternatives for the same convenience without the creepy ingredients and sodium. Amy's, Kashi and Trader Joe's meals.
  • jillybeanruns
    jillybeanruns Posts: 1,420 Member
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    I say eat them as a last resort. The sodium is ridiculously high and I don't think the portion size is really that good. I much prefer eating a sandwich with turkey and cheese. There's far more nutrition in making a salad or a sandwich than in eating a frozen meal. I would check out Trader Joe's if you want something frozen (but still be wary of sodium and additives) and also for bread. They have some pretty good breads that are lower in sugar, calories and sodium!
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    Bad for you because they are processed foods, full of sodium and chemicals (check the labels)
    Good for loosing weight, but not for your health.
  • bebhinn
    bebhinn Posts: 198
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    I find a nice departure from Lean Cuisine is the Healthy Choice Gourmet Steamers - they taste a bit better, are a bit better for you and are slightly less processed imo. The sodium is still there so I make a concerted effort to pair it with 1-2 large glasses of water. Theyre definitely handy for work if you have no healthy leftovers to take with you.

    I think another major bonus in them (and this helped me) was that they aided in calorie management when I started dieting (and LONG before MFP when I was counting every night for a half an hour by hand) lol. They also teach you a bit of portion control. Ultimately I think they do minimal harm if consumed occasionally but are not suitable for multiple meal consumption every day.
  • volks80
    volks80 Posts: 56
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    I eat them for lunch M-F. They really are pretty good, but I am wondering if they are actually good for me? They have a TON of sodium. I am having a really hard time meeting my calories for the day too, so I am wondering if packing a sandwich would be better for me - not only to bump up my calories, but because it is not a frozen meal.

    This is me as well. I can actually make a very filling healthy sandwich for less calories so that is what I have been doing. Used to eat them all the time.
  • chgudnitz
    chgudnitz Posts: 4,079
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    I guess it depends on what you mean by doing you any good. I eat them all the time and they never seem to do anything bad to me. Erickirb said good for losing weight, I agree. I don't really see how they are "bad" for your health. Unless you eat clean, all natural, not processed foods at all you are already eating tons of chemical preservatives anyway.

    So bottom line, my opinion is they are good. Not as good as something else, not as bad as another. Then again, is there really a perfect meal?
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
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    I guess it depends on what you mean by doing you any good. I eat them all the time and they never seem to do anything bad to me. Erickirb said good for losing weight, I agree. I don't really see how they are "bad" for your health. Unless you eat clean, all natural, not processed foods at all you are already eating tons of chemical preservatives anyway.

    So why add to it?

    With that logic, we should all just stop and say "Well, I'm already fat, what's gaining a few more pounds?"

    Today I poured some frozen broccoli (the "ingredients: broccoli" kind) in a bowl & topped it with 4oz (unenhanced) chicken tenderloins that I had cooked Wednesday night. At lunch, I just popped in the microwave for a minute. Almost as convenient as a Lean cuisine and certainly better for me. So, while I agree that there are greater evils than Lean Cuisine in the fast-food world, there are certainly some healthy alternatives that are just as convenient. :wink:
  • leavinglasvegas
    leavinglasvegas Posts: 1,495
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    I used to eat them all the time. At this moment, I gag at the thought of it. It is so much easier to lose weight with whole foods, rather than processed foods. Cutting processed foods out of my life was the best thing I ever did!

    Cook up big dinners and freeze the left overs. You'll have your own "Lean cuisine".

    Cook a pot of soup on Sunday and seperate it into servings. Put a few in the fridge for the week, and the rest in the freezer so you don't have to eat it every day. Make a new soup every week to keep it interesting.

    If you eat meat, grill up a bunch of chicken once per week and use it in salads, soups, sandwiches, served with rice and veggies, etc. My brother did this. He got a george formen grill and bought chicken by the bulk. He would make up a big batch of rice and keep it in the fridge. Then all he had to do was steam some random veggies and pop the rest in the micro. He lost over 100 pounds. (he went from beer and fast food to cooking for himself while working 80 hours per week and being a typical 24 year old single party guy)
  • greeneyes82
    greeneyes82 Posts: 318 Member
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    We eat them for lunch here & there, but you really have to watch the sodium. Try to buy the ones that don't have so much sodium & you have to try not to go over on your sodium when you eat your dinner. Remember you took quite a bit in a lunch time with any frozen meal & you should be fine!
  • chgudnitz
    chgudnitz Posts: 4,079
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    I guess it depends on what you mean by doing you any good. I eat them all the time and they never seem to do anything bad to me. Erickirb said good for losing weight, I agree. I don't really see how they are "bad" for your health. Unless you eat clean, all natural, not processed foods at all you are already eating tons of chemical preservatives anyway.

    So why add to it?

    With that logic, we should all just stop and say "Well, I'm already fat, what's gaining a few more pounds?"

    Today I poured some frozen broccoli (the "ingredients: broccoli" kind) in a bowl & topped it with 4oz (unenhanced) chicken tenderloins that I had cooked Tuesday night. At lunch, I just popped in the microwave for a minute. Almost as convenient as a Lean cuisine and certainly better for me. So, while I agree that there are greater evils than Lean Cuisine in the fast-food world, there are certainly some healthy alternatives that are just as convenient. :wink:
    Where would you pull that analogy from?

    What I'm saying is if you only focus on the chemicals inside of one item of food, yes it looks bad. When you look at what you are not eating instead, that also likely has as many chemical preservatives added. When making a food choice, you need to be able to look at what you are NOT having and compare it to what you choose to have to truly see if you are doing harm.

    I'm glad you chose to do what you did. Did you know some people would say your broccoli was likely grown with toxic pesticides and chemically enhanced to grow faster? Or the chicken was likely fed a multitude of growth hormones to promote rapid weight gain to be able to move them to market faster?
  • stacyoct19
    stacyoct19 Posts: 187 Member
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    The ones I get say no preservatives.
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
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    Did you know some people would say your broccoli was likely grown with toxic pesticides and chemically enhanced to grow faster? Or the chicken was likely fed a multitude of growth hormones to promote rapid weight gain to be able to move them to market faster?

    Yes, and I agree with them. But why eat "toxic" broccoli preserved with "toxic" crap & sauced with "toxic" crap and "toxic" chicken preserved & mixed with "toxic" crap in a Lean Cuisine when I can just eat plain "toxic" broccoli and chicken? The one with more crap is worse for you. The one with less toxic crap is better for you. It's not like Lean Cuisine uses "organic" meat and veggies & then processes them with a bunch of toxin filled junk. They use the same toxic meat & veggies I do & THEN they process them with a bunch of additional "toxic" ingredients.

    You can be as argumentative as you want to be, but just because you're already eating stuff that's arguably bad doesn't mean you may as well eat MORE of it. I understand your point completely-- that unless you're eating clean foods you're already eating extra stuff that's probably bad for you --but I'll never agree with it, exactly.
    The fat analogy makes perfect sense to me -- I can also use a cocaine/heroin/meth/cigarette/alcohol/pollution/listgoeson analogy if you'd prefer. You say you're already doing something bad -- so, doing more of the bad stuff doesn't really matter. I say it does. Bad+bad = doublebad. That's just math, hun. :tongue:
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
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    And it's not even about "preservatives." Just look at the ingredients. It's a long list of ingredients. The ingredients in my chicken & broccoli are "Chicken, broccoli, salt, basil, oregano." If you can afford organic chicken & broccoli (or whatever), go for it and then you don't have to worry so much about the possibility of any pesticides or hormones or antibiotics.
    Locally grown organic? Even better -- then you're stimulating your local economy.

    Lean Cuisine Baked Chicken ingredients (and old favorite of mine):
    Potatoes, water, cooked chicken tenderloins (chicken tenderloins, water, seasoning (sugar, spices including paprika and turmeric, onion and garlic powder), soy oil, salt, potassium phosphate, sodium phosphate, dextrose), corn croutons (enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), yellow corn meal, high fructose corn syrup, contains 2% or less of: partially hydrogenated soybean and/or cottonseed oils, salt, yeast, yeast nutrients (monocalcium phosphate, calcium sulfate, ammonium sulfate), cornstarch, distilled vinegar, annatto extract color, ascorbic acid, soy flour), onions, skim milk, celery, soybean oil, carrots, modified cornstarch, salt, bleached enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), chicken flavor (salt, yeast extract, maltodextrin, chicken powder, flavor, soy sauce (soybean, wheat, salt)), garlic puree, potassium chloride, sugar, parsley, chicken broth, spices, dehydrated onions, flavor (maltodextrin and natural flavors (made from milk)), caramel color, paprika, carrageenan with dextrose.

    And that looks like one of the better ones to me. Yes, it could absolutely be worse. But when you have a better option that is just as easy, why not go for it? :smile:
  • chgudnitz
    chgudnitz Posts: 4,079
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    You can be as argumentative as you want to be, but just because you're already eating stuff that's arguably bad doesn't mean you may as well eat MORE of it. I understand your point completely-- that unless you're eating clean foods you're already eating extra stuff that's probably bad for you --but I'll never agree with it, exactly.
    The fat analogy makes perfect sense to me -- I can also use a cocaine/heroin/meth/cigarette/alcohol/pollution/listgoeson analogy if you'd prefer. You say you're already doing something bad -- so, doing more of the bad stuff doesn't really matter. I say it does. Bad+bad = doublebad. That's just math, hun. :tongue:
    Relax, lol.

    Listen, the analogy makes no sense because by your argument you would infer I said eat more bad food by comparing it to "Im already fat, why not gain a few more pounds" Not at all what I said. By that, you would imply that I said you're already eating bad crap, just eat more of it. So let's re-do your math, hun. We have X - Y = Z with X being the completely bad crap you may be eating, Y being the now better (but still not 100% great) crap you are eating and Z being the crap savings you get for making that choice. That's just math hun.

    Z needs to be the focus for anyone making a healthier lifestyle for themselves. Focusing on one aspect of a decision is fine but not the whole picture. We need to look at the difference in our prior choices and compare them to now.

    The original question was not "are there healthier alternatives to lean cuisine?" The question was is she doing any good for herself. My answer will not change to that. If she made a healthier choice to go with it then yes, it's doing her some good. Hun.

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