How to let your family know you don't eat processed food?

So many of you are saying processed foods don't make you sick - virus and bacteria, etc. I cook as much as I possibly can but I eat some prepared. I am old - and I'm sick and tired of cooking. I was thinking of buying my food cooked and just do my veggies. But I was afraid of "processed".. wow am I stupid - "THEY" are good at making us believe things. I wondered all along, why would the world sell food that will make us sick or kill us? SICK OF COOKING. Going to incorporate things in my menu so I can have a more pleasant life style and enjoy things besides standing by a stove.

It's like organic food, demonize "processed" food so they can charge you 20%+ for the same food with an organic logo, most people don't realize that pesticides can be used on "organic" crops.

It's all marketing...

Clean eating is just a fad anyway, eat within calories and nothing bad will happen to you!

Not for me; clean eating got me off diabetic meds and cured my IBS, GERD, anxiety, sleep problems and more. You will never convince me (or anyone else for that matter) that eating foods the way that Mother Nature created them is a "fad".

Sorry to tell you this but that had more to do with losing 24lbs than the actual food you ate...

How are you so sure of that? You can't speak for others, only for yourself.

Who cares whether it was clean eating or weight loss or a combo of both. What matters is that they are off diabetic meds and no longer have IBS, GERD, anxiety, insomnia/disrupted sleep, etc. Stop trying to belittle someone for clean eating and experiencing positive changes in their health.

Go shopping, buy the ingredients, and cook a meal for everyone. Show them how it's done.

This. I can totally understand how you're feeling. Anyone that is saying just eat within your calorie range and don't worry about it is so wrong and doesn't understand how their body works. All the processed/boxed junk is so bad for us and doesn't contribute anything to our bodies. Losing weight and eating more healthily(is that a word?, lol) is WAY more then staying within a calorie goal.

I would let them know that you are feeling like crap because of the processed junk and make some meals for them. Or if they absolutely won't have anything to do with it, I'd get my own stuff and make some meals for myself or at the very least some more nutritious sides.

Exactly, well said. Have you noticed all of those comments are from guys and young ones at that? ! lol! I am not surprised to say the least.

"Young" could be subjective, but "guys"... not so much.

This statement is incorrect.

Processed is too general a term. Yes, slicing apples is processing but so is loading it up with sodium, etc. for better bottom line returns. Cheap processed food is usually always bad.

From wikipedia:
Any processing of food can affect its nutritional density. The amount of nutrients lost depends on the food and processing method. For example the heat destroys the Vitamin C. Therefore, canned fruits possess less vitamin C than their fresh alternatives. The USDA conducted a study in 2004, creating a nutrient retention table for several foods. A cursory glance of the table indicates that, in the majority of foods, processing reduces nutrients by a minimal amount. On average this process reduces any given nutrient by as little as 5%-20%.

New research highlighting the importance to human health of a rich microbial environment in the intestine indicates that abundant food processing (not fermentation of foods) endangers that environment.

Using food additives represents another safety concern. The health risks of any given additive vary greatly from person to person; for example using sugar as an additive endangers diabetics. In the European Union, only European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) approved food additives (e.g., sweeteners, preservatives, stabilizers) are permitted at specified levels for use in food products. Approved additives receive an E number (E for Europe), simplifying communication about food additives included in the ingredients' list for all the different languages spoken in the EU.

Clean eating is just a fad anyway, eat within calories and nothing bad will happen to you!

Not for me; clean eating got me off diabetic meds and cured my IBS, GERD, anxiety, sleep problems and more. You will never convince me (or anyone else for that matter) that eating foods the way that Mother Nature created them is a "fad".

Your profile says you use erythritol and stevia in baking. Neither one of those is in the same form which Mother Nature created them - both were processed for you to be able to use them to bake. So you do eat processed foods.

Go shopping, buy the ingredients, and cook a meal for everyone. Show them how it's done.

This. I can totally understand how you're feeling. Anyone that is saying just eat within your calorie range and don't worry about it is so wrong and doesn't understand how their body works. All the processed/boxed junk is so bad for us and doesn't contribute anything to our bodies. Losing weight and eating more healthily(is that a word?, lol) is WAY more then staying within a calorie goal.

I would let them know that you are feeling like crap because of the processed junk and make some meals for them. Or if they absolutely won't have anything to do with it, I'd get my own stuff and make some meals for myself or at the very least some more nutritious sides.

Exactly, well said. Have you noticed all of those comments are from guys and young ones at that? ! lol! I am not surprised to say the least.

"Young" could be subjective, but "guys"... not so much.

This statement is incorrect.

Brb gotta go make sure gender is intact

Please report back when you're finished. Thanks. :happy:

Go shopping, buy the ingredients, and cook a meal for everyone. Show them how it's done.

This. I can totally understand how you're feeling. Anyone that is saying just eat within your calorie range and don't worry about it is so wrong and doesn't understand how their body works. All the processed/boxed junk is so bad for us and doesn't contribute anything to our bodies. Losing weight and eating more healthily(is that a word?, lol) is WAY more then staying within a calorie goal.

I would let them know that you are feeling like crap because of the processed junk and make some meals for them. Or if they absolutely won't have anything to do with it, I'd get my own stuff and make some meals for myself or at the very least some more nutritious sides.

Exactly, well said. Have you noticed all of those comments are from guys and young ones at that? ! lol! I am not surprised to say the least.

"Young" could be subjective, but "guys"... not so much.

This statement is incorrect.

Brb gotta go make sure gender is intact

Please report back when you're finished. Thanks. :happy:

After thoroughly checking, I regret to inform the prior poster that there are more than guys who believe the word processed is silly.

Now back to your regularly scheduled food demonization train.

Clean eating is just a fad anyway, eat within calories and nothing bad will happen to you!

Not for me; clean eating got me off diabetic meds and cured my IBS, GERD, anxiety, sleep problems and more. You will never convince me (or anyone else for that matter) that eating foods the way that Mother Nature created them is a "fad".

Sorry to tell you this but that had more to do with losing 24lbs than the actual food you ate...

How are you so sure of that? You can't speak for others, only for yourself.

Who cares whether it was clean eating or weight loss or a combo of both. What matters is that they are off diabetic meds and no longer have IBS, GERD, anxiety, insomnia/disrupted sleep, etc. Stop trying to belittle someone for clean eating and experiencing positive changes in their health.

How are you so sure that this poster is trying to belittle someone? You can't speak for others, only for yourself.

I'm not belittling anyone, it's common sense, I lost 91 lbs by eating everything. All my medical issues including pre-diabetes are gone, all my blood tests are in the perfect range now. It's because I lost weight while still eating fast food cheese burgers and pizza.

You would think it's common sense that losing weight helps all these things, why do you think doctors recommend you lose weight in those instances, they don't say "stop eating processed foods"

Actually, most dietitians who specialize in diabetes management and endocrinologists DO suggest a whole foods diet for pre-diabetic and diabetic patients.

She is choosing to manage it through clean eating, you chose another route. Your choice isn't better than hers and her choice isn't better than yours. End of story.

P.s. Many individuals lose lots of weight and that doesn't help their diabetes, unfortunately. Once again, just because it applies to you doesn't mean it applies to everyone else.

Go shopping, buy the ingredients, and cook a meal for everyone. Show them how it's done.

This. I can totally understand how you're feeling. Anyone that is saying just eat within your calorie range and don't worry about it is so wrong and doesn't understand how their body works. All the processed/boxed junk is so bad for us and doesn't contribute anything to our bodies. Losing weight and eating more healthily(is that a word?, lol) is WAY more then staying within a calorie goal.

I would let them know that you are feeling like crap because of the processed junk and make some meals for them. Or if they absolutely won't have anything to do with it, I'd get my own stuff and make some meals for myself or at the very least some more nutritious sides.

Teach by example. It costs more for the jars/boxes/cans, but is not as fast to prepare. I go to my southern kin and I know they fry, I go and show them how I eat using better choices.

In our home I cleaned out the pantry and donated to the food bank what I will not eat...

If they can see the process (at least while you are there) and feel better in the long run who know what changes they will make.

User posted 2 days ago about eating taco hamburger helper and cookies. Pretty sure she has no legs to stand on with family regarding saying to them, "I don't eat processed food!'

OP: If you're finding it hard to stay within your daily calories while eating more-processed, calorie dense foods, you could request that your dad pick up some inexpensive fresh food, like eggs and bananas. Both are reasonably filling.

Clean eating is just a fad anyway, eat within calories and nothing bad will happen to you!

Yeah… no. Clean eating isn't a fad. It's a lifestyle just like those who choose to eat fast food, chips, and cookies. Some people simply don't WANT to eat those foods and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

Clean eating isn't a real thing, so not sure how it can be a lifestyle