Paleo based diet?

lemurcat12 wrote: »

Even if I focus on just the "processed junk foods" I eat -- let's use Talenti Southern Butter Pecan Gelato as an example -- I find it hard to understand why the "processing" is an issue. It's no more or less high cal or high sugar or high fat than many sweets I might make (process) at home (an apple pie or oatmeal cookies, for example). So is the issue REALLY that it's processed (and if so, does that salad I mentioned above become bad for me?)? Or is it -- as jane said originally -- a matter of the specific ingredients and how they fit (or not) into your diet?

One definition that I've heard used is "acellular carbs" ie carbs not in their original cellular structure. So an apple pie would have sugar in the apple still largely within the cellular structure whereas an emulsified water, fat and sugar mixture like gelato has the sugars in their "free" form. The WHO seem to believe there's a difference.

yarwell wrote: »

lemurcat12 wrote: »

Even if I focus on just the "processed junk foods" I eat -- let's use Talenti Southern Butter Pecan Gelato as an example -- I find it hard to understand why the "processing" is an issue. It's no more or less high cal or high sugar or high fat than many sweets I might make (process) at home (an apple pie or oatmeal cookies, for example). So is the issue REALLY that it's processed (and if so, does that salad I mentioned above become bad for me?)? Or is it -- as jane said originally -- a matter of the specific ingredients and how they fit (or not) into your diet?

One definition that I've heard used is "acellular carbs" ie carbs not in their original cellular structure. So an apple pie would have sugar in the apple still largely within the cellular structure whereas an emulsified water, fat and sugar mixture like gelato has the sugars in their "free" form. The WHO seem to believe there's a difference.

The homemade apple pie would also have flour and some additional sugar. But if you prefer, let's compare it to some gelato I make at home (I do have an ice cream maker I rarely use). We could even sweeten the homemade stuff with juice or honey (which the WHO considers akin to added/free sugar).

And of course the two reasons the WHO gives for caring about free sugar is that it tends to be in high cal, low nutrient foods and tooth decay.

3bambi3 wrote: »

nosajjao wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

Are you talking about this? http://www.businessinsider.com/fast-food-doesnt-rot-after-2-years-2015-1

That was a display in a chiropractor's office. It wasn't a scientific study.

They wrote it down and published the results, it's a science experiment.

So if I left a Taco Bell burrito out in my office and it got moldy, then I wrote and published a blog about it...I'm a scientist? Cool. I knew all that book learnin' was a waste of time.

By this definition, 75% of the stuff on Buzzfeed (We challenged this girl to have her dad pick out her clothes for a week!) is a science experiment.

lemurcat12 wrote: »

And of course the two reasons the WHO gives for caring about free sugar is that it tends to be in high cal, low nutrient foods and tooth decay.

On weight they go for a simple association of sugar intake with overweight :-

The recommendations to reduce the intake of free sugars and to do so throughout
the life course are based on analysis of the latest scientific evidence. This evidence
shows, first, that adults who consume less sugars have lower body weight and,
second, that increasing the amount of sugars in the diet is associated with a
comparable weight increase.

The meta-analysis avoided studies where weight loss was intended (?) and concluded

Meta-analysis of the five trials in adults with ad
libitum diets (i.e. no strict control on food intake) found that reduced intake of free
sugars was associated with a decrease in body weight (–0.80 kg; 95% confidence
interval [CI]: –1.21, –0.39).

(page 13)

So a couple of pounds off is what they're offering, and better teeth as you say.

nosajjao wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

There's no reason to avoid processed foods. Some of them may be worth avoiding for particular tastes or goals, but there are lots of convenient and nutritious processed foods that can easily fit in a healthy diet. Foods should be judged by their individual characteristics, not by the rather meaningless designation of "processed."

Whoa, so wrong. There are many reasons to avoid processed foods. If you can leave a Taco Bell meal out in a room for 2 years and it still looks the same as the day it was made, you shouldn't eat it. Why put "food" in your body if it has so much preservative chemicals in it that it won't even rot for several years? What are you trying to rationalize here? If eating over-cooked beef is known by scientists to cause cancer, what do you think eating processed foods like fast food will do?

Do you know the definition of "processed"? Literally everything you eat, unless it's raw straight from the ground is processed. I hate the misuse of that term on this site. If it's cooked, it's processed. If you make it into a smoothie, it's processed.

Perhaps your point would be better if you simply stated your dislike of fast food, but that I disagree with as well. Everything in moderation. Taco Bell a few times a year isn't going to do any harm.

The processing of food has been around for thousands of years. Putting grain in a wheel, processing. Smoking meats, processing. Salting fish in an amphora, processing. Beer = liquid bread, processing. Wine, processed. Some might call jerky or hard tack processed foods. When I talk to people in my social circles, process foods refers to over processed or unnecessarily processed foods. These would commonly be located in the center of a grocery store. The endless array of shelf stable products that have ingredient lists that read like scientific papers or are longer than a poem by Thoreau. A package of frozen strawberries I would not consider as processed as the TV Dinner sitting just a few meters away. I look at the package of frozen strawberries it says "Strawberries" or "Organic Strawberries" while the Mexican TV dinner or the Pizza has a long list of ingredients, some that are down right hard to pronounce and they layman would not have clue what they were. You don't need to put natural flavors or colors in the strawberries, but you would be hard pressed not to find those on just about every processed entree in the frozen case. They add preservatives to the entree because freezing was just not enough? I can pickle foods and the ingredient list is a whole lot shorter than the list on the jar of pickles in the store. I can pull pick fresh food, blanch them and put them in the freezer with the ability to last at least a year. I have canned meat, veggies, fruits and even complete sauces with a life span of one to two years. You start measuring products on the shelf with a half life, and I think we could all agree it was over processed. I do believe Jamie Oliver said it best, "If the ingredient list in the store includes something near unpronounceable or more than five ingredients, don't eat it."

janejellyroll wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

The processing of food has been around for thousands of years. Putting grain in a wheel, processing. Smoking meats, processing. Salting fish in an amphora, processing. Beer = liquid bread, processing. Wine, processed. Some might call jerky or hard tack processed foods. When I talk to people in my social circles, process foods refers to over processed or unnecessarily processed foods. These would commonly be located in the center of a grocery store. The endless array of shelf stable products that have ingredient lists that read like scientific papers or are longer than a poem by Thoreau. A package of frozen strawberries I would not consider as processed as the TV Dinner sitting just a few meters away. I look at the package of frozen strawberries it says "Strawberries" or "Organic Strawberries" while the Mexican TV dinner or the Pizza has a long list of ingredients, some that are down right hard to pronounce and they layman would not have clue what they were. You don't need to put natural flavors or colors in the strawberries, but you would be hard pressed not to find those on just about every processed entree in the frozen case. They add preservatives to the entree because freezing was just not enough? I can pickle foods and the ingredient list is a whole lot shorter than the list on the jar of pickles in the store. I can pull pick fresh food, blanch them and put them in the freezer with the ability to last at least a year. I have canned meat, veggies, fruits and even complete sauces with a life span of one to two years. You start measuring products on the shelf with a half life, and I think we could all agree it was over processed. I do believe Jamie Oliver said it best, "If the ingredient list in the store includes something near unpronounceable or more than five ingredients, don't eat it."

Does Oliver go on to explain why his personal ability or inability to pronounce a word relates at all to the value of a food? Or why a six-ingredient jar of, say, olive tapenade is less worthy than a four-ingredient jar of olive tapenade?

You can say something pithy (and that isn't even especially well-phrased, but whatever), but that doesn't make it a good guide for life. Why do you consider that to be valuable advice?

My beef pot roast with mixed veggies has more than 5 ingredients in it... but then it is not shelf stable. Some things are going to have more ingredients than others purely because of what they are. I think we can both agree that is not the point Jamie was making. Do you really need 12 ingredients in a loaf of plain bread?? Go google "white bread" or "organic wheat bread", switch to the images and take a look at the list. I make bread at home with half of those ingredients. Sure mine is only shelf stable for two days, but then I can't wad mine up into a ball and bounce it either. I think the point Jamie is trying to make is be educated about what you are putting into your body or feeding your children instead of just taking for granted it is good for you. Next time you go to the store, take a hard look at the ingredients. Know what they are? Why are they in there? Asking questions requires effort. I dare say most people pick what looks good, for the least amount of money and put it in the cart. Effort, almost zero. After all, the government said it was ok to eat or it would not be on the shelves.

Why would anyone put something in their body if they did not know what it was? There are over 70,000 food additives approved by the FDA and the list grows everyday. Heck. I bet only a handful of people on the planet know what they all are or can even properly pronounce them. Some of the additives approved by the FDA have been banned in other countries. But they are ok because... ?? That is just the list of ingredients, lets not even get into the process of stripping nutritional value from a food only to add other things back to fill the void (like taste). Delving into processor mismanagement only compounds the issue. The FDA only investigates most food processor if something goes horribly awry (anyone like to eat at Chipolte or have some Blue Bell Ice Cream??) I digress.

I consider it valuable because it forces you to question what is in your food. It forces you to question if it is necessary. If forces you to look for alternatives. It requires effort. If that olive tapenade has six ingredients and you like what you see, great. What about that jar next to it that has sixteen ingredients and half the price? Is that a price you are willing to pay? Is that a price you would force a child to pay?

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

The processing of food has been around for thousands of years. Putting grain in a wheel, processing. Smoking meats, processing. Salting fish in an amphora, processing. Beer = liquid bread, processing. Wine, processed. Some might call jerky or hard tack processed foods. When I talk to people in my social circles, process foods refers to over processed or unnecessarily processed foods. These would commonly be located in the center of a grocery store. The endless array of shelf stable products that have ingredient lists that read like scientific papers or are longer than a poem by Thoreau. A package of frozen strawberries I would not consider as processed as the TV Dinner sitting just a few meters away. I look at the package of frozen strawberries it says "Strawberries" or "Organic Strawberries" while the Mexican TV dinner or the Pizza has a long list of ingredients, some that are down right hard to pronounce and they layman would not have clue what they were. You don't need to put natural flavors or colors in the strawberries, but you would be hard pressed not to find those on just about every processed entree in the frozen case. They add preservatives to the entree because freezing was just not enough? I can pickle foods and the ingredient list is a whole lot shorter than the list on the jar of pickles in the store. I can pull pick fresh food, blanch them and put them in the freezer with the ability to last at least a year. I have canned meat, veggies, fruits and even complete sauces with a life span of one to two years. You start measuring products on the shelf with a half life, and I think we could all agree it was over processed. I do believe Jamie Oliver said it best, "If the ingredient list in the store includes something near unpronounceable or more than five ingredients, don't eat it."

Does Oliver go on to explain why his personal ability or inability to pronounce a word relates at all to the value of a food? Or why a six-ingredient jar of, say, olive tapenade is less worthy than a four-ingredient jar of olive tapenade?

You can say something pithy (and that isn't even especially well-phrased, but whatever), but that doesn't make it a good guide for life. Why do you consider that to be valuable advice?

My beef pot roast with mixed veggies has more than 5 ingredients in it... but then it is not shelf stable. Some things are going to have more ingredients than others purely because of what they are. I think we can both agree that is not the point Jamie was making. Do you really need 12 ingredients in a loaf of plain bread?? Go google "white bread" or "organic wheat bread", switch to the images and take a look at the list. I make bread at home with half of those ingredients. Sure mine is only shelf stable for two days, but then I can't wad mine up into a ball and bounce it either. I think the point Jamie is trying to make is be educated about what you are putting into your body or feeding your children instead of just taking for granted it is good for you. Next time you go to the store, take a hard look at the ingredients. Know what they are? Why are they in there? Asking questions requires effort. I dare say most people pick what looks good, for the least amount of money and put it in the cart. Effort, almost zero. After all, the government said it was ok to eat or it would not be on the shelves.

Why would anyone put something in their body if they did not know what it was? There are over 70,000 food additives approved by the FDA and the list grows everyday. Heck. I bet only a handful of people on the planet know what they all are or can even properly pronounce them. Some of the additives approved by the FDA have been banned in other countries. But they are ok because... ?? That is just the list of ingredients, lets not even get into the process of stripping nutritional value from a food only to add other things back to fill the void (like taste). Delving into processor mismanagement only compounds the issue. The FDA only investigates most food processor if something goes horribly awry (anyone like to eat at Chipolte or have some Blue Bell Ice Cream??) I digress.

I consider it valuable because it forces you to question what is in your food. It forces you to question if it is necessary. If forces you to look for alternatives. It requires effort. If that olive tapenade has six ingredients and you like what you see, great. What about that jar next to it that has sixteen ingredients and half the price? Is that a price you are willing to pay? Is that a price you would force a child to pay?

Sooo, just wadded up a piece of Aldi (22 ingredient) bread and threw it on the floor. It did not bounce. Seriously, where do people come up with these things? (and now my husband is looking at me like I'm utterly nuts, because yes I actually did do just throw a piece of wadded up bread on my kitchen floor).

Right now, at this moment, you are my hero.

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

The processing of food has been around for thousands of years. Putting grain in a wheel, processing. Smoking meats, processing. Salting fish in an amphora, processing. Beer = liquid bread, processing. Wine, processed. Some might call jerky or hard tack processed foods. When I talk to people in my social circles, process foods refers to over processed or unnecessarily processed foods. These would commonly be located in the center of a grocery store. The endless array of shelf stable products that have ingredient lists that read like scientific papers or are longer than a poem by Thoreau. A package of frozen strawberries I would not consider as processed as the TV Dinner sitting just a few meters away. I look at the package of frozen strawberries it says "Strawberries" or "Organic Strawberries" while the Mexican TV dinner or the Pizza has a long list of ingredients, some that are down right hard to pronounce and they layman would not have clue what they were. You don't need to put natural flavors or colors in the strawberries, but you would be hard pressed not to find those on just about every processed entree in the frozen case. They add preservatives to the entree because freezing was just not enough? I can pickle foods and the ingredient list is a whole lot shorter than the list on the jar of pickles in the store. I can pull pick fresh food, blanch them and put them in the freezer with the ability to last at least a year. I have canned meat, veggies, fruits and even complete sauces with a life span of one to two years. You start measuring products on the shelf with a half life, and I think we could all agree it was over processed. I do believe Jamie Oliver said it best, "If the ingredient list in the store includes something near unpronounceable or more than five ingredients, don't eat it."

Does Oliver go on to explain why his personal ability or inability to pronounce a word relates at all to the value of a food? Or why a six-ingredient jar of, say, olive tapenade is less worthy than a four-ingredient jar of olive tapenade?

You can say something pithy (and that isn't even especially well-phrased, but whatever), but that doesn't make it a good guide for life. Why do you consider that to be valuable advice?

My beef pot roast with mixed veggies has more than 5 ingredients in it... but then it is not shelf stable. Some things are going to have more ingredients than others purely because of what they are. I think we can both agree that is not the point Jamie was making. Do you really need 12 ingredients in a loaf of plain bread?? Go google "white bread" or "organic wheat bread", switch to the images and take a look at the list. I make bread at home with half of those ingredients. Sure mine is only shelf stable for two days, but then I can't wad mine up into a ball and bounce it either. I think the point Jamie is trying to make is be educated about what you are putting into your body or feeding your children instead of just taking for granted it is good for you. Next time you go to the store, take a hard look at the ingredients. Know what they are? Why are they in there? Asking questions requires effort. I dare say most people pick what looks good, for the least amount of money and put it in the cart. Effort, almost zero. After all, the government said it was ok to eat or it would not be on the shelves.

Why would anyone put something in their body if they did not know what it was? There are over 70,000 food additives approved by the FDA and the list grows everyday. Heck. I bet only a handful of people on the planet know what they all are or can even properly pronounce them. Some of the additives approved by the FDA have been banned in other countries. But they are ok because... ?? That is just the list of ingredients, lets not even get into the process of stripping nutritional value from a food only to add other things back to fill the void (like taste). Delving into processor mismanagement only compounds the issue. The FDA only investigates most food processor if something goes horribly awry (anyone like to eat at Chipolte or have some Blue Bell Ice Cream??) I digress.

I consider it valuable because it forces you to question what is in your food. It forces you to question if it is necessary. If forces you to look for alternatives. It requires effort. If that olive tapenade has six ingredients and you like what you see, great. What about that jar next to it that has sixteen ingredients and half the price? Is that a price you are willing to pay? Is that a price you would force a child to pay?

Sooo, just wadded up a piece of Aldi (22 ingredient) bread and threw it on the floor. It did not bounce. Seriously, where do people come up with these things? (and now my husband is looking at me like I'm utterly nuts, because yes I actually did just throw a piece of wadded up bread on my kitchen floor).

I just did a spit take of my highly processed Diet Coke!

I eat Taco Bell on occasion, and I can personally attest that if you leave it sitting out it will change it's appearance and go bad. Left an extra taco in the the bag in my car by mistake for a few days and it did in fact get nasty. But I didn't write it down at the time, so I'm guessing I can't count it as a scientific finding.

I have seen many recipes for homemade food that have more than 5 or 6 ingredients - I make pumpkin bread that has 10 ingredients. Fritos Corn Chips have 3 ingredients: corn, corn oil, and salt. I would love to try Indian food, but I have no idea how to pronounce all the different spice blends they use, and I don't technically know what they are, so I guess it's bad for me?

tryin2die2self wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

The processing of food has been around for thousands of years. Putting grain in a wheel, processing. Smoking meats, processing. Salting fish in an amphora, processing. Beer = liquid bread, processing. Wine, processed. Some might call jerky or hard tack processed foods. When I talk to people in my social circles, process foods refers to over processed or unnecessarily processed foods. These would commonly be located in the center of a grocery store. The endless array of shelf stable products that have ingredient lists that read like scientific papers or are longer than a poem by Thoreau. A package of frozen strawberries I would not consider as processed as the TV Dinner sitting just a few meters away. I look at the package of frozen strawberries it says "Strawberries" or "Organic Strawberries" while the Mexican TV dinner or the Pizza has a long list of ingredients, some that are down right hard to pronounce and they layman would not have clue what they were. You don't need to put natural flavors or colors in the strawberries, but you would be hard pressed not to find those on just about every processed entree in the frozen case. They add preservatives to the entree because freezing was just not enough? I can pickle foods and the ingredient list is a whole lot shorter than the list on the jar of pickles in the store. I can pull pick fresh food, blanch them and put them in the freezer with the ability to last at least a year. I have canned meat, veggies, fruits and even complete sauces with a life span of one to two years. You start measuring products on the shelf with a half life, and I think we could all agree it was over processed. I do believe Jamie Oliver said it best, "If the ingredient list in the store includes something near unpronounceable or more than five ingredients, don't eat it."

Does Oliver go on to explain why his personal ability or inability to pronounce a word relates at all to the value of a food? Or why a six-ingredient jar of, say, olive tapenade is less worthy than a four-ingredient jar of olive tapenade?

You can say something pithy (and that isn't even especially well-phrased, but whatever), but that doesn't make it a good guide for life. Why do you consider that to be valuable advice?

My beef pot roast with mixed veggies has more than 5 ingredients in it... but then it is not shelf stable. Some things are going to have more ingredients than others purely because of what they are. I think we can both agree that is not the point Jamie was making. Do you really need 12 ingredients in a loaf of plain bread?? Go google "white bread" or "organic wheat bread", switch to the images and take a look at the list. I make bread at home with half of those ingredients. Sure mine is only shelf stable for two days, but then I can't wad mine up into a ball and bounce it either. I think the point Jamie is trying to make is be educated about what you are putting into your body or feeding your children instead of just taking for granted it is good for you. Next time you go to the store, take a hard look at the ingredients. Know what they are? Why are they in there? Asking questions requires effort. I dare say most people pick what looks good, for the least amount of money and put it in the cart. Effort, almost zero. After all, the government said it was ok to eat or it would not be on the shelves.

Why would anyone put something in their body if they did not know what it was? There are over 70,000 food additives approved by the FDA and the list grows everyday. Heck. I bet only a handful of people on the planet know what they all are or can even properly pronounce them. Some of the additives approved by the FDA have been banned in other countries. But they are ok because... ?? That is just the list of ingredients, lets not even get into the process of stripping nutritional value from a food only to add other things back to fill the void (like taste). Delving into processor mismanagement only compounds the issue. The FDA only investigates most food processor if something goes horribly awry (anyone like to eat at Chipolte or have some Blue Bell Ice Cream??) I digress.

I consider it valuable because it forces you to question what is in your food. It forces you to question if it is necessary. If forces you to look for alternatives. It requires effort. If that olive tapenade has six ingredients and you like what you see, great. What about that jar next to it that has sixteen ingredients and half the price? Is that a price you are willing to pay? Is that a price you would force a child to pay?

Just because you can't be bothered to do a little research on what is in your food doesn't make food additives dangerous, or validate your idea that they should be avoided.

Here are the ingredients to the Sobe Lifewater you like:

FILTERED WATER, ERYTHRITOL, CITRIC ACID, NATURAL FLAVOR, CALCIUM LACTATE, XANTHAN GUM, ASCORBIC ACID, PURIFIED STEVIA LEAF EXTRACT, POTASSIUM CITRATE, BLACK CARROT JUICE CONCENTRATE (COLOR), GINGER EXTRACT, NIACINAMIDE, CALCIUM PANTOTHENATE, COCHINEAL EXTRACT (COLOR), PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE, CARAMEL COLOR, CYANOCOBALAMIN

Do you know what all of those ingredients are? Your diary is super interesting for someone espousing the benefits of eating non-processed or minimally-processed foods.

And yes, I eat Chipotle once a week. Because delicious.

3bambi3 wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

The processing of food has been around for thousands of years. Putting grain in a wheel, processing. Smoking meats, processing. Salting fish in an amphora, processing. Beer = liquid bread, processing. Wine, processed. Some might call jerky or hard tack processed foods. When I talk to people in my social circles, process foods refers to over processed or unnecessarily processed foods. These would commonly be located in the center of a grocery store. The endless array of shelf stable products that have ingredient lists that read like scientific papers or are longer than a poem by Thoreau. A package of frozen strawberries I would not consider as processed as the TV Dinner sitting just a few meters away. I look at the package of frozen strawberries it says "Strawberries" or "Organic Strawberries" while the Mexican TV dinner or the Pizza has a long list of ingredients, some that are down right hard to pronounce and they layman would not have clue what they were. You don't need to put natural flavors or colors in the strawberries, but you would be hard pressed not to find those on just about every processed entree in the frozen case. They add preservatives to the entree because freezing was just not enough? I can pickle foods and the ingredient list is a whole lot shorter than the list on the jar of pickles in the store. I can pull pick fresh food, blanch them and put them in the freezer with the ability to last at least a year. I have canned meat, veggies, fruits and even complete sauces with a life span of one to two years. You start measuring products on the shelf with a half life, and I think we could all agree it was over processed. I do believe Jamie Oliver said it best, "If the ingredient list in the store includes something near unpronounceable or more than five ingredients, don't eat it."

Does Oliver go on to explain why his personal ability or inability to pronounce a word relates at all to the value of a food? Or why a six-ingredient jar of, say, olive tapenade is less worthy than a four-ingredient jar of olive tapenade?

You can say something pithy (and that isn't even especially well-phrased, but whatever), but that doesn't make it a good guide for life. Why do you consider that to be valuable advice?

My beef pot roast with mixed veggies has more than 5 ingredients in it... but then it is not shelf stable. Some things are going to have more ingredients than others purely because of what they are. I think we can both agree that is not the point Jamie was making. Do you really need 12 ingredients in a loaf of plain bread?? Go google "white bread" or "organic wheat bread", switch to the images and take a look at the list. I make bread at home with half of those ingredients. Sure mine is only shelf stable for two days, but then I can't wad mine up into a ball and bounce it either. I think the point Jamie is trying to make is be educated about what you are putting into your body or feeding your children instead of just taking for granted it is good for you. Next time you go to the store, take a hard look at the ingredients. Know what they are? Why are they in there? Asking questions requires effort. I dare say most people pick what looks good, for the least amount of money and put it in the cart. Effort, almost zero. After all, the government said it was ok to eat or it would not be on the shelves.

Why would anyone put something in their body if they did not know what it was? There are over 70,000 food additives approved by the FDA and the list grows everyday. Heck. I bet only a handful of people on the planet know what they all are or can even properly pronounce them. Some of the additives approved by the FDA have been banned in other countries. But they are ok because... ?? That is just the list of ingredients, lets not even get into the process of stripping nutritional value from a food only to add other things back to fill the void (like taste). Delving into processor mismanagement only compounds the issue. The FDA only investigates most food processor if something goes horribly awry (anyone like to eat at Chipolte or have some Blue Bell Ice Cream??) I digress.

I consider it valuable because it forces you to question what is in your food. It forces you to question if it is necessary. If forces you to look for alternatives. It requires effort. If that olive tapenade has six ingredients and you like what you see, great. What about that jar next to it that has sixteen ingredients and half the price? Is that a price you are willing to pay? Is that a price you would force a child to pay?

Just because you can't be bothered to do a little research on what is in your food doesn't make food additives dangerous, or validate your idea that they should be avoided.

Here are the ingredients to the Sobe Lifewater you like:

FILTERED WATER, ERYTHRITOL, CITRIC ACID, NATURAL FLAVOR, CALCIUM LACTATE, XANTHAN GUM, ASCORBIC ACID, PURIFIED STEVIA LEAF EXTRACT, POTASSIUM CITRATE, BLACK CARROT JUICE CONCENTRATE (COLOR), GINGER EXTRACT, NIACINAMIDE, CALCIUM PANTOTHENATE, COCHINEAL EXTRACT (COLOR), PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE, CARAMEL COLOR, CYANOCOBALAMIN

Do you know what all of those ingredients are? Your diary is super interesting for someone espousing the benefits of eating non-processed or minimally-processed foods.

And yes, I eat Chipotle once a week. Because delicious.

Ha, that's nothing compared to the cookies n' cream protein powder-now there's an ingredient label that will make your head spin I counted around 26 ingredients before I hit 'artificial flavors', it kind of lost me after that. I wonder if it bounces when you throw it on the floor?

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

The processing of food has been around for thousands of years. Putting grain in a wheel, processing. Smoking meats, processing. Salting fish in an amphora, processing. Beer = liquid bread, processing. Wine, processed. Some might call jerky or hard tack processed foods. When I talk to people in my social circles, process foods refers to over processed or unnecessarily processed foods. These would commonly be located in the center of a grocery store. The endless array of shelf stable products that have ingredient lists that read like scientific papers or are longer than a poem by Thoreau. A package of frozen strawberries I would not consider as processed as the TV Dinner sitting just a few meters away. I look at the package of frozen strawberries it says "Strawberries" or "Organic Strawberries" while the Mexican TV dinner or the Pizza has a long list of ingredients, some that are down right hard to pronounce and they layman would not have clue what they were. You don't need to put natural flavors or colors in the strawberries, but you would be hard pressed not to find those on just about every processed entree in the frozen case. They add preservatives to the entree because freezing was just not enough? I can pickle foods and the ingredient list is a whole lot shorter than the list on the jar of pickles in the store. I can pull pick fresh food, blanch them and put them in the freezer with the ability to last at least a year. I have canned meat, veggies, fruits and even complete sauces with a life span of one to two years. You start measuring products on the shelf with a half life, and I think we could all agree it was over processed. I do believe Jamie Oliver said it best, "If the ingredient list in the store includes something near unpronounceable or more than five ingredients, don't eat it."

Does Oliver go on to explain why his personal ability or inability to pronounce a word relates at all to the value of a food? Or why a six-ingredient jar of, say, olive tapenade is less worthy than a four-ingredient jar of olive tapenade?

You can say something pithy (and that isn't even especially well-phrased, but whatever), but that doesn't make it a good guide for life. Why do you consider that to be valuable advice?

My beef pot roast with mixed veggies has more than 5 ingredients in it... but then it is not shelf stable. Some things are going to have more ingredients than others purely because of what they are. I think we can both agree that is not the point Jamie was making. Do you really need 12 ingredients in a loaf of plain bread?? Go google "white bread" or "organic wheat bread", switch to the images and take a look at the list. I make bread at home with half of those ingredients. Sure mine is only shelf stable for two days, but then I can't wad mine up into a ball and bounce it either. I think the point Jamie is trying to make is be educated about what you are putting into your body or feeding your children instead of just taking for granted it is good for you. Next time you go to the store, take a hard look at the ingredients. Know what they are? Why are they in there? Asking questions requires effort. I dare say most people pick what looks good, for the least amount of money and put it in the cart. Effort, almost zero. After all, the government said it was ok to eat or it would not be on the shelves.

Why would anyone put something in their body if they did not know what it was? There are over 70,000 food additives approved by the FDA and the list grows everyday. Heck. I bet only a handful of people on the planet know what they all are or can even properly pronounce them. Some of the additives approved by the FDA have been banned in other countries. But they are ok because... ?? That is just the list of ingredients, lets not even get into the process of stripping nutritional value from a food only to add other things back to fill the void (like taste). Delving into processor mismanagement only compounds the issue. The FDA only investigates most food processor if something goes horribly awry (anyone like to eat at Chipolte or have some Blue Bell Ice Cream??) I digress.

I consider it valuable because it forces you to question what is in your food. It forces you to question if it is necessary. If forces you to look for alternatives. It requires effort. If that olive tapenade has six ingredients and you like what you see, great. What about that jar next to it that has sixteen ingredients and half the price? Is that a price you are willing to pay? Is that a price you would force a child to pay?

Sooo, just wadded up a piece of Aldi (22 ingredient) bread and threw it on the floor. It did not bounce. Seriously, where do people come up with these things? (and now my husband is looking at me like I'm utterly nuts, because yes I actually did just throw a piece of wadded up bread on my kitchen floor).

I only tried the bounce once, with Wonderbread, at a Weight Watchers meeting around 2003. It bounced. Have I tried it on every variety of bread out there, no. Once was enough for me. However, if you take take a look at the list of ingredients the point was made

tryin2die2self wrote: »

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

janejellyroll wrote: »

tryin2die2self wrote: »

The processing of food has been around for thousands of years. Putting grain in a wheel, processing. Smoking meats, processing. Salting fish in an amphora, processing. Beer = liquid bread, processing. Wine, processed. Some might call jerky or hard tack processed foods. When I talk to people in my social circles, process foods refers to over processed or unnecessarily processed foods. These would commonly be located in the center of a grocery store. The endless array of shelf stable products that have ingredient lists that read like scientific papers or are longer than a poem by Thoreau. A package of frozen strawberries I would not consider as processed as the TV Dinner sitting just a few meters away. I look at the package of frozen strawberries it says "Strawberries" or "Organic Strawberries" while the Mexican TV dinner or the Pizza has a long list of ingredients, some that are down right hard to pronounce and they layman would not have clue what they were. You don't need to put natural flavors or colors in the strawberries, but you would be hard pressed not to find those on just about every processed entree in the frozen case. They add preservatives to the entree because freezing was just not enough? I can pickle foods and the ingredient list is a whole lot shorter than the list on the jar of pickles in the store. I can pull pick fresh food, blanch them and put them in the freezer with the ability to last at least a year. I have canned meat, veggies, fruits and even complete sauces with a life span of one to two years. You start measuring products on the shelf with a half life, and I think we could all agree it was over processed. I do believe Jamie Oliver said it best, "If the ingredient list in the store includes something near unpronounceable or more than five ingredients, don't eat it."

Does Oliver go on to explain why his personal ability or inability to pronounce a word relates at all to the value of a food? Or why a six-ingredient jar of, say, olive tapenade is less worthy than a four-ingredient jar of olive tapenade?

You can say something pithy (and that isn't even especially well-phrased, but whatever), but that doesn't make it a good guide for life. Why do you consider that to be valuable advice?

My beef pot roast with mixed veggies has more than 5 ingredients in it... but then it is not shelf stable. Some things are going to have more ingredients than others purely because of what they are. I think we can both agree that is not the point Jamie was making. Do you really need 12 ingredients in a loaf of plain bread?? Go google "white bread" or "organic wheat bread", switch to the images and take a look at the list. I make bread at home with half of those ingredients. Sure mine is only shelf stable for two days, but then I can't wad mine up into a ball and bounce it either. I think the point Jamie is trying to make is be educated about what you are putting into your body or feeding your children instead of just taking for granted it is good for you. Next time you go to the store, take a hard look at the ingredients. Know what they are? Why are they in there? Asking questions requires effort. I dare say most people pick what looks good, for the least amount of money and put it in the cart. Effort, almost zero. After all, the government said it was ok to eat or it would not be on the shelves.

Why would anyone put something in their body if they did not know what it was? There are over 70,000 food additives approved by the FDA and the list grows everyday. Heck. I bet only a handful of people on the planet know what they all are or can even properly pronounce them. Some of the additives approved by the FDA have been banned in other countries. But they are ok because... ?? That is just the list of ingredients, lets not even get into the process of stripping nutritional value from a food only to add other things back to fill the void (like taste). Delving into processor mismanagement only compounds the issue. The FDA only investigates most food processor if something goes horribly awry (anyone like to eat at Chipolte or have some Blue Bell Ice Cream??) I digress.

I consider it valuable because it forces you to question what is in your food. It forces you to question if it is necessary. If forces you to look for alternatives. It requires effort. If that olive tapenade has six ingredients and you like what you see, great. What about that jar next to it that has sixteen ingredients and half the price? Is that a price you are willing to pay? Is that a price you would force a child to pay?

Sooo, just wadded up a piece of Aldi (22 ingredient) bread and threw it on the floor. It did not bounce. Seriously, where do people come up with these things? (and now my husband is looking at me like I'm utterly nuts, because yes I actually did just throw a piece of wadded up bread on my kitchen floor).

I only tried the bounce once, with Wonderbread, at a Weight Watchers meeting around 2003. It bounced. Have I tried it on every variety of bread out there, no. Once was enough for me. However, if you take take a look at the list of ingredients the point was made

I just googled every single ingredient on the bread label and none of them were bad/made me concerned (the majority are added vitamins). To each their own