The Real Truth About Ultra-Processed Foods
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 ต.ค. 2024
- Get my best-selling book, Everything Fat Loss, on sale here: geni.us/Everyth...
The real truth about ultra-processed foods.
I was tagged in this video snippet from a BBC Panorama TV program called 'Ultra-Processed Food: A Recipe for Ill Health', and I wanted to give my two cents.
On social media, it is a smart idea to give a really lopsided and aggressive opinion, like 'ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS ARE KILLING YOU!' or 'THIS TV PROGRAM WAS USELESS AND SHOULD BE IGNORED'.
But, the real truth often lies somewhere in the middle, and when it comes to ultra-processed foods, there are two perspectives we need to look at.
Yes, diets high in ultra-processed foods are a recognised health risk compared to diets high in unprocessed foods. BUT, not all ultra-processed foods are the same (or even less nutritious than unprocessed foods) and many people rely on them, especially when they are in lower income brackets, or live in areas where fresh food is harder to access.
So, here is what you need to know, summarised in a smidge over four minutes.
Enjoy.
References:
Ultra-processed foods and added sugars in the US diet: evidence from a nationally representative cross-sectional study
Ultra-processed food consumption among US adults from 2001 to 2018
Trends in Consumption of Ultraprocessed Foods Among US Youths Aged 2-19 Years, 1999-2018
Ultra-Processed Food Consumption and Adult Mortality Risk: A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-Analysis of 207,291 Participants
Ultra-Processed Diets Cause Excess Calorie Intake and Weight Gain: An Inpatient Randomized Controlled Trial of Ad Libitum Food Intake
Food Classification Systems Based on Food Processing: Significance and Implications for Policies and Actions: A Systematic Literature Review and Assessment
Does the concept of "ultra-processed foods" help inform dietary guidelines, beyond conventional classification systems? NO
The NOVA classification system: A critical perspective in food science
Barriers and Facilitators Related to the Adoption of Policies to Reduce Ultra-Processed Foods Consumption: A Scoping Review
Barriers, Opportunities, and Challenges in Addressing Disparities in Diet‐Related Cardiovascular Disease in the United States
The barriers and enablers of healthy eating among young adults: a missing piece of the obesity puzzle: A scoping review
The Importance of Food Processing and Eating Behavior in Promoting Healthy and Sustainable Diets
A review on the beneficial aspects of food processing
The connections between health, food, affordability, and access are usually ignored in nutrition discussions. A couple of cucumbers can cost as much as a can of soup. One is "good" for you and one is "super processed" but will fill your belly.
So thank you for bringing this up and explaining it in a clear way.
the fact that the cost of living crisis is ignored in a lot of social media messages is unrealistic, and frankly, sad. this video needs more shares!!
Once again a very complex topic covered incredibly well
It's not really complex. It just shows the level of brainwashing and blaming that has happened.
You're the only fitness influencer I've seen that doesn't shame people for eating processed foods. I do think a lot if these fake "health experts" on the internet are completely out of their minds and it's insane how many followers they have. 😒
There are others like Layne Nortan, Jeff Nippard etc
When did this happen I wonder? When I was young, there was some cheaper candy and processed foods, but healthy food was very cheap. I grew up eating healthy food prepared by my mother. And we were not wealthy. She could take rice, beans, flour, various types of meat, and turn it into a full meal so that we never ate out or ate much processed foods. We didn't even keep it in the house other than maybe baloney. My grandmother was the same way. She grew vegetables in a garden, picked fruits in an orchard or on a farm, and canned them to last for the winter. They were not wealthy either. They didn't own a home and lived in the home provided by the dairy farm owner my grandfather worked for. Fresh meat, dairy, and vegetables were plentiful and cheap in the 70s and 80s. Then at some point something shifted. A combination of costs and behavior. Costs as fast food became very, very cheap. And behavior as a lot of people seemed to have lost the ability to cook and turn simple foods into tasty, nutritious meals. As well as not moving around near as much. This is in America at least, but that combination has been a real bad for weight gain. This food and behavior environment is terrible for health. Even as a low income person, you used to be able to eat well in America. Now it seems a whole lot harder for a whole lotta of reasons.
Here in Germany you can buy vegetables much more cheaply. It seems to be quite extreme in the US (probably because of your hyper capitalism that is basically destroying every other part of your society, too).
That being said, many of the things you listet are also processed: flour, beans (if canned), dairy, most meat products ... and hell, even rice (though maybe not "ultra"). Which underlines the problem already mentioned in the video: the whole UPF categorization is stupid and keeps people away from rationally thinking about their food choices (looking at nutritional values and balancing practical relevance).
I 100% agree with this, especially regarding the cost difference. A big concern, however, is that if the powers that be try to tackle this issue by removing the cost factor from the equation, they might be more inclined to disincentivise processed foods by raising prices (through tax for example) rather than incentivise unprocessed foods by lowering the cost. In other words, raising the price of processed to meet the price of unprocessed rather than the other way around. This will only make things even harder for those struggling to feed their families. Something needs to be done to make healthier foods accessible to everyone by bringing the cost down.
Yeah it’s super complicated. Even a simple topic like sugary drink tax would be really difficult to explain in detail (factoring in various countries, various policies, etc). I didn’t want this to be a complete video, but rather a head nod at the complexities of the topic 🙂
As someone who is struggling to keep any groceries in the house I was enraged to see the cost difference between normal food and the pile of UPF you put on the table.
Thank you for this well done video.
Another key element in the debate around this is how culturally acceptable it is to eat ultra processed foods all the time. Even those who can afford it and perhaps do have the time to cook a meal from scratch will choose the convenient option because we have been conditioned into thinking it's okay to eat ultra processed meals/foods when it's everywhere and everyone else eats it.
I'm so glad I don't live in the US. Fresh foods are far more cheaper here that it makes sense to eat homemade meals on a daily basis. Junk foods are just treats, a one time thing
Agree, but those macadamia nuts are an very expensive example of a healthy snack. There are cheaper options.
Yeah, it looks like a cherry picked example but it was actually a snack I wanted to buy (as with the blueberries) so it was actually genuine to use 🙂
Protein powder is ultra processed.
I grew up in the 50's and 60's and my mother cooked EVERYTHING. I didn't have a single processed meal EVER. And that was essentially the same for my peers notwithstanding there were no foods that you would construe as ultra processed around at the time. Of course I had a mother and a father in a stable household.
The best book I've found on nutrition is Metabolical by Robert Lustig.
Excellent video brother. This is an extremely important, but always overlooked side of this processed vs unprocessed foods debate.
Wow. That was a lot more careful and nuanced that I am accustomed to on here. I think you could also mention that many of the negative correlations between some foods and bad health outcomes are potentially spurious. For example, being poor might lead to higher use of processed foods and shorter life expectancy. This will produce a correlation between processed foods and mortality, but it’s not necessarily a causal link.
Personally I do think a lot of processed food is junk and I try to avoid it, but we should be very honest about how limited is the information we have to base those views on.
Another great unbiased video. Thanks Ben
Gabor Erdosi and others did some work on particle size in ultra processed food which I found useful for my own diet.
If you cut down on ultra processed foods you will feel better, it really it is that simple. You won't need to buy a truck load of junk that you demonstrated, because you won't be as hungry by constantly spiking your blood sugars. The blueberries and other low glycemic food will be more appealing, because your taste buds aren't constantly being bombarded with all the flavourings and other chemicals added to keep you hooked 👍
hey master ben me again!just watched the vshred vid you made and what is the answer then? over the last 3 months I went from weighing 240 to 196 now what I did was quite remarkable I was horribly addicted to amphetamines and was just simply not eating cause i was constantly strung out and not hungry I'm afraid of gaining it all back now that I'm clean but also I haven't personally noticed that much change in my physical appearance? how did I lose 44 pounds and not notice any difference in my appearance to me I still have a big ish belly man boobs and lots of fatty areas around my upper torso and inner upper thighs I've been doing some working out and my eating has become somewhat regular again although it's hard to get back to my old appetite(thankfully because I ate like a pig) but what should I be doing to lose this body fat while keeping my weight down should I eat better foods? if so what foods? most of the things I have readily available at prices that fit my budget are overly processed foods/fast foods. should I not worry about the food and just focus on a steady workout routine? if so, what workouts should I do? Where should I start? I'm so lost and I just wanna look not like every other fat American
100% agree with you, mate, but it's so hard, especially with kids. All advertising for food is overly processed foods because that's where the profit is. Basic wholesome food never gets a look in, then you factor in time, money, and effort, but with small steps at first, we as a family are getting there so glad someone understands the common families struggles on diet. Our government just let the food industries do what they want with our food ,very sad and stupid as this will have a massive effect on the country's economy and the NHS which we are seeing now
I love the empathetic take here. You're a Star
In my kids school they give heavily sugar based foods with every meal, that's a good place to subsidize some healthy food
🎯 Great video!
V true! You're going to buy a pizza which could be classed as 'a meal' o for £1 instead of a box of £2 strawberries that are a 'snack'
You're also going to spend a fortune on health care/hospital bills in the future, so I would much rather take cafe of my body and feel good eating for slightly more money.
Hi Ben, could you do an update on the lump you had after your bicep surgery? really love to know what happened as also in the UK and same issue
My update, I went to the surgeon who said it can happen and they can remove it but sometimes the fluid comes back. It went away on its own and I have never seen it again. It didn’t last long. Fingers crossed you have the same luck 🙂
@@BenCarpenter thanks Ben, really appreciate the update.
Ultra processed food includes Pasta Sauce. How is this measured?.
The additives.
I think since I spent most of my life eating ultra processed foods my body kinda responds better when it comes to energy/weight loss. Most “healthy” foods nowadays are also processed with added sugar/fat
Reading the book: ultra processed people. Great overview of UPFs
Push
Hi Ben Carpenter. I'm commenting from my girlfriend's account, but don't worry. It's still me. Hi Ben Carpenterino. Tom Smithenter
You picked the most expensive snacks to compare the sweets to 😂. How about eggs and English muffins, packages of tuna, a pound of chicken the list goes on. I'm broke and this is what I eat mostly. Why did you choose to go with the most expensive instead of letting your followers know about cheaper healthier alternatives that can help them? It won't perish if you EAT it and the minimal time it takes to make the food is more than worth it.
He referred to something that can be eaten right away as a snack that contains preferably sugars and fats (because that is what we are instinctively drawn to in a snack). The other aspect, of preparing food is covered in the part about the time it takes. Of course, you could say that apples are cheaper than blueberries and there are are cheaper kinds of nuts, but he is trying to make a point.
Coolest video !
Research well done, thnx for the tym n effort, but plizzzzzz, swearing isn't needed neither is it necessary at oll ........
It goes the same for all macro problems in our society. Why pointing to the root problem and fix it, whilst we can just point to the output of it and blame everyone for suffering lol
The fda did a study showing that overall you couldn't say healthy food was more expensive, in fact it's likely cheaper. It's misleading to compare expensive healthy food vs super cheap junk food. It just makes people think it's impossibel for them to be healthy. It would have been much better to have a bit showing how people could eat healthily at a lower cost.
It’s super complicated to compare unprocessed and ultra-processed foods, for a bazillion reasons.
For example, chicken breast versus a processed chicken meal is comparable. But, many fruits and vegetables don’t have comparable ultra-processed options, for obvious reasons.
I didn’t do this to do an accurate comparison of food costs, I did it to shine a light on a complicated and difficult topic, and macadamia nuts and blueberries were snacks that I was already buying, so they served as a good example.
Yes, macadamia nuts are top end of the snack price range. Get a bag of raw peanuts. They serve them boiled as a starter in Asia and are delicious. Apples and bananas are cheaper than blueberries. Plus you eat more of the UPF which why they make you gain weight so it’s more realistic to double the snacks budget there.
I rather eat nothing than eating ultra processed food. Then I can stay skinny AND have healthy delicious foods 😂( just not a lot lol )
Now please try to make a spin on justifying cocaine. 💁♂️
Do you have any "food as medicine" organizations near you? It would be awesome to see a video with a tour, or interview, or some cross-over.
You are over simplifying the issue. Nothing comes without effort. Most people just don’t care about what they eat. Food is just to quench their hunger and the desire to eat something.
You said I am oversimplifying and then proceeded to oversimplify hunger by an such an incredible degree I am baffled to how I can even reply
Beans and stuff are super cheap specially in USA and even cheaper if you buy in bulk. Educating yourself about basic nutrition kind of is your own responsibility. Most people will find them quite filling and they can even be meat extenders and there are dozens of delicious recipes anyone can make. Despite all the advertising against smoking and all the in your face info people still choose to smoke. This is a similar problem.
😔 'PromoSM'
👏👏👏👏👏
You need to calm down with all the empathy, common sense and... *checks notes* respect for the scientific process.
Carry on like this and you might just make the world a bit better, so let's have a bit more public shaming yeah?
why are you quoting these foods when none of that is actual food, absolute rubbish... food isnt something made in a lab. you are misquoting what food actually is or isnt
The funny thing is, you don’t even realise the irony of your comment
@@BenCarpenter no irony, food is food that man made junk is junk not food.....
No. That is *your* definition of food, lol
@@BenCarpenter well that's certainly true...i'm not a keyboard warrior so i'll have to agree to disagree my friend... look like you are fit as can be so i'll remain humbled on that..not that i'm unfit.. cheers for the reply.. take care.
FIRST AGAIN HAHA
I have no idea why I happen to be sitting at my computer and refresh my youtube feed 1-3 minutes before you upload man. It's getting eerie 🤣
I appreciate you being here, friend. Double win 🥇🥇