Whole Foods vs. Processed Foods for Health and Healthy Weight
Hi Byte Wellness Fam!
How are you feeling?
I’m excited. We’ve got lots of new members in the community this week, and I can not wait to dig into the healthy eating/healthy living conversations that change all of our lives for the better! So here we go.
Last week, we talked about how we can use the high fiber content of non-starchy veggies to help us manage weight without overthinking it.
This week, we’re on to Ultra-processed Foods. Heard of those?
Even if you haven’t heard those words, you’ve almost certainly eaten ultra-processed foods.
Ultra-processed Foods (UPFs) are the MOST highly processed foods in our food system, and they’re all around us.
Ever had quick meals like frozen biscuits (hello Grands), some microwave meals, and powdered soups?
Then, you’ve eaten UPFs.
Ever had packaged candy and desserts like M & Ms or Oreo cookies?
If so, you’ve had UPFs.
Ever had soda pop or the original Gatorade?
Then you’ve drunk UPFs.
It’s impossible to list all the foods that qualify as UPFs here because, as one study found, around 73% of our U.S. food supply consists of Ultra-Processed Foods! They’re everywhere! It follows that we’re all probably eating more UPFs that we realize. In fact, another study (extrapolating their results to the whole U.S. population) estimates that for the average American, 60% of their daily calories come from UPFs.
Discussion Question
When was the last time you reached for a snack (or even a quick meal)? What was in it?
We talked about all that and more this past week in the #PhyteWellWednesday Workshop. See the recording below. If you didn’t get an invite to the workshop last week, make sure you’re on the Daily Text Thread (sign up by sending TEXT to 1(224)302-6224).
It gets worse.
Technically, UPFs aren’t really considered foods because they’re so filled with unnatural ingredients that are made and processed in factories. Think dyes, preservatives, other additives, and artificially made sugars. That’s why the United Nations commission, NOVA, points out that UPFs are really more like factory products than foods.
Isn’t if terrifying to think that most Americans are getting most of our energy from food that isn’t even really food?
That’s why we have to pay attention to what we’re putting into our bodies. If we go with the flow (grabbing whatever’s in front of us), we’re likely to fill up on UPFs- factory products that will eventually make us sick.
Ultra-Processed Foods Sabotage Our Weight
Let’s see why UPFs are a problem. Filling up on UPFs is a problem bc it means we’re getting too much of the nutrients that can hurt us (added sugar and refined starch, saturated and trans fat, sodium).
When we fill up on not so helpful stuff, we don’t have enough room in our bellies for the stuff we really need!
Studies show that eating more UPFs increases the risk of developing obesity (toxic extra fat). The researchers behind these studies think that the reason UPFs cause obesity is that eating too many of these factory products ultimately leads us to over-eat sugar and under-eat stomach-filling heart-healthy fiber.
So when UPFs push whole food veggies off the plate, our weight and metabolic health can suffer.
That means UPFs are indirectly connected UPFs to the snowball-effect of obesity that makes us more likely to develop high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, heart attack, stroke, and at least 13 obesity-related cancers.
But, that’s not the worst of it.
Ultra-Processed Foods Boost Other Disease Risks
Cancer
Piling on the UPFs means we miss out on other nutrients (vitamins, minerals) and phytonutrients that directly protect us from other diseases (possibly even cancer).
For example, some studies suggest that getting plenty of anti-oxidant vitamins from natural sources (like vitamin C) could help to lower the risk of lung cancer and breast cancer, although more information needs to be collected to be sure of the cause-effect relationship.
High Blood Pressure
On top of that, other studies show that when vitamin C helps clean up pollution (oxidative stress) in our blood vessels, the vessels do a better job of controlling blood pressure which could reduce heart attack risk.
Speaking of blood pressure, when we overload on UPFs, we miss out on other nutrients (minerals) that can help regulate blood pressure and make us less likely to have a stroke or heart disease.
Minerals like potassium (especially high in leafy greens and other crunchy veggies lower blood pressure by helping to fight the blood vessel clamping effect of sodium (table salt).
If we overindulge in UPFs, we’ll also miss out on phytonutrients (nutrients only found in plants that aren’t listed on nutrient labels)
Type 2 Diabetes
Phytonutrients do so much good in our bodies that science has yet to fully explain. That’s why I call phytonutrients “plant magic”.
Plant magic phytonutrients like flavonoids help us manage blood sugar to fight type 2 diabetes.
Immune Health
Sulfur-based phytonutrients like allicin in garlic and onions and glucosinolates in broccoli and brussels sprouts have anti-inflammatory effects which can help us prevent heart attacks and strokes, fight infections and lower our risk of cancer.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg of what phytonutrients can do for us.
The bottom line is that eating more UPFs than fruits and veggies is a very risky proposition.
Depending on our health risks and wellness goals, many of us can probably get away with the occasional ultra-processed food or drink without wrecking havoc on our wellbeing.
(That's a decision to discuss with your personal healthcare provider).
But, if we choose to add ultra-processed foods to our plate, let’s be sure we’re claiming our power and making an informed decision. We're worth that.
Happy Healthy Living,
Dr. Wuse