A startling study this week found ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are linked to 32 diseases that effect every major organ in the body.
We’ve known forever that donuts and chips are terrible for us – but, as I found out first-hand this week, much of the things you eat and consider ‘healthy’ have been through several rounds of industrial processing.
Experts say it’s not enough to analyze the labels for calories, fat, or sugar anymore – it’s the teeny tiny fine print on the back of the labels you should really look out for: the ingredients list.
A simple rule of thumb is to stick to products with fewer than five ingredients and avoid items with ingredients that are hard to pronounce.
So that was my goal when I went grocery shopping for my usual meals at three popular grocery stores – Wegman’s, Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s.
What I found was scary. The oatmeal, chicken breasts and salad kits I regularly eat are teeming with dozens of very science-sounding additives, preservatives and thickening agents that have caused my body untold problems.
And finding truly ‘whole foods’ seems to be purposefully difficult and tedious. For every one unprocessed product, there were five or more UPFs lining the shelves.
Even when a food’s packaging said things like ‘non-fried,’ ‘organic’ or ‘only 110 calories per serving,’ actually looking at the ingredient list revealed they were no better.
It all made me realize that avoiding UPFs is way harder than I thought it was going to be.
So, how hard was it to avoid UPFs and what did it reveal about what I’m eating?
WHY DOES THE BACK OF MY SALAD READ LIKE THE INVENTORY OF A SCIENCE LAB?
To start my day, I usually eat a bowl of instant maple and brown sugar oatmeal with added protein to help keep me full through the morning.
I like the maple and brown sugar variety because it also gives me a small taste of sweetness to curb my craving.
In reading the label, however, I found it had more than five ingredients and several of those were gum and artificial coloring. It cost $2.99.
I swapped it for a healthier alternative that only had one ingredient – whole grain organic rolled oats – but it cost $3.69 – 23 percent more.
A surprising offender I discovered in the store was a popular pre-made salad I turn to for lunch. While I thought these were healthy – they are salads after all! – it had some seriously concerning ingredients in it, including xanthan gum.
The gum is a polysaccharide used as a food additive, thickening agent and stabilizer, but has been linked to with bloating and diarrhea. Polysaccharides have been associated with irregular heartbeat, shortness of breath and even seizures.
It cost $4.49
That is much lower than buying fresh produce separately and making your own salad when just the lettuce costs $3. That doesn’t take into account what you’ll have to spend on tomatoes, broccoli, avocado, dressing or any other trimmings.
MID-DAY MUNCHIES AND A HOME-COOKED DINNER
When it comes to snacking in between meals, I like popcorn or non-fried chip alternatives. While I thought these were better options, it turns out one of my favorites could be classified as a UPF because it has more than 10 ingredients.
The smarter option was air-fried popcorn with fewer ingredients, but it was about one dollar more for less product.
A lot of my dinners consist of chicken, rice and vegetables, but the marinated chicken I like to eat had too long of an ingredient list to name compared to the plain organic chicken that only had one ingredient – chicken.
However, my preference was about $8 and the organic one was $13, a 63 percent increase.
I was pleasantly surprised, however, to find out the ready-rice I like as a side was actually more expensive than plain brown rice a few shelves away – $2.99 compared to $1.29.
My choice had more than 20 ingredients and the plain rice had just two.
LOST IN THE GROCERY STORE
Not only did I sometimes get physically lost amongst the cereal, pasta and bread aisles looking for products, I wound up mentally lost attempting to sift through ingredient lists in search of healthier alternatives.
At times I was overwhelmed comparing labels, looking up the difference between artificial sweeteners and trying to figure out what hydrogenated oils are and if they’re OK to eat.
It turns out, health officials and experts agree that partially hydrogenated oils are no longer ‘generally recognized as safe.’
The ingredient, disguised as trans fat on nutrition labels, is inexpensive and used as a preservative, as well as a flavor and texture enhancer.
It’s often found in microwave popcorn (a popular food in my snack arsenal), cakes and cookies and fried foods, like a package of fried fish sticks I almost put in my cart.
Those cost $5.99.
To go the au naturel route, I went to the fish counter for fresh cod, but it was almost triple the price.
Hydrogenated oils can raise a person’s low-density lipoprotein cholesterol – the ‘bad’ cholesterol – and a diet heavy in trans fat can lead to heart disease and blood vessel disease.
In a majority of UPFs I looked at, there were artificial food dyes, some of which have been associated with major health issues.
Studies in animals have shown a link between the food colorings Red 40, Yellow 6, Yellow 5 and ADHD, reproductive issues and multiple cancers.
STICKER SHOCK
My shopping list is roughly the same every trip and consists of staple products that will last past the week, so I can usually estimate what my total at checkout will be.
During a recent trip to the grocery store when I was not paying attention to ingredients, I spent $40.68 for seven days of food, including seasoned chicken, peanut butter, popcorn, rice and protein bars.
Over the course of a week, that’s $5.81 per day.
During my most recent shopping, however, I spent $77.15 while trying to avoid UPFs, which equates to $11.04 per day.
Needless to say I was shocked that it cost twice more per day and nearly twice more per week to eat healthy foods that are good for my nutrition and body.
And I’m only one person.
If parents are looking to feed a family without UPFs, that cost can be prohibitively expensive.
The lack of healthy budget foods is a well-known problem in the United States and could be why there is a rising prevalence of obesity, which can lead to certain cancers, heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
But trying to work out what foods are healthy can be complicated — especially with the rise of buzzwords like ‘organic’, ‘all-natural’ and ‘sugar-free’.
Nutritionists have told DailyMail.com a short ingredient list indicates something is natural, contains few additives and has been through very little processing.
While scientists are unsure of the exact long-term effects of each chemical in ultra-processed foods, repeated studies have linked them to higher rates of obesity, cancer, Alzheimer’s and other potentially devastating conditions.
‘There are many ingredients that are providing little for actual nourishment,’ Jessica Cording, a registered dietician in New Jersey, has previously told DailyMail.com
‘More processed foods tend to be less nutritious, and [eating them] is liked to different types of cancers, heart disease, diabetes and cognitive decline.’
