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Of course it is. Consuming a lot of ultra-processed food is one of worst things you can do to yourself. Occasional consumption is perfectly OK, but it doesn't t

Of course it is. Consuming a lot of ultra-processed food is one of worst things you can do to yourself. Occasional consumption is perfectly OK, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to observe some patterns in obesity, well-being and general health, between people (or countries for that matter) consuming a healthy diet vs those consuming mostly ultra-processed garbage. Correlation vs causation - my understanding is that this is the point of the study - they measured the ultra-processed food consumption patterns way before the onset of depression.

nerdjon 3y ago
Is tofu unhealthy? I mean that seems pretty processed to me. There are also things like Huel and Soylent which is probably about as processed as you are going to get and I really don't see any health issues with those (outside of the usual "its not real food" people but I really don't care about them). It doesn't help that "ultra processed" is such a blanket term that it's basically meaningless. I mean just because I buy "whole" ingredients doesn't mean that I magically cooked a healthy meal either. It could be just as bad (or worse with a few of the recipes I have made from Julia Child's book... as good as they are) than some of the processed meals I see out there. Maybe just less sodium. Much of the same correlation you are looking at can also be attributed to the type of active (or less so) style that people have. Less walking, more relying on cars, etc.
- hedora 3y ago
  I think "ultra-processed" is code for "food with all the fiber ripped out, and lots of added sugar and/or salt". The latter is more obviously bad, and also very actionable for consumers. Also, since I left "lots of artificial stuff" out of my definition, I intentionally included a broad range of "healthy organic snacks" that are actually terrible for you. It's probably best to avoid artificial crap in your food, but that should be(?) obvious. Anyway, regarding tofu, it was hard to find a nutrition label, but this story has a bunch of them in a picture at the top: https://sporked.com/article/best-tofu/ https://sporked.com/article/best-tofu/ They all have no salt, high fiber (vs. carbs), high protein and no sugar. Also, they all have one ingredient (fermented soybeans) and a few preservatives(?)

nerdjon 3y ago

Is tofu unhealthy? I mean that seems pretty processed to me. There are also things like Huel and Soylent which is probably about as processed as you are going to get and I really don't see any health issues with those (outside of the usual "its not real food" people but I really don't care about them). It doesn't help that "ultra processed" is such a blanket term that it's basically meaningless. I mean just because I buy "whole" ingredients doesn't mean that I magically cooked a healthy meal either. It could be just as bad (or worse with a few of the recipes I have made from Julia Child's book... as good as they are) than some of the processed meals I see out there. Maybe just less sodium. Much of the same correlation you are looking at can also be attributed to the type of active (or less so) style that people have. Less walking, more relying on cars, etc.

hedora 3y ago
I think "ultra-processed" is code for "food with all the fiber ripped out, and lots of added sugar and/or salt". The latter is more obviously bad, and also very actionable for consumers. Also, since I left "lots of artificial stuff" out of my definition, I intentionally included a broad range of "healthy organic snacks" that are actually terrible for you. It's probably best to avoid artificial crap in your food, but that should be(?) obvious. Anyway, regarding tofu, it was hard to find a nutrition label, but this story has a bunch of them in a picture at the top: https://sporked.com/article/best-tofu/ https://sporked.com/article/best-tofu/ They all have no salt, high fiber (vs. carbs), high protein and no sugar. Also, they all have one ingredient (fermented soybeans) and a few preservatives(?)