Most people I talk to about this will say they eat a very small amount of processed food in their diets. That’s good. Just for your information, back in the '70s, these foods made up 20% of diets. Today in the 21st century, we find they feature in 80% of people’s food consumption.
But what are processed foods? An easy way to discover how much of them you’re eating is to remember this. If your food has a label on it, it’s processed. |
What’s so bad about these foods? They’re delicious, save time in the kitchen. Unfortunately, as most folks know, they’re also high in additives and low in fiber.
They’re easy to cook, even if you don’t know much about that particular skill. Bring on the microwave!
But what if you’re working, tired from a full day, then come home to expectations of you providing a meal for your family? You know you need a couple of veggies. But before you even get to that section you’re confronted by a tempting array of bright food packaging.
The supermarket freezer is a treasure trove of convenience meals. Their packaging is so tempting. Your family would love a meal like that pictured on the box! And it’s a time saver.
meals. They actually look just as good as anything you would have produced at home, using those veggies and a quick omelet. So the glitzy package wins out.
There’s a big difference between processed foods and the food you cook at home using basic ingredients. One of the most important parts of your diet should actually be fiber. Funnily enough, this is beyond concerns of calories. It is also what is most lacking in processed foods.
Through the manufacturing, process fiber is removed from the original food components. This helps with the taste and texture of convenience foods. Manufacturers will also add fiber back, but it’s not the same as the original stuff.
So, what is fiber, and why is it so important?
When you eat lots of fiber, both of them team up to form a gel on the inside of the duodenum, reducing absorption of sugars and starches, and slowing the liver from having to use energy from them to store as fat.
The soluble fiber feeds the good bacteria present in the colon, forming fatty acids, which go into the bloodstream. These stop insulin output from the pancreas, and also are anti-inflammatory.
As I think about it, it seems obvious that folks are not going to change their love for certain ultra-processed foods. But perhaps understanding these bits of information about the need and importance of fiber in the diet would motivate them to add natural sources of it to their meals?
One carrot plus one celery stalk, both cut into sticks, with a small dip make a satisfying addition to almost any meal. Cut-up veggies on a platter look good, are inexpensive and you know they’re doing a great job on your insides! The list goes on. Salads, cooked and frozen veggies make a meal complete.
Teach your children the importance of fiber. Include them by example in meal preparation. All this can extinguish the problems of constipation and diarrhea throughout their lives. Insoluble fiber moves things along gently and daily in your colon.
One example
Yams as convenience food in the microwave!
Lots of other ways to cook these, if you really hate a microwave! I m going for the convenience most folks want!