Here’s the Processed Food You Can Allow for an Appetizer, According to Dietitians

Is eating ultra-processed foods necessarily bad for your health? Should we ban them from our diet? Can we make exceptions from time to time? It is not always easy to sort through the many pieces of information about this type of food.

The British newspaper The Guardian So we asked several nutrition experts to try to shed some light on the matter. Charlie Watson, NHS dietitian and author of the book Cook Eat Runbegins by giving a definition of ultra-processed foods: “ These foods have undergone significant changes and transformations from their original form. They often contain a large number of ingredients, many of which may be unfamiliar, including stabilizers, preservatives, artificial colors and flavors.

“We hope to see a reduction in consumption”

Experts agree: people who eat more ultra-processed foods have an increased risk of obesity and chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

Since these transformations affect a wide variety of food categories, from sweets and sodas to bagged salad bread, it is almost impossible to eliminate them completely from our plates. “Research shows that even people with the best health outcomes still include ultra-processed foods in their diet,” explains Sophie Medlin, colorectal dietitian at CityDietitians in London. “Nobody expects people to get rid of it completely. We just hope to see a reduction in consumption.”

Treat yourself to an aperitif

And if there’s one processed food you can eat without feeling guilty, it’s hummus. This Middle Eastern dish, made with chickpea puree and tahini, usually contains a preservative: ascorbic acid. This very chemical-sounding name actually corresponds to the form of vitamin C naturally present in fruits and vegetables, explains the Guardian dietician Nichola Ludlam-Raine.

On the other hand, the experts interviewed advise to take a look at the foods in your kitchen and, if possible, replace some of them with unprocessed foods. For example, breakfast cereals can be replaced with homemade muesli, which only contains oats, nuts, seeds and raisins.

When in doubt, be sure to look at the ingredient list and limit foods that contain large amounts of ingredients that you won’t find in your kitchen.