Any Tips - UPF free diet?

[silkypyjamas]

I am currently reading 'Ultra Processed People' and realised that it might help tweak some bad habits I have formed in eating unhealthily and my weight creeping up during perimenopause.

Has anyone been following the principles and reducing or cutting out UPF's and have you got any experience of where it has helped reduce weight, increase energy or anything that is a negative or positive experience of following a more UPF free diet?

I lost 12kg and have kept it off for 2 years so far. I also cut down on refined carbs and sugar though and rarely have cakes, biscuits or bread. I rarely feel hungry now and no longer crave sweet foods. I lost all my belly fat despite being peri menopausal and energy levels have improved.

I swapped to cooking from scratch and 30 fruit & veg a week on the advice of my oncology dietician, after a lucky escape in 2021.

I bake my own wholemeal bread, and everything else is cooked from scratch. I have maybe one glass of wine a month, drink a lot of water & decaf coffee. No fizzy drinks or juice.

I have a lot more energy, have lost about 5kg, much better sleep, bloating has gone, stronger nails and glossier hair.

My food is mostly pan-fried meat or fish with fresh veggies, or casseroles and stews. Breakfasts and snacks are fruit or porridge or wholemeal toast and home made jam.

My veggies so far this week have been fresh lettuce, tomatoes, radishes, cucumber, beetroot, runner beans, courgettes, sweetcorn, broccoli, onion, garlic. Tinned cannellini beans, fresh plums, satsumas , figs, kiwis.

Once you get in to a routine, it's actually quite easy, and food tastes a lot better.

The only thing that makes me put on weight now, is if I eat nuts as snacks, so I limit them to once a week.

What I do is have a supply of recipes for things to mix into or drizzle onto food, which makes it far more interesting. Some of them I freeze and leave out in the morning to defrost. I have a pretty good small blender bowl for the food processor, you do need something like that.

So eg home-made harissa that you can marinate some chicken pieces in. Or my favourite at the moment is parsley, garlic, lemon, tahini that gets drizzled over grilled vegetables. Miso, ginger, garlic, sesame for salmon. I use a lot of Merchant Gourmet lentils in packets but that particular habit is laziness.

I am not always good at thinking about food (a feature of depression) so I need quick things which will also be healthy. Whereas before I might have put a pack of sausages in the oven, and then it's a short step to oven chips and a fried egg...

I also read the book at it changed my complete outlook to food and has had such a positive impact on our lives as a family. I'm always looking for other tips though, hence stumbling across this thread. I have been using an app which I find quite helpful called Nomi UPF scanner - https://nomiapp.io