UPF.... WTF - I knew it was addictive but didn't realise...

[PaminaMozart]

... how quickly things can fall apart!

I'm a self-confessed health nut. Love exercise, lots of walking, and my diet is normally supper healthy. Lots of vegetables, lean protein, a smattering of complex carbs, healthy fats and dairy/mostly yoghurt.

It has stood me in good stead. At 70 I am really fit and my health-MOT suggests a biological age of 53 or thereabouts.

BUT...... for the past 10 days I have had relatives staying with me who seem addicted to UPF, carbs and sugary 'treats'. They sleep till 10, so I've given my usual morning workouts a miss so as not to disturb them. No point cooking stuff they won't eat. Or we eat out at places with limited/no healthy options.

Slowly but surely I've fallen into a pattern of eating what they eat, drinking wine daily (as opposed to a glass once or twice a week), and taking the bus instead of walking.

And, even after such a short time I have gained weight, my belly is definitely more prominent, and my lovely muscles seem sadly diminished.

A salutary lesson. Use it or loose it. I wonder how long it'll take me to get back to where I was...?!!

If you are engaged enough in cooking to be making your own stocks, then you probably don't have much to fear. If your idea of making dinner is about tearing a few packs open, then maybe it's time to pay more attention.

I will agree that I am a bit of a foodie, and like to cook, and have a kitchen I have designed to have prep space and all the rest, AND that there are a million people who don't share my privileges. But, I am oldish at 67, and have only arrived at this comfy place after 45 years of work. I did not have what I have now at 25, or 35, and I was only just beginning getting there at 45. I also did not have my DC (only one) until I was 43, because before that I was working to put a roof over my head.

I think a lot of the issue is snacking, its been normalised by guess who - the same companies that bombard us with tempting ads and promote obesity. I'm not just talking about fatty or unhealthy treats either, often the snacks advertised are healthy enough in terms of fat but still processed and still contributing to the concept of snacking. We cannot deal with hunger anymore. Kids have a quick snack while dinner is being made to 'keep them going', adults snack all the time, I admit I'm bad for this so I need to take my own advice here.

I often think of my Grandad who lived well into his 90s, if you offered him a biscuit at 4pm he would look at you in disbelief, 'but what about my dinner, that would ruin my appetite!'. We need to bring back the idea of a healthy appetite, i.e. feeling genuine hunger in anticipation of a meal. The majority of picky eaters especially children would find themselves suddenly eating previously rejected foods.

I wonder would an information campaign around this work, like the 5 fruit and veg thing we all obsessed with years ago. Never eat 2 hours before your meal, you could ruin your appetite, that sort of thing. The 2 hour rule etc. It won't change all our problems but if would normalise not snacking and particularly make it a lot easier for parents to say no.

We have an epidemic of ill health in the UK, we are heading the same way as America

Have you heard about the huge jump in Colon/ Pancreatic cancer in the young?
Down to UPF and drinks.
It's not a craze,stop being so ignorant

But in the good news column, the effort has paid off. We're now mortgage free, with a too large house to sell and downsize, and keen to move for a new life where volunteering is likely to be our passport into the next social circle.

Sorry, does any one want me to ask for my diversionary threads to be to taken down?

I'm posting on two threads and may have confused them.

It sounds like you’re not eating anywhere enough protein and fat, which is probably why you’re craving carbs.

Yes, it is noticeable that you don’t see many people who are fat and old - even in care homes.

Can you imagine the additional strain on the care system when more obese people become ill whether from age or complications. There will be a requirement for 3 or 4 staff to move people, it would really impact the workload and lead to even more delays. I have never thought it through before but its quite scary when you think of it.

The IFS's recent report on the increase in claims for sickness benefit (up 40,000 per month since the pandemic) makes frightening reading. They estimate the cost will require a 4p rise in income tax by the end of this decade. I read it in the Times this morning, but it's probably published elsewhere too, without a paywall.

This is about waiting lists and Long Covid though.

Its not about UPF’s

This time last year l was healthy and fit. Caught Covid last summer. Bern housebound by severe Long Covid ever since

You are being ridiculous and you sound orthorexic to me. I am so tired of all the nonsense about UPF. I am a fit, shapely size 8 who eats a lot of 'junk'. It's all about balance.

Our attitude to food has been so warped by the processed food manufacturers over the last decades that some people think wanting to eat only real food rather than UPFs made with non food items constitutes an eating disorder.
Balance means eating healthy quantities of different nutrients, not that you have to eat both food and non food.

Exactly!

It is all very well someone saying they are fit, healthy and strong and eat plenty of junk and therefore to dismiss concerns about ultra processed food. Perhaps they are fortunate with their genes and physiology, perhaps they’re just young and it will come back to bite them. Who knows?

However, on a population level there is no denying that the processed, commercialised nature of much of the western diet is doing people a great deal of harm.

Personally, I find it difficult to understand why, armed with the research knowledge we have and appropriate financial resources, an individual would not choose to give themself the best chance of a healthy life by eating the best diet they can. That’s simply what the OP is trying to do.

How old are you? You can get away with a lot of unhealthy stuff and lack of exercise when you are young......... but it'll catch up with most people at some point.

For the record, I am 70, normally work out an hour a day, eat a healthy Mediterranean style diet (lots of vegetables, moderate amounts of lean protein, plus small quantities of complex carbs, healthy fats and dairy/yoghurt. Which I really enjoy - it is not in any way a 'sacrifice'!

I walk a lot, I ski in the winter , I swim in the summer, I paint, mostly do my own DIY, meet friends and/or go to the theatre, ballet, opera, exhibitions etc most days. No one knows what's around the corner - viz. Michael Mosley RIP... - but I love my normal life and look forward to getting back to it once my relatives leave.

Honest to fuck only on Mumsnet would a healthy diet with no UPFs and daily exercise be considered an eating disorder.

The OP is seventy years of age, I can only hope I'll still be as fit and healthy as she is when I reach my 70's.

I am 41, so not 'young'. Don't get me wrong, I have a fairly healthy diet and I exercise a lot as well, I'm not some couch potato. But I also eat the odd Krispy Kreme. On here, people think that makes you some sort of Frankenfood devotee, which is bonkers to me.

Oh my goodness, but sorry - at my ripe old age, 41 seems very young indeed. At 41 I spent my days running after 3 young children, forever up and down stairs, never gave it a second thought.

Believe this old bat would like to tell you..... it doesn't last, and the sooner you act to stem the inevitable tide of aging, the better you will feel. Not just when you hit 'old age' but also in the here and now.

NB: I have been know to eat a weekly occasional ice cream. And enjoy it - not feel guilty.

Here endeth the sermon 😇

41 is young in body ageing terms! I can’t believe how many people on this thread are assuming that a 70 year old doesn’t know her own body when she says it has taken very little time for her fitness to diminish. For many women menopause is a watershed after which the timings of these things are completely different. I am 52 and it has recently taken me about 5 weeks to get back to running 5k after not doing it for a while. Just 5 years ago it would take me a fortnight. Same with weight, it becomes very much harder to lose where in my 40s I just had to cut down alcohol and it would fall off.

That may be true for some but it isn't true for everyone. For all the whining about menopause, the women in my family didn't really have an issue so I doubt I will, either.

I’m also 52 and if I can’t run for a week, OMG it nearly kills me to return. I can’t just step back on. I always try and run on holiday now as it’s easier! If I only run once a week, I lose fitness. A day at a desk is not good for you and at 52, I notice. One can’t hold back time, but I for one am willing to push back!

‘Whining’? Aren’t you lovely!
Maybe sugar cravings are making you irritable.

For many women menopause is a watershed after which the timings of these things are completely different

Even if you don't seem to notice at the time, but the menopause definitely is a watershed.

Emotionally maybe less easy to pin down - lots of variations. But physically, definitely. Even if you do not notice at the time.

Look after your bones!! Resistance and weight training is the way to go. Look up Caroline Girvan and get yourself a pair of hefty challenging dumbbells. Your future self will thank you.

Nobody knows when their time is up. I have MS, terrible balance sometimes but I mostly eat (force myself to eat) nutritionally balanced food and I have a personal trainer that I go to a few times a week.

I might still pop my clogs but up until that point, I want to feel like I do now.

I've always thought that it doesn't matter what you die of, we all die - but it matters what you have to live with. Not everything is under my control but I can do some things to help.

Bloody UPFs though. This thread has really made me revisit to remind myself what they're in because they're in so much.

As an example of UPFs being "Engineered Food"...

I fancied a fruit yoghurt today. Accepted it would have sugar as well. But looking at the ingredients every single brand had sonething in to thicken it as well. Cornstarch, pectin, gum, whatever.

Now I'm sure they are all fine and safe, but that's what I mean about engineered food. Additives to the basic food to achieve an end goal that isn't nutritional.

I had a plain yoghurt in the end.

Exactly. And those additives are not necessarily to improve the quality of food, they are often thickeners and flavour enhancers which mean that food can be produced more cheaply to enable greater profit for the food companies.

Plain Greek yoghurt with honey is lovely, anyway! My French mum eats a little bowl of plain home-made yoghurt every day. And we are all compelled to join in if we are around. It’s part of what my dad calls her ‘live long and prosper’ plan, alongside a small glass of red wine each day, and a little bit of dark chocolate. she is 76 and (after a tricky year in which she overcame breast cancer) looks amazing and is in really good health.