This UPF thing is irritating me

[SnowMoss]

I've never eaten much UPF, but it is getting harder and harder to avoid it. I don't go the whole 9 yards or anything, but try to keep myself informed and do my best to eat a healthy balanced diet.

Made a good effort to keep an eye on upf's, so for the past year have been sourcing good poultry, fish, and eating it with vegetables, etc. But I am bored out of my mind at this point! Just so fucking bored.

Then I hear about seed oils, so now even the small things that I added, such as mayo, gnocchi, the occasional flatbread (contains only sunflower oil, salt, wheat) are seen as a UPF too, due to the inclusion of sunflower or rapeseed oil. I am happy with and have the time to cook from scratch, but avoiding oils has basically taken a good whack at my time.
It's one thing trying to get people to eat a good diet, with veg and fruit and less processed meats, which will benefit their health, weight and wellbeing, but I am honest to god fed up of eating meat and a pile of veg, even if my own sauces and seasonings suffice.
And no, nothing substitutes for mayo! And no, I really don't want to make my own! I will make my own pesto, coleslaw, stuff like that, but I am bone bloody weary of avoidance.

Surely just being mindful is enough? I get that the food industry is an unregulated cesspit right now, but I am beginning to wonder just how awful it is, in moderation, to eat a some.
Sadly if I google any kind of additive or seed oil, I get lists of 'side effects' such as bloating, calcium loss and so on, it is so depressing.

If you are mindful of UPF's have you found a good balance?

I just plop it on top and stick in the oven, they come out quite well.

If I could have my own way I would rarely eat hot food.

I would live on a combination of:
Avocado with cheese
Fruit with cheese
Nuts with cheese
Crackers with cheese
Olives with cheese
Ham with cheese
Crusty french baguette with cheese
Grilled cheese, maybe..

It isn't fair. I evidently like my fats

Ok this cheese idea needs it's own thread I'm off to start one..

Asian stores (and our large Morrisons) sell lot of flat breads and wraps that are mainly flour, water and salt.

This! 100%

Who can be bothered with all this?!

That's not the case. Upf is nothing to do with "chemicals" being in something. It's to do with the amount of processing. (Upf stands for ultra processed food). The ingredients list gives you a clue because if there are things you don't recognise, that means industrial processes have been used to make the item.

The ingredients list for strawberries just says strawberries. That's because strawberries are not processed.

Don’t fall down the Bovaer cow feed rabbit hole…

Well that sounds fine. Crackers, ham, olives and baguette could be upf but there are non upf versions available. The rest of it you can't go wrong!

I'm with you OP, I've been trying really hard too.
In my mind if I can be 85% upf free then the remaining 15% of treats, something I really fancy, a meal out etc where I just don't think about it is not that bad in the grand scheme of things.

I've been making flatbreads (also used as a pizza base) with 50g flour and 50g full fat greek yogurt, roll it out and then dry fry it.

There's an Instagram account that is a bit hit and miss but mostly gives good alternatives, Tonic health. I've picked up lots of good tips from him.

No.its not a good way of looking at it. It's ignorant twaddle trying to look clever

Rocketing cancer and obesity rates ....

Haven’t read the whole thread but Hunter and Gather Mayo is made with olive oil rather than seed oils and no emulsifiers. The Crosta & Mollica flatbreads have few ingredients.

You’re doing fine. Don’t drive yourself crazy. Cook from scratch when you can and read the labels for other stuff.

All upf is a cost saving measure. In the case of bread, long shelf life means less waste means cheaper for supermarkets.

The additives are unnecessary but they make food cheaper.

In other cases the oil or sugar or whatever is replacing a more expensive ingredient... There's a lot of science goes into comparing different recipes to find the cheapest one that tastes acceptable.

My dad seems to eat mostly meat, cheese, bread and potatoes with ready meals alongside and the doctor said he would be very happy if he was as healthy as him
My grandad is 98

Sure keep an eye that you're eating fruit and veg and not tons of Pringles but I think you can go too far with it

The rule of thumb re processed food in my house is if it has ingredients you could find in a normal kitchen, then it’s fine - altho we do use olive oil not seed oil, but that’s just preference rather than anything.

I go for an 80/20 approach, mostly good, home cooked food, but won’t turn down a Big Mac or pack of mini eggs at the weekend.

Seed oils are one of those things about which there seems to be massive controversy.

There are those who will tell you they are horrible frankenfoods that you should avoid at all costs. Others will say they are fine and certainly better than coconut oil, which was revered as a wonder ingredient a few years ago.

It's so hard for an 'ordinary' person to make their way through this glut of conflicting information. It's tempting to give up and, within reason and avoiding obvious junk, just eat whatever you fancy.

Absolutely spot on!
This describes why it irritates me so much. Knowing that it has nothing to do with the consumer and all about profit/saving at the manufacturer's end. Anyone who scoffs at us for discussing that plays right into their hands. It's why we can't have nice things, lol.

And same with everything, such as clothes, housing, etc.

I'd agree we are becoming very car dependent.
Not just housing estates, the other ones that really get me are out of town office parks & shopping centres. That take forever to get to unless you have a car. And as a side note to that they wonder why city centres are dying.

Then the car drivers get whipped for tax as its seen as a "luxury".

This describes why it irritates me so much. Knowing that it has nothing to do with the consumer and all about profit/saving at the manufacturer's end.

But if the consumer wants cheap, out of season food which keeps for ages and requires little preparation, then surely it does have something to do with the consumer?

Probably misinformed but I am sure I heard that seed oils are fine if not heated or used to cook with? So on olives in a jar they are ok? Like I said, I am probably wrong!

well it often ain't cheaper!

Most seed oils have a high smoke point so they are suitable for cooking at high temperatures.

By contrast, olive oil has a low smoke point so can't be heated to very high temperatures or used for deep frying.

The thing is if you take it to the extreme you will never eat out at a restaurant, on holiday or a friend’s house ever again. Just do things in moderation.

I mean that's what almost everyone I actually know in real life does...

The only person I knew who was this obsessed with what they ate had a diagnosed eating disorder.

No, not always. But it often is, especially if you factor in the time and expense of cooking fresh ingredients from scratch.

British people spend only an average of 7% of their salaries on food, which is very low. One of the factors keeping it so low is UPF. For example, if you want bread made only from 'traditional' ingredients, it will go stale in a day so obviously the supermarkets will need to charge more for it.