Low UPF diet - to think the experts weren’t lying?

[AusBoundDD]

Nearly 6 months ago I made it my New Year’s resolution to start eating a low UPF diet in hopes of losing some weight for a once in a lifetime trip, alongside just being healthier in general. Honestly it has been life changing! I’ve lost nearly 10kg without really having to think about it - no restricting or anything like that and in general I just feel so much better. UPFs like crisps, ready meals, even basic supermarket bread don’t feel like ‘real’ food anymore and no longer appeal. On the occasion that I do choose to eat something UPF (which for me is no big deal, im not strict!) it just isn’t as enjoyable as it used to be. I’d choose some sourdough over a loaf of Hovis any day when previously I used to hate it! I feel much fuller + satisfied for longer and rarely get the urge to snack.

Obviously it has its downsides - much less convenience food so cooking takes longer (PITA when doing lunch/dinner prep after a long day at work!), ingredients are more expensive so my shopping bill has gone up but all in all it’s a decision I don’t regret. Honestly I think that this way of eating should be the future.

Anyone else feel this way?

Most things that are bought as a ready to eat meal.

We rarely ate UPF when my children were children (they're both adults now). I worked full time and was a single parent but everything was cooked from scratch or batch cooked and frozen.

They once complained that our cupboards were full of 'ingredients' rather than food. By which they meant things had to be combined to make a meal. Pasta sauces were passata, garlic and herbs or creme fraiche, mushrooms, garlic and parmesan rather than from a jar.

Curries were made with a spice blend I'd made myself etc.

I made chicken nuggets, pizzas and meatballs myself.

Nothing came from a jar or a packet or a plastic tray or a bag in the freezer that could be put straight into the oven.

It's impossible to list UPFs because it's everything in the supermarket that you can buy in a bag or a packet or a jar or powdered in a bottle that just needs water adding. Cake mixes that only require an egg.

But yes, wraps, pre made sandwiches are all UPF because they contain ingredients you wouldn't find in your kitchen at home and wouldn't include if you were making it yourself.

Argh I hear you on keeping kids full. We’ve agreed a split so that it’s no UPF during the week but relax it a bit at weekends.
We make a loaf of homemade bread about every other day, and I batch cook a load of flapjacks, muffins etc once a week. So much more cooking!! But very satisfying.

I started to make my own bread and I can’t stand the weird airy soft texture of supermarket bread anymore.
once you get the hang of baking bread, it’s pretty easy but you need to be at home for a few hrs.
Biscuits and cakes are pretty easy to make too.
Crisps, I love and can’t make at home.

Not all wraps. The Crosta and mollina ones are OK.

Your body processes the food differently.

People generally find they eat less 'real' food because it triggers the brain's "I'm full/satisfied" hormone in a way UPFs don't.

If you feel satisfied from your meal, you're less likely to want cake or biscuits afterwards because your body isn't looking for something to satisfy it.

That's the main difference.

Well I found it really useful - I had no idea of the variety of additives that aren’t even food substances added to our food. I haven’t been able to look at ice cream the same way since.

It wasn’t the only thing I read and I haven’t based my life around 1 book, but it sparked an interest in nutrition for me and led to healthy and sustainable life changes.
I make my own bread, mostly sourdough, but use the bread maker too and eat mainly a Mediterranean style diet with loads of olive oil, nuts and seeds and veg and I feel great. So cutting out UPF for me has been great as now I don’t worry about the random shit someone is putting in my food to make it go further, give it shelf life etc. and I have bags of energy - winner!

Tyrells Naked crisps (no salt) only have two ingredients so surely not UPF.
Not great for a diet but deals with the crisps cravings in the least unhealthy way 😀

Duplicate post

Correlation =/= causation.

It’s the junk food that’s the problem - high calorie, high sugar and simple carbs.

I started eating a much ‘cleaner’ diet over two years ago. I cut down on a lot of fat but made everything from scratch with fresh veggies and fish occasionally. I lost four stone in under a year and have kind of stuck at my ideal weight for my height. I feel 100 % better and have sorted out my thyroid problem.

No!!!!! This drives me nuts - does diddly squat to stop people making poor choices but makes me pay more for my very occasional treat.

I might have a coke once a month or so. I absolutely cannot abide sweetener, can taste when it's been added to anything immediately. The bloody sugar tax meant that now a huge number of restaurants stopped serving full fat juice or the companies changed their recipes and ruined it! It's such a misnomer. Drinking diet coke or pepsi max is NOT better for your health!!

I cook the vast majority of our meals from scratch and always have done - mostly because that's how I grew up but also because I'm a reasonable cook and enjoy home cooked food / baked goods etc much more. I have always been at the lower end of a healthy BMI, despite having a considerable appetite and being quite sedentary. Probably not a coincidence.

I was reading about intermittent fasting recently and was shocked to learn that 12:12 was considered a fast that people had to work towards instead of just the norm!!! It's been known forever that eating in the evening is the fastest way to put on weight - yet people still do it!

I don't agree with the massive profits being made by using these horrible ingredients, but the things we expect the government to fix is terrifying. (E.g. "My interest rate won't be 1% anymore, the government need to subsidise my mortgage that I didn't plan properly for).

And now the NHS is going to fund weight loss injections because people won't start making better choices! It's madness!!!

Have you tried no kneed baking?

Look up artisan bread in 5 minutes a day for the basic recipe.

Really delicious and doesn't require the labour or time factor, especially if you are doing it regularly as you can store your dough in the fridge and just grab a loaf's worth when you need it..

I am not ultra strict but rarely eat crisps now and that used to be my biggest weakness. I only eat sourdough bread.

I try to eat more protein too.

I find food noise is down a lot. I eat way less carbs because sourdough just doesn't seem to create cravings.

I should eat more fruit but am not a huge fan but do like veg and pulses.

For me biggest advantage is it doesn't feel too restrictive once you identify the products that are less processed e.g. I use coconut milk for a meal and so many cans have additives but once you find the one that doesn't you just buy that one.

so my problem is the buiscuits and chocolate - dinners are fine , make my own bread

do you just replace the sweet junk with homemade treats or ?

I don't know why you started your thread with 'lying'? @AusBoundDD

Why should scientists lie?

The health of the microbiome is critical to health.

One of my family has advanced cancer. When he started immunotherapy he was advised by the oncologist to stick to a very healthy diet (the 30 plants a week. )

There is research published that shows cancer treatment can be 50% more effective when patients have a heathy microbiome (full of good bacteria.)

Just don't eat 'treats'.

3 meals a day is fine and a piece of fruit in between if you're starving.

or 1 square of dark choc- at least 70% cocoa solids and no emulsifiers in it.

Vegan here. Can confirm that we do in fact, eat food 🤣

Don't call them treats and just eat them if you want them, but offset it with less of something else. It's all just food.

Was replying to the poster who called them 'treats'.

I made better choices for 15 years including doing loads of exercise, but only mounjaro has succeeded in helping me in eating only the tiny amounts I need to be able to lose weight. I'm paying for mine but it makes absolute sense to fund it on the NHS for obese people.

You could try this recipe for UPF free home-made porridge mixes

www.theseasonalhomestead.com/homemade-instant-oatmeal-packets-better-than-quaker/

Supermarket sliced bread is minging. Shop bought cakes are not worth the calories.

I read Ultra Processed People a few weeks ago - I threw my half eaten chocolate bar in the bin, that’s how much impact it had on me.

I don't really understand how low/no UPF has suddenly become so fashionable. Surely it's obvious that most pre-made stuff from supermarkets is full of rubbish, it's right there on the label.

Easy plenty of fruit and veg, whole grains, sufficient good quality protein and fat, and cook as much as possible from scratch. That's what we were taught at school in the 70s and 80s. It all seems such common sense that I'm surprised (or maybe not) that there's a whole industry making money from those principles now.

I'm trying to avoid the additives, emulsifiers, artificial flavours and colours etc. Not sure if this has been mentioned already but the YUKA app is incredible. I've already made so many swaps because of it. And not just food, shampoo and makeup too.

I agree with you OP. I wish I had tried to make the change years ago but was blissfully unaware quite how unhealthy my diet was. I was vegetarian, non smoker didn’t drink much so thought I was quite healthy. Got diagnosed with inflammatory arthritis last year so am slowly trying to eat less UPF and more anti inflammatory foods. Think it was more stress that has caused my disease but wish I had been more aware years ago about a cleaner diet not just eating your five a day. Hardest thing I am finding to give up is chocolate