I’ve gone non UPF, I just can’t believe the difference it’s made in a week

[LaurieFairyCake]

I feel like such an idiot. I can’t believe how well I feel, how much I’m ready for bed and how much better I sleep.

this shit is radical. I was eating 40% upf (a teenagers diet is 80% 😱) and I feel brand new.

i have zero pain in my joints, during the day loads of good energy

does anyone else do this ?

Yes when I lived in France a long time ago you had a salad first which was basically just green leaves with a dressing. Then there was a natural yogurt at some point to aid digestion. Thought the French were obsessed with their digestion. No-one bothered about such things at the time and place I came from!

I wish people wouldnt bandy around 'glucose spikes' as if it means anything

Our blood sugar goes up after eating, that is normal. Some people, not everyone, need to be careful due to their metabolism that those spikes are not excessive. Unless you have a problem with your metabolism (and just being overweight is not necessarily indicative of that), or you have a problem processing sugars then its not applicable.

Have you got the links please @LaurieFairyCake?

It's really annoying to see people like Michael Pollan push Ikarian stews as his own when it's what millions of people across the world eat daily and cheaply. Or fermented foods.

I think cans are lined in a safer plastic these days.
I use canned legumes as i'm sensitive to the fructans present. If they're canned or bottled in liquid the fructans are reduced. Plus I rinse them well.
Much as though I love the taste & superior texture of say dried chickpeas that are cooked, my stomach really doesn't.

Yep. It’s minimally processed apparently. Catnip for the worried well (which I can be guilty of falling into).

But it's not "50%".

If you take the crisps, they are probably 99% potatoes, oil, and salt, and less than 1% UPFs, but because they CONTAIN UPFs we call them UPFs and define the whole bag as UPF. It's a nonsense to suggest that something with 1% UPF is the same as something 100% UPF. It doesn't alter the fact that crisps are bad for your health, because they are entirely simple carbs, fat and salt, not because of UPFs. You can make crisps at home if you like but it's still not a healthy snack. If you cut out shop bought crisps you probably can't be bothered to make them at home so you'll feel better.

The concept of "UPF" is also poorly defined. Something you don't have as an ingredient in your kitchen? I have MSG as an ingredient in my kitchen, does that make it not a UPF? I have vegetable oil in my kitchen, does that make it good for me? Butter is completely natural and I sometimes make it myself- is butter going to make me full of health? (Spoiler: I bloody love butter and no it does not.)

It's the latest buzzword in a long list of "health demons" but the reason why people who eat a lot of UPFs are unwell is the same reason as any other diet worry- the majority of them are too low in fibre and nutrients and too high in salt, sugar, fat and carbs which make you feel full for a very short time and do not provide the building blocks of health that humans need.

My diet is naturally low in UPFs because I cook from scratch but it doesn't mean I don't start to feel it if I'm indulging in lots of buttery, sugary cakes, cheese and oil filled dinners and salty pastries. Whether it contains an ingredient I haven't heard of or not.

I find it so interesting that a lot of the ways of eating in different food cultures are inherently good for health e.g. the south american rice and peas naturally pairs the right amino acids to give a complete protein, in southern europe eating vinegar and olive oil with bread lowers the glucose spike from the refinded carb. Even the traditional way of preserving food (fermenting) is now shown to be great for our microbiome and overall health whereas modern preservatives kill it off with all the adverse downstream health impacts.

We should try to learn from more traditional ways of eating as the food is both tasty and healthy.

Thanks for this, it’s the ooh don’t eat porridge that will cause a spike . And? Will I be harmed ?

Oh come on!!!

But why not just eat the fruit, not blend it? And have less sweet fruits first thing (the tropical ones have the most sugar). Or eggs? You really don't get the fibre when you blend fruit, blending is literally smashing up the fibre—you're cutting out the digestive process of breaking it down, which is what makes fibre good for you—your gut needs to it feed the microbiome.

Tbh one of the other reasons I do intermittent fasting is I just can't be bothered with the faff of thinking of a third meal. I don't feel hungry in the morning anyway. If I had a tropical fruit smoothie I'd be famished by 11am though.

link for the Chris V Tullekan one

I'll listen to my gastroenterologist on this one. Unless you're a gastroenterologist, I think he knows more than you.

and the Jessie inchauspe one on glucose

I wish people who post knew more about it :)

Glucose spikes aren't great for anyone. This is because eventually it's possible to develop metabolic syndrome (ie diabetes) because the pancreas says 'bugger this, I've had enough' and you start to become insulin resistant.

It's also individual as to how fast the spikes fall. It's not only the rise in BG that's important but how quickly your body deals with it. That's dependent on your genes, age, level of activity etc.

They are now discovering that artificial sweeteners may have the same effect and contribute to metabolic syndrome. This is because the 'sweetness' tricks the brain into thinking it's 'real sugar' and the pancreas reacts accordingly.

There are excellent scientific videos online which show the long term impact of this and how the body reacts.

I don't really like fruit much, so smoothies are one way I get it in. It's also easier for me to digest in smoothie form. Mango is particularly soothing, which is probably why I went for the tropical the next couple of days. I got sick so had to take ibuprofen and now I'm having to settle the pain that results.

I could do eggs with a piece of fruit, but every day? Maybe I need to start a thread for ideas that work with my prescribed diet.

Thank you so much!!

Yes we have moved away from UPF as much as possible in our house. If my kids eat a lot of it they turn into miserable versions of themselves. Our main swaps:

• We bake our own bread, or buy part bake ciabattas as these are not UPF.
• No cereal as standard (might occasionally have it as a treat) unless it’s non UPF. Breakfast is berries, yoghurt, organic oats plus various toppings, porridge etc. maybe a bit of weetabix as it isn’t too bad.
• kids love sausages so swapped to organic no nitrate, non UPF ones
• no fizzy drinks or squash (not that we did anyway) as standard (again parties and other occasions might be an exception).
• no crisps that aren’t oil, salt and potato (we do love a crisp in this house 😂)
• no protein shakes
• no flavoured yoghurts
• opt for chocolate that isn’t UPF like M&S dark milk. The other stuff starts to taste rubbish after a while!

We are not perfect but we try to be 80/20 about it. Ice cream is a hard one, plus we have a dairy free kiddo so we do allow spread and oat milk in our 20.

We are definitely all better for it.

I'm doing something similar and supplementing collagen, taking multivitamin, l-arginine and turmeric. Also a protein supplement some days which I know is processed. Cut out caffeine and have gone low salt temporarily, came off all medication I didn't feel was helping and only take paracetamol for severe headaches. My skin is the best it's ever been, nails very strong and hair starting to look shiny again. Acne I've had for 15+ years is almost gone. Hoping in a few months to see more improvements, I started this regime to help with a medical injury caused by interventions during childbirth. I've only been doing this for a month, but plan to keep up indefinitely as the results have been very positive.
I have lost some weight too, roughly a stone but not weighing myself anymore and focusing on wellbeing has been really helpful

I know a lot about it

I havent eaten artificial sweetners for over 30 years. I was viewed as a bit of a quack about this, bit weird, a bit unnecessary. Even now people dont really see the issue with artificial sweetners, in my view its one of the biggest sources of harm in terms of how our bodies function and we are now paying the price

In terms of spiking, you can create dysfunction by overuse, of course you can. But to cite that as a reason not to eat a fruit smoothie, or some porridge is not where that overuse is coming from. The overuse and resistance comes from years and years of overeating, putting on excess weight, lack of balance and periods of rest inbetween overeating and eating consistently high levels of refined sugar/carb food stuffs.

Its not about a smoothie with a bit of honey, banana or some morning porridge

Or even, as someone earlier on the post threw up about pasta. Whole civilisations have managed to feed themselves, their descendents on white flour based products. Our health is compromised in modern times due to two main areas, over eating considerably and eating out of balance.

Thats pretty much it. Eat less, eat a wider diversity of foodstuffs and include lots of plant matter. (bit like my bloody chickpea salad which I hope to see the end of sometime this week)

What do you do with the rest of the egg yolk? Can you freeze in ice cube?
Or do you make an omelette? Because my DH would divorce me if I threw away our pet hens eggs!

Fair enough, sounds like your dietary issues make it complicated. Personally I don't get bored having the same lunch every day, though I need variety for dinner. Not sure why.

I don't care much for tropical fruits (give me a slightly sour apple or tart raspberries), so I suppose it's easy for me to criticise!

I like the microwave 'cake' idea! Worth trying with other berries too. Personally, I'd rather eat fruit as it is rather than in a smoothie. For some reason, it just seems more satisfying to eat it than drink it.

You've got me thinking though, and maybe it would be better to mix it up.

I could cook up some diced apple with some cinnamon for breakfast, with an egg for protein too.