Let’s Go Au Naturel

Over the years, we’ve seen a variety of food-related health advice come and go. Remember when fat was bad for us so we gorged on low and non-fat items that were loaded with sugar? I used to eat non-fat frozen yogurt by the quart before learning that was probably worse than ice cream. Then we learned it was the sugar that was bad, so we switched to gelato because it has higher fat and less sugar than regular ice cream. Now I’m at the age when the only frozen dessert my doctor recommends is an ice cube. The latest data we’re getting suggests that the only food that really qualifies as food glorious food is the stuff that’s not heavily processed. “In recent years, dozens of studies have found that people who consume a lot of ultra-processed foods have higher rates of weight gain, obesity, cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and other chronic diseases.” In other words, don’t trust the process. WaPo (Gift Article): Dietary guidelines may soon warn against ultraprocessed foods. “For the first time, the guidelines committee is examining the science on obesity and ultra-processed foods — industrially manufactured foods that have unusual combinations of flavors, additives, and ingredients, many of which are not found in nature. These include things like chicken nuggets, sweetened breakfast cereals, boxed mac & cheese, frozen dinners, potato chips and fast food.” These guidelines just committed pantrycide on my kitchen. The only thing left is a jar of natural peanut butter and a couple handfuls of Ozempic.