Understanding Processed Foods

Q: Can you help me understand processed foods — how to identify them and which ones should be avoided? I get confused about foods like breads, milk, deli meats, and canned or frozen fruits, vegetables, and legumes.

A: Processed foods are foods that have been altered from their natural state. 

Generally, food is processed to increase its shelf life, increase seasonal availability, and remove toxins. When we hear about processed foods, we generally think that these foods are bad for us, but that’s not necessarily the case. 

                         

For example, fruits and vegetables are frozen at the peak of ripeness to preserve their vitamins and minerals and increase the availability of produce year-round. Another example is milk, which is pasteurized to kill bacteria and homogenized to keep fats from separating — both are forms of processing, but they don’t make milk bad for you. 

Canned goods like vegetables, beans, and legumes are often processed with added salt to keep them shelf-stable and retain their natural color. It’s best to buy canned beans and vegetables without salt, but if you do buy canned goods with added salt, rinse them before using to reduce the sodium.

Foods that are processed that fall into the less-healthy category are cakes, cookies, snack foods, frozen meals, breakfast cereals, breads, and meats like hot 

dogs

, cold cuts, and sausage. Many of these foods are made with trans fats, saturated fats, and large amounts of salt and sugar. To know how processed the food is, read the nutrition labels with a focus on the ingredients list and sodium and sugar levels. Remember that ingredients are listed in order by weight, not all sugar is added sugar, and trans fats are listed as 0 grams if the product has less than 0.5 grams per serving — eat more than one serving and you could be over the daily limit!