9 ways to identify ultra-processed foods - The Washington Post

To improve your eating habits, you don’t need to count calories or carbs. Instead, focus on how much your food has been processed before it gets to your dinner table. If you’re like most people, you eat a lot of ultra-processed foods and don’t even realize it. Many of these foods — protein and granola bars, low-fat yogurts and breakfast cereals — sound like healthful choices. But ultra-processed foods are formulations of industrial ingredients that are designed by manufacturers to achieve a certain “bliss point,” which causes us to crave and overeat them. Ultra-processed foods make up a majority of the calories most people consume, and scientists say they are a driving force behind the multiple diet-related illnesses that are shortening our life spans. “Empowering yourself with the knowledge of what you’re about to eat or what you’re about to feed your family is critical,” said Nicole Avena, a visiting professor of health psychology at Princeton University. So how can you free yourself

To improve your eating habits, you don’t need to count calories or carbs. Instead, focus on how much your food has been processed before it gets to your dinner table. If you’re like most people, you eat a lot of ultra-processed foods and don’t even realize it. Many of these foods — protein and granola bars, low-fat yogurts and breakfast cereals — sound like healthful choices. But ultra-processed foods are formulations of industrial ingredients that are designed by manufacturers to achieve a certain “bliss point,” which causes us to crave and overeat them. Ultra-processed foods make up a majori