Are Processed Foods Really Less Healthy?

After telling people to eat fewer processed foods, I often see confused looks on their faces. "What does processed mean?" is what they are thinking. And why is it a good idea to stick to unprocessed foods?

By processed, I generally mean created and changed in a factory using conventional processing methods. A general rule of thumb is that, in most cases, the fewer ingredients, the more unprocessed the food. A bag of raw walnuts generally has had no processing other than perhaps being shelled. Its ingredients are: walnuts. A bag of trail mix has lots and lots of processing. Its ingredient list probably goes on and on, including enriched (meaning refined which strips the vitamins and minerals) wheat flour, partially hydrogenated (meaning highly heated causing a change to trans fat) soybean oil, roasted (beyond the temperature normally recommended) peanuts, and the list keeps going.

When foods are processed, they nearly always end up with negative health compounds called AGEs, or advanced glycation endproducts. This is a fancy, scientific term for a highly unhealthy, chemically-altered carbohydrate/protein mixture molecule that the human body is not designed to digest. Consumption of AGEs is a significant cause of excess cellular oxidation and inflammation. These two processes play a considerable role in a vast number of chronic conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, and cancer (1, 2).

Here is a prime example of buying a processed item vs. an unprocessed one: Kraft vs. Trader Joe’s Guacamole. Unprocessed guacamole is a health food with one of the healthiest types of unsaturated fat (omega 9) and a variety of fresh veggies (onions, peppers, and garlic).

Here are the Kraft Guacamole ingredients:

Water, partially hydrogenated coconut and soybean oil, corn syrup, whey protein concentrate (from milk), food starch modified, contains less than 2% of potatoes, salt, avocado, defatted soy flour, monosodium glutamate, tomatoes, sodium caseinate, vinegar, lactic acid, onions, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, gelatin, xanthan gum, carob bean gum, mono- and diglycerides, spice, with sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate as preservatives, garlic, sodium phosphate, citric acid, yellow 6, yellow 5, artificial flavor, blue 1, artificial color. 

Here are the Trader Joe’s Guacamole ingredients:

Five haas avocados, jalapeno puree (white vinegar, jalapeno peppers), dehydrated onion, salt, granulated garlic.

Now, take a wild guess as to the guacamole brand that I would recommend for my clients. It should be as clear as night and day that the Trader Joe’s brand comes out as a solid, healthy choice, whereas the Kraft brand is about as processed and chemically-altered as possible. Consider the main ingredient in the Kraft (trans fat oil) versus the main ingredient in the Trader Joe’s (fresh avocadoes). Yes, the Kraft will take longer to go rancid, but by eating foods like it, your body will simultaneously lose out on very healthy nutrients while being exposed to very unhealthy chemical byproducts that shouldn’t be passed off as “food.” Lastly, try a side-by-side taste test, and I would bet that the Trader Joe’s guacamole will win by a country mile.

1. Uribarri J, Woodruff S, Goodman S, et al. Advanced glycation end products in foods and a practical guide to their reduction in the diet. J Am Diet Assoc. 2010;110(6):911-16.e12.
2. Rakoff-nahoum S. Why cancer and inflammation?. Yale J Biol Med. 2006;79(3-4):123-30.

David Rodgers, L.N., M.S. is a Licensed Nutritionist practicing in Berkley at the Nutrient Balance Center. He specializes in helping people with Chronic Lyme Disease, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, weight loss, heart disease, diabetes, digestive conditions, lupus, MS, and more by using dietary changes, targeted natural supplements, detoxification, and lifestyle modification. For more information, as well as free training video seminars, see www.nutrientbalance.com.