I wish our school systems would take note. Our school offers free breakfast and lunch in the spirit of improving lower income student's performance, but the only breakfast items they offer are of the convenience food variety, or high sugar cereals.
And ultra-processed foods play a particularly unusual part in that? It’s a question that science doesn’t yet have all the answers for. There is already some research that tells us that when a western junk food diet is given to young people who normally eat a fairly healthy diet for a week, we can see there are impairments in the cognitive functions of the hippocampus [an area of the brain]. We and others have shown that people who have a less healthy diet have a smaller hippocampus, and people who have a healthier diet have a larger hippocampus.
Can appreciate the study but I wonder if lifestyle, activity/stimulation and portioning don’t play larger measurable roles.
if you live in a food desert where the only options for food are the gas station or the dollar store. There’s often no choice.
Lifestyle can play a role in being healthy but choice of good food is the catalyst for changing your lifestyle. The “ultra processed” garbage is cheap energy at best and has you continually reaching for that cheap energy and promoting a generally unhealthy/inactive lifestyle.
I've been a nutritional fiend for ever and hyperfocused on self improvement to the point I abandoned my sociatal responsibilities. Shhhh...
Before covid happened, I was working out and eating well. Custom diet plan that ensured I'd reach my daily caloric goal. Generally wanted fats and protein earlier in the day with a nice sugar boost to wake me up, then dinner was ensured a new variety because I wanted to maintain a healthy gut biome. Felt fucking great - I was studying hardcore everyday, working out... Felt so incredible compared to my currently recovering self.
Then covid happened and following it, financial devistation. Had to start working again so I began eating fast food. Had no time and didn't think too much beyond this point in time.
Energy levels rapidly reached points similar to depression and studying became a chore even after I quit and tried returning to my studies. I could never restore my energy levels because I couldn't afford healthy food; Bottom barrel garbage. Nutrigrain bars give ~200 cals @ 24/$15. STEAL. My gut biome was non-existent due to 0 variety and grease obliterating any new life.
Cut to today, my family takes me in and feeds me. I'm able to finally return to my varied homecooked diet. Nearing the end of week 2 and my productivity has already skyrocketed despite the constant verbal abuse :') even just noticed my journal entries have become less shakey.
The main point is, my actions beyond my food did not influence my energy outcomes. Kind of. Gaining more muscle did not make me feel any better. Losing muscle, it was infinitely harder to regain it and I'd end up using more enegy, making me even more apathetic.
Basically, life's a balance. Maintain that tummy balance! Don't buy those cheap burgers from Wendies even if it's a steal of quik protien!!!
Lots of different needs for different people, I guess. I’m older, eat almost exclusively junk food, exercise a lot and generally feel really great. Definitely understand it’s not the same for others tho.
So true! Not just food - drugs, ideas, we all take differently. It's important to self observe so we can plan our best lives. :)
Yet the lady doesn't define what ultra-processed is. I have little doubts that eating McDonald's every day is bad for you, but in their study did they include stuff like kraft Mac and cheese, dehydrated mashed potatoes, cereal, etc as "ultra-processed?".
Whole thing reads like click bait with no actual science behind it, would love to see the results of an actual study on the topic too.
It's a few links in, but they define it in a whole article.
This part stands out to me
Population-based studies conducted in several countries, most of them using national dietary intake surveys, have shown that ultra-processed foods are typically high-energy-dense products, high in sugar, unhealthy fats and salt, and low in dietary fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals
Because it starts off saying
A practical way to identify an ultra-processed product is to check to see if its list of ingredients contains at least one item characteristic of the NOVA ultra-processed food group, which is to say, either food substances never or rarely used in kitchens (such as high-fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated or interesterified oils, and hydrolysed proteins), or classes of additives designed to make the final product palatable or more appealing (such as flavours, flavour enhancers, colours, emulsifiers, emulsifying salts, sweeteners, thickeners, and anti-foaming, bulking, carbonating, foaming, gelling and glazing agents).
Which like, could be literally anything, but adding the whole "they tend to be high in sugar, fats, and salt, while being low in fibre and nutrition" makes it make a lot more sense. It's not that the additives themselves are necessarily bad, but rather that they're making up for a lack of real substance. You don't get the nutrition you need and parts of your body atrophies, seems logical.
MSG is fantastic and can bring an already good dish to a new level, or you could add a whole lot of it into a bad dish and possibly elevate it to palatable.
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