{"id":2059480,"date":"2023-10-08T05:20:01","date_gmt":"2023-10-08T09:20:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/are-you-gonna-eat-that\/"},"modified":"2023-10-08T05:27:23","modified_gmt":"2023-10-08T09:27:23","slug":"are-you-gonna-eat-that","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/are-you-gonna-eat-that\/","title":{"rendered":"Will you eat that?"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">8<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fare-you-gonna-eat-that%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2059480&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Ultra-Processed People: \u200bThe Science Behind Food That Isn&#8217;t Food<\/h2>\n<div>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Let\u2019s say \u2062you\u2019re scanning a few labels \u200cof convenience foods you have on \u2062hand.\u2064 The &#8220;modified starch&#8221; in your tub of rice pudding sounds more innocuous than hydroxypropyl distarch phosphate, one of its \u200cscientific synthetic names.\u200b But maybe the &#8220;yellow prussiate of soda&#8221; vs. sodium ferrocyanide in your rolled oats is a closer call.<\/p>\n<p>No matter. You as an average consumer in an industrialized nation probably don\u2019t give either of them much thought, even though you are estimated\u200c to ingest 17.6 pounds of \u200dfood additives per year.\u200d You assume they have been deemed safe for consumption and that they serve a purpose: to emulsify\u2062 or stabilize, to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/johnson-johnson-vaccine-shelf-life-extended-as-millions-of-doses-near-expiration\/\" title=\"Johnson &#038; Johnson vaccine shelf life extended as millions of doses near expiration\">extend shelf life<\/a>, to keep bits from \u200bclumping together. Better living through chemistry!<\/p>\n<p>What these ingredients have in \u200dcommon, though, is that they\u2062 are among\u200b the thousands of &#8220;self-certified&#8221; \u200dindustrial substances on the FDA\u2019s \u200blist of GRAS additives, \u2064or Generally Recognized as Safe.\u2063 Certified, as in,\u2064 declared safe not by government standards, but by\u2063 or on\u200c behalf of the \u2062companies who make and use them.<\/p>\n<p>Chris van Tulleken does not think \u200cthey are safe\u2014so much so that he wrote\u2062 this soapbox of a book, <em>Ultra-Processed People<\/em>. He is, among many things, a British-born \u2062infectious disease doctor with a Ph.D. in virology, a popular BBC personality and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bafta.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">BAFTA<\/a> \u2064 award winner, a 45-year-old husband and father of \u200ctwo daughters, and an identical twin. Because of how\u200c he has put forth his arguments, he also has become a\u2062 polarizing figure to those who are concerned about what we eat.<\/p>\n<p>In citing studies and potentialities as well as his own\u2064 anecdotal\u2063 discoveries, van Tulleken is not the first to note that the Academy of Nutrition and\u200b Dietetics, which helps\u200d to shape food policy and trains dietitians in the United States, has \u200caccepted millions of dollars\u200b from Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Kellogg\u2019s, and Conagra. He\u2062 follows a pack of authorial scientists\u200c and policy experts\u200d on the effects of such substances on our diets and behaviors, including Marion Nestle \u2063(<em>Unsavory Truth<\/em>), Mark Schatzker (<em>The Dorito Effect<\/em>), and H.G. Wells (<em>The Food of the Gods and How It Came to Earth<\/em>).<\/p>\n<p>Nor \u200ddid he coin the\u200c term &#8220;ultra-processed foods&#8221; (UPFs), defined as &#8220;formulations of ingredients, mostly of\u2063 exclusive industrial use, made by a series of industrial processes, many requiring sophisticated equipment and technology.&#8221; \u200dWe\u2019re talking foodstuffs not made in home kitchens and more than minimally processed: soft drinks, artificially flavored yogurts, packaged snack foods, \u200bmass-produced breads and breakfast cereals, instant sauces and\u2064 puddings, frozen pizzas, drive-thru fried chicken \u2062and milkshakes.<\/p>\n<p>Van Tulleken characterizes UPFs as &#8220;addictive edibles&#8221; that our bodies don\u2019t quite know what to do \u2064with. Because they are cheap and their effect as additives \u200ctends to reformulate and\/or substitute whole foods, they \u2063do not promote\u2062 healthful diets. It is not a question of whether they are harmful to humans, but rather\u200b how \u2062much damage they cause in the form of\u200d our burdened microbiomes, obesity-related diseases, \u2062and shortened lifespans. UPFs are designed &#8220;to get us hooked,&#8221; thereby increasing the \u200dmarket share of \u200bthe transnational food conglomerates\u2062 that deploy them. Furthermore, he declares, &#8220;they seem to require fraudulent marketing.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Not all UPFs have been created with questionable intent, he\u2062 allows. German \u200bchemists in the late 1930s discovered what is regarded as the first synthetic food. By extracting oils and waxes from coal (!), they \u2062produced a tasteless fatty acid that, when mixed with beta-carotene and diacetyl\u2064 (the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/are-you-gonna-eat-that\/\" title=\"Will you eat that?\">chemical molecule long responsible<\/a> for the buttery flavor and aroma of microwave popcorn),\u2064 begat coal \u2063butter. Food from fuel; this was heralded as a positive development by futurists at the time.<\/p>\n<p>Along more diabolical lines, van Tulleken relays the negative outcomes of powdered infant formula dispensed to\u200b poor mothers and the &#8220;true cost of \u200dPringles.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Chapter and verse are devoted to stun hearts and minds about UPFs. Corn and soy beans are turned into proteins that \u200bare hydrolyzed\u200b (as flavor enhancers for meat and poultry), into starches that can be modified (in that rice pudding of yours),\u2062 and oils that are refined, bleached, deodorized, hydrogenated, and interesterified (a tongue twister; a rearranging of certain fatty acids in order to adjust melting points; and some liken the effect to why trans fats were effectively banned). Xanthan gum, the thickener and emulsifier ubiquitous in\u2063 commercial \u200dice creams and gluten-free products, is\u2063 produced by way of a microbe that breaks\u200b down \u2062raw carbohydrates such as glucose and natural starches. The author describes xanthan gum\u2063 as emanating from &#8220;slime that bacteria produce to allow them to cling to surfaces.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Yet, \u2063van Tulleken professes to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/top-who-scientist-behind-report-questioning-covid-lab-leak-theory-axed-over-alleged-sexual-misconduct\/\" title=\"WHO Scientist Removed for Sexual Misconduct After Questioning COVID Lab Leak Theory.\">remain open-minded<\/a>: &#8220;I sincerely don\u2019t have a\u200d moral opinion about eating UPF. \u2026 The goal should be that you live \u2064in a world where you have real choices and the freedom to make them.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><em>Ultra-Processed People<\/em> is full of judgment, \u2062it seems, and\u200c that is just one reason its \u200cauthor has engendered criticism. What about the vast benefits of \u200ckeeping foods from spoiling, the upside of maintaining the color of vegetables and meats so they remain appealing enough to \u200bconsume? Are the UPFs themselves truly harmful, or are they among several factors that lead to addictive behaviors and \u2063overeating? Even he admits that obesity has more causes than UPFs.<\/p>\n<p>Van Tulleken\u200b does offer coping strategies: Push for greater government\u200b oversight. Underwrite research with funds that do not come from food and beverage industries. Establish food policies that\u200c are not dictated by large food corporations. Seek advice from a medical profession that promotes a\u200b diet mindful of UPFs. And dig deeper\u200d into your pockets,\u2062 because foods that do not contain artificial preservatives, flavors, or chemicals\u2014hello, organics!\u2014are going \u2063to cost you.<\/p>\n<p><em>Ultra-Processed People: The Science Behind Food That Isn\u2019t Food<\/em><br \/>  by\u2062 Chris van Tulleken<br \/> W.W. Norton,\u200d 384 pp., $30\t<\/p>\n<p><em>Bonnie S.\u200d Benwick, formerly of the<\/em> \u200bWashington Post <em>food section, is \u2063a \u2064freelance\u2064 editor and recipe\u2064 tester. You can find her on Instagram and Threads: @bbenwick.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> What are the potential health consequences of consuming ultra-processed foods?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Er to change their physical properties). These processes are often carried out using chemicals and additives that \u2062have been deemed safe by the companies themselves, without rigorous testing or \u2063oversight\u200d from regulatory authorities.<\/p>\n<p>The consequences of consuming these ultra-processed foods \u2063are far-reaching and concerning. \u200dVan Tulleken\u200b highlights the impact on our\u2063 microbiomes, the \u200ccomplex\u2062 community of microorganisms that\u200b live in our bodies and play a crucial role in \u200dour\u2062 overall health. UPFs disrupt the delicate balance of our\u200d microbiomes, leading \u2063to a range of health issues including obesity, diabetes, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-link-between-air-pollution-and-autoimmune-diseases\/\" title=\"The Link Between Air Pollution and Autoimmune Diseases\">inflammatory bowel disease<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, the addictive\u200d nature of UPFs is another cause for concern. These foods are specifically designed \u2063to \u200bbe \u200dirresistible, combining high levels\u2064 of salt, sugar, and\u2063 unhealthy fats \u2063to create a taste \u200dsensation that keeps \u2064us coming\u2063 back\u2063 for more. The transnational food conglomerates that produce \u200cand \u200bmarket these products are well aware of their addictive properties and use fraudulent marketing \u200btactics to \u200dincrease their market share.<\/p>\n<p>Van Tulleken also sheds light on the environmental impact of UPFs. The ingredients used \u200bin these foods are often grown using unsustainable farming practices that contribute to deforestation, water pollution, and biodiversity loss. The manufacturing processes required to produce UPFs also generate \u200csignificant\u2063 amounts of \u2062waste and carbon emissions, further \u2064exacerbating \u2062the \u2064climate crisis.<\/p>\n<p>The solution, according to van Tulleken, lies in a return to whole, minimally processed foods. By prioritizing\u200d fresh fruits and \u2064vegetables, lean proteins, and\u2062 whole grains,\u200b we can\u2063 provide our bodies with the nutrients they need to thrive and reduce our reliance on harmful UPFs. Additionally, supporting local, \u2063sustainable agriculture can help to minimize the environmental impact \u200dof \u2064our food \u200dchoices.<\/p>\n<p>In conclusion, the science behind ultra-processed foods\u200c is \u200dcause for concern. \u200cThese synthetic,\u2064 additive-laden products are wreaking havoc \u2063on our health, our environment, and our \u2062food system. It is imperative\u2063 that we educate ourselves about the detrimental\u200c effects of UPFs\u200d and make conscious choices to prioritize real food.\u2063 By doing so,\u200c we can reclaim\u2064 our health, support local \u200ceconomies, and \u2063contribute to a\u200b more sustainable future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When checking labels of convenience foods, the &#8220;modified starch&#8221; in rice pudding seems harmless compared to its synthetic name, hydroxypropyl distarch phosphate. However, deciding between &#8220;yellow prussiate of soda&#8221; and sodium ferrocyanide in rolled oats is a tougher choice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":548,"featured_media":2059481,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[544],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2059480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-free-beacon"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2059480","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/548"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2059480"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2059480\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2059481"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2059480"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2059480"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2059480"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}