Unprocessed Foods Diet??

[samy23]

I really want to start eating all UNprocessed foods. Can anyone give me some guidance on this? Is there a certain name for it, like 'natural diet' or anything? I had a quick look online and found something called 'clean diet' which sounds like its all unprocessed foods. Im sick of food additives and chemicals being in everything we eat. Please point me in the right direction, I need some help here....? And anyone BTDT?

[goldenwillow]

Maybe look for "raw diet"?  "Whole foods diet" (not the store )?  "Traditional foods diet".... 

We have BTDT.  Feels so much better physically and emotionally.  If you are just beginning, may not feel great at first... like detoxing.  Better in the long run for sure.  Juicing can help start your path.  I admittedly am not a huge fan of dark greens, I can stomach it through juicing. 

[Heba]

We eat almost nothing processed.  The exception are a small number of organic products.

My kids react badly to artificial additives (one more than the other), and it made a huge difference when we cut them out.

It took a while to get used to (e.g. we had to bake our own bread), but now is second nature.

I never managed to find any info or discussion group for it online, to my surprise.  Please let me know what you find!

In the meantime, shoot any questions my way if you think that our experiences may be of interest or help.

xx

[Heba]

Oh, the Failsafe people (the Food Intolerance Network) have a fantastic website at www.fedup.com.au  , as well as a number of books.  The full Failsafe diet also excludes natural foods containing certain food chemicals, but they have great info on how to avoid most of the artificial additives so if you haven't seen the site yet, it might be worth looking around a bit.  They aren't that strict about eliminating artificial sulphites, though, so if you really want to cut out all the nasties you need to be aware that sulphites used in processing are not always required to be listed, and so you need to know what kind of foods they're hiding in.

[Sol_y_Paz]

I call it the eat real food diet.  We practice that as much as possible.

[ursusarctos]

I don't think there is a name for it, because it's more of a way of eating than a "diet." We try to eat whole unprocessed foods most of the time, but it definitely took some transitioning. My best advice is: Read ingredient lists!!! That is possibly the number one way to avoid processed food/additives/etc. It can be surprising the amount of additives in even the simplest foods. Try to pick foods with the smallest number of ingredients/additives. Also try to center your meals around fresh single ingredients rather than ready-made packaged foods. Cook from scratch as often as you can. That will take you most of the way. And don't feel like you have to transition away from processed foods all at once. Go slowly, one thing at a time, and it won't be so overwhelming. Good luck! 

[crunchy_mommy]

Originally Posted by ursusarctos 

I don't think there is a name for it, because it's more of a way of eating than a "diet." We try to eat whole unprocessed foods most of the time, but it definitely took some transitioning. My best advice is: Read ingredient lists!!! That is possibly the number one way to avoid processed food/additives/etc. It can be surprising the amount of additives in even the simplest foods. Try to pick foods with the smallest number of ingredients/additives. Also try to center your meals around fresh single ingredients rather than ready-made packaged foods. Cook from scratch as often as you can. That will take you most of the way. And don't feel like you have to transition away from processed foods all at once. Go slowly, one thing at a time, and it won't be so overwhelming. Good luck! 

I agree with this.

I read all ingredient labels. I look for 2 things: 1) Short list of ingredients. If it's too long, I don't even bother reading it, just put it back on the shelf. 2) I know what all the ingredients are and where they come from (without a chemist degree lol). "Dehydrated carrot power" might be OK with me, but "Red #40" is not (and in an ideal world, I would only buy fresh stuff, no 'dehydrated' or 'extract' or whatever!!)

What kinds of meals are you currently eating? That might help us provide some direction & ideas for replacements.
Edited by crunchy_mommy - 7/5/11 at 5:11pm

[Shantimama]

I just think of it as whole foods.

There are different ways to define "processed foods." Some of them are acceptable to me. Frozen fruits and vegetables are processed and living where I do, they are a necessary part of our diet for at least half the year. Canned tomatoes (store or home) are a staple around here. As long as they are still fairly close to their original state I am okay with it. If something could not possibly have been made in my kitchen (doesn't mean I have any intention of doing it but if I wanted to I could) then it probably doesn't have much of a place in my diet. So butter is okay but margerine isn't since it can only be made in a factory. Canned tomatoes are fine but powdered tomato flavour mixes are not.

[ursusarctos]

Originally Posted by Shantimama 

If something could not possibly have been made in my kitchen (doesn't mean I have any intention of doing it but if I wanted to I could) then it probably doesn't have much of a place in my diet. So butter is okay but margerine isn't since it can only be made in a factory. Canned tomatoes are fine but powdered tomato flavour mixes are not.

Yes, this!!! That's a great way to think about it when you are trying to decide if something is "real" (unprocessed, whole) food. That is how I define "processed" to myself, actually. Lightly processed in a way I could do at home (veggies blanched and frozen, tomatoes canned, etc.) is totally different from heavily machine processed at high temps and pressures with artificial additives. The latter is what I mean when I say "processed."
 

[Chicky2]

OP, why don't you post what you ate all day yesterday and maybe we can tell you how to do that yourself, or what in your diet would be considered processed.

If it's food we eat it.  Real food only.

[Honey693]

google 10 days of real food.  I did it a few weeks ago.

[1love4ever]

We eat a ton of fresh fruits and veggies and don't buy any of the big name brand foods.  I can a lot of my own stuff like applesauce, peaches, jam, tomatoes, etc.  I use the tomatoes that I can(and grow) myself to make things like spaghetti

[tinybutterfly]

Hi! I am still working on this, too. I eat Feingold, but it allows for processed foods ( just ones without certain artificial additives, preservatives and dyes.)

I think what you may be talking about is what I used to hear called a whole foods "diet." Not really a diet like others posters have pointed out, but a way of eating.

I did like this book very much, though it is vegetarian and we are not veg. Nikki and David Goldbeck's American Wholefoods Cuisine.

http://www.amazon.com/American-Wholefoods-Cuisine-Meatless-Wholesome/dp/0452262801

La Leche League has this one, Whole Foods for the Whole Family.

http://www.amazon.com/Whole-Foods-Family-International-Cookbook/dp/0452255031/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1310165360&sr=1-1

I've been on Feingold for nearly 3 years now and feel MUCH better , except when I cheat like I did tonight with Qdoba's, but hey at least I had the naked vegetarian burrito ( rice, pinto beans, cheese, salsa, guacamole and sour cream.) But the guacamole doesn't turn brown, so ya know there's bad stuff in there.

Anyway, I am sure a whole foods diet would be all kinds of good for you and your family...and for me and my family. I have both of these cookbooks. I just need to get them off the bookshelf and USE them.

Oh, and I totally agree that reading labels, using some minimally processed foods is fine. Canned tomatoes, whether home-canned or store bought ( as long as they are not loaded with additives, preservatives, etc.) can be a part of a good, healthy way of eating. Same for frozen foods. There's a difference between plain frozen brocolli and frozen brocolli in fake butter sauce.

Good luck!

[1love4ever]

Canned tomatoes in a CAN(not a jar) that you buy at the store are loaded with BPA, because the lining of EVERY can(including pop cans) contains BPA to "protect" the food.  BPA is extremely dangerous and toxic, and canned tomatoes actually have the highest amount of BPA because their acidity eats away at the lining, causing it to leach VERY badly into the food.  BPA has been linked to cancer, birth defects, heart disease, obeisity, early onset of pubery, and so much more!  It is a synthetic estrogen, so you are getting a dose of a cancer causing estrogen every time you eat anything from a can.  (actually I was told by the company Natural Sea, who sell tuna, that their cans are BPA free, and instead lined with a PET lining)

Anyway, just thought I'd let you know that!  Here is more info,  this is one of my favorite sites.  http://ewg.org/reports/bisphenola 

Please be careful what you are exposing your family to, and what practices and companies you are supporting with your purchases!

Good Luck!

[Hollyrose114]

Just an  FYI you can buy tomatoes in a box instead of a can. The brand is Pomi.

[sillysmile]

Originally Posted by 1love4ever 

the lining of EVERY can(including pop cans) contains BPA to "protect" the food. 

BPA-free cans are becoming more common. Eden brand beans is one of the things that I occasionally buy for quick-fix meals - they are in BPA-free cans, though beans leach a small amount of BPA anyway. Whole Foods carries a brand of BPA-free coconut milk (native forest), and I also use Pomi boxed tomatoes. I rarely buy any other canned items, since I'm even a bit leary of the non-BPA can linings. It's just a bunch of chemicals that has been less well-studied, and who knows what the long-term health effects are.
 

[1love4ever]

I know Amy's Soups has BPA free cans that are now lined with PVC.  Like that is any better!!  Yeah the Eden ones say they contain BPA and almost undetectable levels, but it is present so I dont consider that BPA-free, I think it is misleading.  Thanks for the info I didnt know about the boxed tomatoes.

[crunchy_mommy]

I don't know about boxed tomatoes... polyethylene & aluminum??? http://www.greencradle.net/2009/11/are-tetra-paks-a-healthier-or-greener-container-for-organic-foods/

How do you get tomatoes in glass jars?

[sillysmile]

Thank you for the post about tetra-paks. That is really depressing, but good to know. I just wish that consumers had clearer information about chemicals used in food packaging, and that the fda made it a bigger priority to investigate the health effects. If the chemicals from packaging migrate into food, it seems like they should be required to list the ingredients. Grr. 

[crunchy_mommy]

No kidding... it's annoying and scary.