Plant Based JuniorsPlant Based Juniors

Two Registered Dietitian Nutritionist helping you raise your plant-based babies, toddlers, children and teens.

  • About
  • Books
    • Easy Dinners for Busy Parents
    • Plant-Based Juniors: Pregnancy Guide
    • PBJ’s Nut-Free Plant-Based Lunch Box Book
    • Batch Cook Ebook
    • First Bites
    • The Plant-Based Baby and Toddler Book
  • Resources
    • Recipes
    • Pregnancy & Prenatal Nutrition
    • Infant Feeding
    • Baby Led Weaning
  • Course
  • Resources
  • Shop
  • Certified Practitioners
  • Learning Center
  • Login

What Are Processed Foods?

December 26, 2022 Plant-Based Juniors Leave a Comment

What are processed foods? Is it okay to eat them? You may be surprised. What you should know about processed foods.

black store shelves filled with plastic containers full of colorful chopped fruits

“Processed foods” has become somewhat of a health buzzword, indicating the types of foods that we shouldn’t be eating or feeding to our families. It suggests that these foods are less-than, unhealthy, or downright harmful to our health.

But did you know that “processed” doesn’t necessarily mean unhealthy? In fact, we’d argue that the majority of things we eat on a regular basis have been altered to some degree.

Let us explain.

The truth is that they probably aren’t at all what you’ve been led to believe.

While we’ve all been under the impression that they are just Twinkies and Oreos, that’s not the full story.

So, What Are They?

Anything that alters a whole food is considered processing. Yup, that includes cleaning, milling, cutting, chopping, cooking, freezing, drying, etc. Just because a food has been processed tells us nothing about its nutritional profile.

In fact, some foods need to be processed to make them safe to eat. For example, juices and milk that have been pasteurized to kill potentially harmful microorganisms.

This also means that even those pre-chopped melon cubes you bought in the produce section are technically a processed food.
​
​
Processing can be looked at as a scale.

The NOVA scoring system ranks foods by the amount of processing. Group 1 is on the minimal end— think dried fruits, unsweetened yogurt, lentils, and herbs would all fall into this category.

Increasing by processing level to Group 4 are items considered “ultra-processed foods.” Examples include candy bars, salty packaged snacks, sweetened beverages, flavored fruit yogurts, and the like.

An example of varying levels of processing would be edamame (soy) beans, tofu, soy milk, soy-based ice cream, and protein bars made with soy protein isolate.

mother in green dress next to baby in grocery cart looking at packaged foods on store shelves

Why Processing Matters

Research has linked the high consumption of ultra-processed food in childhood to cardiometabolic risks— and, according to data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), highly processed foods account for 2/3 of the calories consumed by kids in 2018.

In other words, ultra-processed foods are generally higher in refined grains and sugars and lower in antioxidants, fiber, and unsaturated fats than other less-processed foods.

The average child gets a substantial number of calories from these foods, which is not surprising looking around at the food landscape surrounding us.

Context Is Key

Various types of processed items may be necessary to meet overall nutrition goals— especially considering selective eating and food access.

That being said, our families consume processed foods often, and we try to prioritize ones that fall on the lower end of the processing scale as much as possible.

The PBJ Bottom Line

It’s important to consider the overall diet— knowing that most kids consume very high amounts of ultra-processed foods, we can focus on increasing less-processed foods for balance and promote overall health.

This starts with what we prepare and offer at home and what we pack for school, daycare, outings, etc. We’re all just doing our best!

So, what are processed foods? Not all bad, actually. In fact, some of the healthiest foods have been altered to some degree. Don’t fall into the trap of mislabeling them all as unhealthy as you feed your family.

Chime In: Were you surprised to learn this about processed foods? Which ones does your family eat?

If you found this post helpful, we think you should read these too:

  • Are Carbs Healthy for Kids?
  • How Many Calories Do Kids Need?
  • 7 Things You’ll Always Find In Our Plant-Based Pantry
  • 10 Healthy Packaged Snacks for Plant-Based Kids

Leave a reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating:




Our course

  • Pediatric Nutrition for Health Professionals

  • Meet the moms behind the blog.

    Plant-Based Juniors (PBJs), is a community for parents and educators interested in properly implementing plant-based diets for children. Created by Alexandra Caspero MA, RDN and Whitney English MS, RDN – both moms and registered dietitian nutritionists – PBJs is dedicated to filling the gap in credible pediatric nutrition information for plant-based infants and children.

    PBJs promotes an all-inclusive “predominantly plant-based” approach, supporting all families from vegan to vegetarian to flexitarian. Basically, if parents want to get more plants on the plate, PBJs wants to help!

     

    Grab our book – it’s a bestseller!

    Our book, The Plant-Based Baby & Toddler is where we translate nutrition information in a practical non-anxiety-inducing way and provide everything you need to raise healthy, conscious kids.

    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Work With Us
    • Our Blog
    • Course
    • Free Supplement Guide
    • Favorite Products
    • Certified Practitioners
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
    • Subscribe
    • Meet the team
    • Faculty & Partners
    • Become Certified
    • Find a Practitioner
    • FAQs
    • Join our list
    • Course
    • Plant Based Juniors

    © 2023 Plant-Based Juniors | Design by Katelyn Gambler | Development by Made to Thrive

    • About
    • Books
      • Easy Dinners for Busy Parents
      • Plant-Based Juniors: Pregnancy Guide
      • PBJ’s Nut-Free Plant-Based Lunch Box Book
      • Batch Cook Ebook
      • First Bites
      • The Plant-Based Baby and Toddler Book
    • Resources
      • Recipes
      • Pregnancy & Prenatal Nutrition
      • Infant Feeding
      • Baby Led Weaning
    • Course
    • Resources
    • Shop
    • Certified Practitioners
    • Learning Center
    • Login