Alexa Pankova
NUTR&101
Linda Costarella.
Processed Food.
1. Please explain whether this was a challenging exercise for you or not so tricky. Why?
The task of avoiding processed food was very challenging for me because of the
following reasons. First, preventing processed food consumption was challenging since I
had to spend a lot of time preparing unprocessed food. Another reason is that the task was
not convenient since I found it challenging to carry along the cooked unprocessed food
for my lunch purposes when going for my daily job. The cooked unprocessed food was
also very perishable; thus, it was not convenient to preserve it for a long while traveling.
2. Did you have to go shopping? Why or why not? What did you buy?
I had to go shopping since there was no available unprocessed food in the kitchen.
Besides, this is attributed to the fact that I highly prefer taking processed food because
these foods are convenient and safe. Also, during my shopping, I bought beef, brown
rice, and fresh vegetables.
3. If you did go shopping, was it challenging to find unprocessed foods that you were
familiar with?
It was challenging to find the unprocessed food that I was familiar with because
they are in high demand, and therefore there is a short supply in the market. However, I
managed to secure the ones that I have mentioned above (beef, fresh vegetable, and
brown rice).
4. Did this exercise present some issues concerning your regular eating habits? Did it
interfere with your family's eating habits?
In my opinion, the exercise of avoiding processed foods resulted in some issues
concerning my usual eating habits. For instance, I found it challenging to avoid my habit
of even eating while not hungry. Moreover, the exercise also interfered with the eating
habits of my family members. For instance, they found it challenging to avoid consuming
processed foods like hot dogs, including deserts. Also, they found it time-consuming to
prepare most of the unprocessed foods.
5. Did the articles in the assignment help you in any way to understand the issue or to
shop?
The articles within the assignment effectively assisted me to comprehensively
understand the difference between healthy processed food and unhealthy processed
foods. For example, after carefully looking into the items presented in the assignment, I
realized that not all processed foods are detrimental; however, most of them are very
harmful to human health. The healthy processed foods that I learned about include
processed milk and frozen vegetables. On the other hand, some of the unhealthy
processed foods that I learned about include processed meats.
6. Do you want to continue exploring this subject on your own? If so, do you think it will
result in lifestyle and eating pattern changes? Would your family go along with these
changes?
I am very interested in engaging in the continuous exploration of this subject.
Besides, I think that it will positively contribute to changes regarding lifestyle as well as
eating patterns. My optimism regarding the positive impacts of this subject is attributed to
the personal experiences that I have encountered from avoiding consuming most of the
processed foods. For instance, based on the exercise of avoiding processed foods, I have
realized a significant reduction in my body weight, which has positively impacted my
health. Consequently, I believe that exploring the subject will enable me to effectively
understand and put into practice the healthy dietary lifestyle and healthy eating patterns
(Zmora et al., 2018). Also, I believe that my family will embrace healthy lifestyles and
eating habits since they have significantly realized and embraced the positive effects
associated with a healthy lifestyle and good eating patterns.
7. If you make changes in the number of processed foods you eat, how do you think it will
affect your health and your family?
I think that my health, including that of the members of my family, will be
positively impacted when I implement changes regarding the processed foods' amount
that I consume (Larsson & Wolk, 2006). For instance, my family and I will be free from
the high risks of suffering from heart disease, obesity, and cancer, when we avoid taking
most of the processed foods.
References
Larsson, S. C., & Wolk, A. (2006). Meat consumption and risk of colorectal cancer: a meta‐
analysis of prospective studies. International journal of cancer, 119(11), 2657-2664.
Zmora, N., Suez, J., & Elinav, E. (2019). You are what you eat: diet, health, and gut microbiota.
Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology, 16(1), 35-56.