Ultra-processed foods are often packaged and “tend to have ingredients that we don't necessarily recognise in the kitchen, such as emulsifiers and additives. They are made to taste delicious,” explains Dr Leeming, a nutrition scientist at King's College London. They are also usually higher in sugar and fat.
A small study in the USA found that, when given a diet high in ultra-processed foods versus minimally processed foods, people in the ultra-processed group ended up eating up to 500 calories more per day.
Boost your gut microbiome
Eating home cooked meals, Dr Leeming says, means we eat more of “those foods that are rich in fibre… fruit and vegetables, whole grains, beans and legumes” which our gut microbiome needs for the beneficial things they do for our body.
On the other hand, eating too much ultra-processed food can “displace… the foods that our gut bacteria really enjoy. When we eat more ultra-processed foods than home cooked meals, we starve our gut bacteria of the food it prefers.” This can increase inflammation, which is associated with a whole host of health problems.
Top tips
Cooking from scratch can seem like a big task, but Dr Leeming has some suggestions for the best ways you can get started: “I think it's so important not to be too hard on yourself and just start small. If you can find a recipe that works for you, it can just be something really simple, it can have four ingredients. But if you're able to do that once a week, then that is something small and significant.”
A great way to start cooking from scratch is batch-cooking and then storing meals in the fridge or freezer. Frozen or canned fruit and veg can also be both convenient and cost-effective and just as good for you. As for the cooking process, popping foods in the microwave is a surprisingly easy way to prepare food while retaining its nutritional benefits.
