Re:Ultra-processed foods and the corporate capture of nutrition
by dragontamer on Thursday December 17, 2020 @03:44PM
(#25460164)
> Butter, sesame/vegetable oil and white rice are all processed foods.
The article is clearly using NOVA's definition of unprocessed vs ultraprocessed. Under NOVA's definition of unprocessed: butter, vegetable oil are "Group 2" (ingredients) while white rice is "Group 1" (unprocessed / minimally processed).
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As such, fresh Stir Fry from a restaurant with white rice, oil, and butter is Group2.
Group3 and Group4 are the "problematic" (allegedly) groups of high-processing.
Butter, sesame/vegetable oil and white rice are all processed foods. An unprocessed version would consist of brown rice, eggs, and the chopped veggies. Which would be an improvement on 95% of the typical meals Americans consume.
I do get your point though. There's an aspect of Goodhart's law here. When we come up with some sort of diet management heuristic, over time our personal habits and eventually the market will find exploits. We'll look for the most unhealthy/tasty food that complies with the ostensible rules of the diet.