Can Processed Foods Really Add That Much Bulk?

[nerdrock]

I'm really curious about this. I weighed myself today and I've lost just over 10 lbs in a few weeks. Two weeks ago, when I got my scale, I weighed 115 lbs.Today, after weighing the dogs, I weighed myself and I'm at 102-103 lbs.

In the last 6 months I've really been revamping my diet. I've made my own bread for 6 months now, I've pretty much cut out soy for 4 months, most corn (except real corn) for 2 months and for about a month I've been making my own pasta and most of my own cheeses (mozzarella, ricotta and feta, I still buy cheddar). I've also switched to mostly goat's milk products, although I will still buy Lactose Free cow's milk. Every Saturday morning I still get my before work large vanilla iced coffee and sausage mcmuffin at McDonald's, but other than that I have been eating very well - with the exception of my slight cola addiction (1-3 cans/day).

So, my question is, can not eating processed foods really make you lose that much weight that fast? I have been slightly more active but I've also been eating more, so I don't think that's why I'd be losing weight. The only thing that's really changed has been my diet over the last 6 months. 

 

[rad65]

Simple answer: yes. Most people don't realize just how awful processed foods are for you. They use fillers and worse to keep the food from spoiling quickly while adding bulk, and those fillers are usually pure carbs and fat. Unless you are working out regularly, those build up quickly and the extra bulk in your food is transferred to you. Also, processed meat foods use the worst, most fat-riddled pieces of meat off an animal. Think about it, you can put good meat in cheap processed food and make a tiny profit, or you can sell the good cuts of meat at a premium. This leaves the undesirable portions for processed food, since most of the flavor and all of the texture is artificially pumped in anyway.

I bet you could remove 100% of the actual meat, or whatever other ingredients your processed food is supposed to emulate, and the food would still taste 95% the same.

Personally, I don't think about that all too often because it makes my stomach churn. I learned the facts in high school health and immediately forced them out of my mind so I could keep my food down. Once I get older and need to watch my diet more closely, I will remind myself of these facts and dieting will be a sinch.

 

[swampwitch]

Adding another big YES! Processed foods are one of the main reasons people are overweight. (Another reason is the environmental toxin overload most of us have - babies are born with over 200 potentially hazardous chemicals in their bodies.)

When you look at pictures of regular people who lived 100+ years ago, before all the processed foods and environmental toxins, they are slim. All of them. The only time you see anyone even faintly overweight in old pictures is MAYBE an older person, and that could be due to inherited conditions that get worse with time if untreated... Society then didn't have the obesity problems we do, and it's not all due to kids playing video games these days, lol.

 

[pushylady]

Is making your own cheese very difficult? How did you get started doing that? I'm quite curious to try that myself, if I don't need specialized equipment.

 

[nerdrock]

The cheese is pretty easy! You need citric acid, rennet and milk (homo, 2%, 1% any kind), for equipment you need a thermometer to measure the temperature of the milk, measuring spoons and a fairly big pot (depending on how much you make at a time). It takes about 2 hours the first time, they say you can cut it down by almost an hour as you make it more. 

I'll post the recipe for it in a little bit. 

 

[vampcow]

i totally agree with you! i haven't eaten processed foods and have been following an organic diet for years now. What i found really made me shed pounds was going gluten-free (I was diagnosed with Celiacs disease last summer) and I don't eat much dairy. 

 

[aeevr]

YES. There are nutrients in real food of which scientists have a very limited knowledge especially with regards to how they affect our bodies. 

Processed foods are wrung free of many nutrients which is why they are all fortified.

If you eat processed foods you are not getting the nutrients your body needs which in turn makes you crave food even if you've already eaten - your body needs more than empty calories.

I can give you lots more detail/resources if you want.

My weight and overall health changed drastically for the better once I eliminated processed foods. 

 

[aeevr]

Also wanted to add that processed foods are EXTREMELY high in salt. Salt causes you to retain water. The water could EASILY account for the majority of your weight loss.

Fast weight loss (except in extreme starving conditions or bizarre metabolic diseases) is almost always water weight. 

 

[snake_lady]

I would really like to see the cheese recipe.

Would it be too much to ask you to PM it to me? I don't frequent the boards daily so I may miss it.

Thank you so much

 

[nerdrock]

Sorry it's taken me so long, I had trouble tracking down the blog I got the recipe from. I thought I had it bookmarked, apparently I just had it open for a really long time and when I closed my browser I lost it. 

This is the blog it's on and the post:

http://junkerjunk.blogspot.ca/2010/07/homemade-mozzarella-cheese.html

The first time I made it I halved the recipe... bad idea. It was ok but not really good. We used it in lasagna we made and it was pretty good, but it could have been better. I made it a second time making the full batch and it was great. I've made it with whole and 2% milk, both turned out well but the whole milk was better. To make the ricotta after, you just boil the whey for a bit, let it sit and then drain the left over whey off. The left over whey can be used to make another cheese, but I just use it to water my plants, lol. You won't get a ton of ricotta or the other cheese after unless you're making large batches, so keep that in mind. I didn't bother when I made the larger batches, but with the halved recipe it made about a tablespoon, it would probably make considerably more with the whole recipe. With mozzarella I think you get approximately 17% of cheese for the amount of milk you put in. It was cheaper than actually buying the cheese and probably healthier too. 

I had trouble finding citric acid, I finally found it in a bulk food store with the cake stuff. I also had trouble finding rennet, I finally found it with the pudding and baking stuff at a grocery store. It might be helpful to call around and see who carries it for both things. Apparently both are found easier during canning seasons.

I am also making feta right now... it's still going so I'll update when it's done. I'm afraid it may have been contaminated though, I'll find out after it sits in the brine for a few days.