Blog Entry #6: Processed Food

Taylor Schraeder

ENG101

Blog Entry #6


    Well, most of us know that processed food is not good for you, in many ways. Here I will dive in deeper to why processed food is so unhealthy for us, the negative effects of consuming this and the science to back it up.

    Starting off, what exactly is processed food? Processed food is food that has one or more ingredients that would not be found in your kitchen (See here for more details about defining processed foods). https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2025/what-are-ultra-processed-foodsThere is so much altering to these ingredients that the original ingredient is almost unrecognizable. These things are usually high in sodium, fat, sugar, etc. These alone have negative effects on the body when consumed too much. So, why do we eat it if we know it is so bad for us?

    We still consume processed food knowing the side effects, for many reasons. In America, the goal is to sell and to make everything taste good, without caring what is in it. The packaging on most of the processed items are made to sell. They have visual appeal, catchy slogans or interesting logos. They have bright colors and often speak to children, by putting toys in cereal boxes... The list continues for pages. Now, by making it taste as good as they can, sugar is often included. There are tons and tons and tons of studies that show why and how sugar is addictive. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2235907/ Here, the National Library of Medicine published this article titled "Evidence for sugar addiction: Behavioral and neurochemical effects of intermittent, excessive sugar intake". I found this website to be really helpful in knowing all of the "why's" in regards to sugar. Basically, sugar spikes dopamine and dopamine is a "feel good messenger" and releases chemicals that make you happy or excited, which can become addicting. You can also have withdrawals from sugar when consumed regularly! Crazy! Sugar also makes you crash, meaning, your blood sugar levels drop and you can feel tired and foggy, making you crave more sugar to get "back up" again. 

    So with all of that being said... What exactly does it do to our body, besides the hits of dopamine? (In bullet point fashion)

 - An insulin rollercoaster ; leading to insulin resistance 

- Fat storage in the liver/fatty liver

- Chronic inflammation

- Brain fog / decreased brain performance

- Skin issues / premature aging / collagen loss

- Irritable mood / higher risk for anxiety and / or depression

- Increased heart rate / high blood pressure

There's a ton of other things, but for the sake of this post, I'll end the bullet points here.


    We are eating this poison and also feeding it to our children, whom are also becoming addicted to sugar at a young age, even with all of these known health risks and side effects. I encourage everyone to research how all of this can effect you and look into healthy and nutritional ways to eat. "Dieting" should not be used as a term to mean "eating healthy." America is the most obese it has ever been and it is way more serious than people realize. 




https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2235907/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

TS - Blog Entry #3

 Taylor Schraeder Blog Entry #3     Starting off, I went to Target and picked me up a puck shaped; plastic container with goodies inside...     When I got home, the had to open the container. It was sealed with a sticker like tab on top. Then, I had to pop it open, rather aggressively, that sucker didn't want to open. As I was struggling to open it, it sounded like hard rock like things sliding around. The packaging is white and teal with blue shiny crystals on top,  little reflective flecks. After I got it open, the edible flattened sphere, puck like things shook around. They also contained small blue flecks.      After I popped one in my mouth, the immediate sense of cooling happened and my sinuses felt cool and refreshed. When I inhaled, it was fresh, cold, rejuvenating, mouth watering...The edible puck slowly dissolved into a smaller and smaller puck. After it was fully dissolved, my mouth felt blank, like a clean slate. Like I can breath...
Read more

Blog Entry #1 - The Truth

Image
  Blog Entry #1 - The Truth Taylor Schraeder         Starting off, it was hard to choose just one  hobby for this blog post. The topic that kept coming to my mind that I participate in frequently is, going to the gym. I am by no means a powerlifter or anything like that, I just like to workout to feel strong, healthy and clear minded. That being said, I enjoy cardio, weight lifting and HIIT workouts (not running).     For the longest time, I struggled feeling anxious and eventually the gym became the one place where I knew I would feel better after going to. I suggest exercising for everyone that is able, for many many reasons.      The reason I have stated previously stated the impact of exercise on mental health, but not just mine. It is scientifically proven that exercising increases your mood, energy, sleep, and several other things. This Mayo Clinic website further explains the benefit of exercise;  mayoclinic.org/hea...
Read more

Blog Entry #2; The Doom-scroll

Image
                                                              Blog Entry #2; Socials Taylor Schraeder Imagine this; Someone creates a drug that has been tested repeatedly and proven time and time again to reduce attention span, decrease human memory, increase anxiety in adults, teens and even children, amongst several other side effects; the drug would be banned immediately. Yet, what I am referring to is in our pockets every single day, our phones. Filled with apps that most people spend all day on, over and over and over again.     Starting off, there is an incredible amount of research on this, it's not something that is debatable anymore. A website that I found to be very interesting and educational is; www.nationwidechildrens.org . (Where I also found the image inserted below.) This article is directed towards ch...
Read more