What the nutritionist who wrote a book about highly processed foods eats in a day

This is not about never eating highly processed foods—which generally means food that contains ingredients you don’t have in your own kitchen—but rather about minimizing your consumption of these foods and opting for whole foods for the most part.

There are many reasons why UPFs are considered harmful: they are often overly palatable and therefore easily eaten in excess. Additionally, they have been linked in a recent study to a higher risk of 32 health problems, including type 2 diabetes, depression and cardiovascular disease.

As Ludlam-Raine explained to Business Insider, when choosing food, it’s not necessarily the products that matter, but the varieties you choose. For example, one brand of cream cheese may have a UPF rating, while another may not.

To show how you can eat a mostly UPF-free diet, Ludlam-Raine BI revealed her diet on an average day.

Oatmeal is a healthy breakfast

Ludlam-Raine eats oats for breakfast, but chooses whole rolled oats rather than instant oats, which can be highly processed.

She cooks her porridge and then tops it with frozen berries, nuts and seeds, so she eats a diverse range of plants, Ludlam-Raine said. The goal is to add more nutrients to meals when trying to eat healthier, rather than cutting out foods, she said.

When it comes to the milk she uses to cook her oatmeal, milk is usually the least processed choice. However, Ludlam-Raine’s son is allergic to dairy, so she doesn’t use it.

“These foods have a real place in the lives of people who literally can’t eat certain things,” she said, referring to UPFs. “So if my son didn’t have UPF oat milk, he wouldn’t be meeting his calcium and iodine needs.”

This is an example of how a small amount of UPF in an otherwise complete meal is not a cause for concern, Ludlam-Raine said.

For a protein boost, she often eats some Greek yogurt as well, which is a better choice than flavored yogurt, which is often highly processed.

Fruit, nuts and cheese are good morning snacks

Ludlam-Raine said she drinks tea and coffee in the morning and often eats dried fruit with nuts or fresh fruit such as an apple with a piece of cheese.

Depending on the product, cheese is more processed than ultra-processed, she said.

Sourdough toast is a versatile lunch base

For lunch, Ludlam-Raine uses sourdough bread as a base, but makes sure it is real sourdough bread and not “fake sourdough bread.” Sourdough bread should only have flour, water and salt on the ingredients list.

“You just have to look at the label of the bread. If there are no emulsifiers or preservatives and the bread is whole foods based, then it is not UPF,” said Ludlam-Raine.

She toasts her sourdough bread and garnishes it with mashed avocado or a non-UPF hummus.

“Most hummus is not UPF, but some is,” said Ludlam-Raine. “The amount of additives is borderline, though. I was horrified when I looked at some of these ingredient lists.”

She said some brands of hummus may contain only a small amount of a preservative, while others may have many additives.

On other days, Ludlam-Raine has eggs on toast with a side salad, she said.

Look for snack bars without UPF

When it comes to an afternoon snack, Ludlam-Raine’s choice depends on whether she is out or at home.

She looks for the least processed option: a chocolate bar would likely have UPF, while chocolate-covered almonds would also have UPF but would be more nutritious. So she would choose a snack bar that is made from blended whole foods.

Ludlam-Raine, who lives in the UK, likes brands like Nakd and Deliciously Ella.

Spaghetti Bolognese can be a meal without UPF

An average dinner for Ludlam-Raine would be a homemade Bolognese sauce made from lean minced meat, kidney beans, chopped tomatoes and spices, served with spaghetti.

However, if you make your Bolognese with a pre-made pasta sauce, it may contain UPF.

“Although these meals may be 100% UPF-free, there is actually a decision to be made about the oat milk, the bread and the pasta sauce,” Ludlam-Raine said.

Greek yogurt and dark chocolate for dessert

To satisfy her sweet tooth after dinner, Ludlam-Raine often eats Greek yogurt topped with a mix of dark chocolate, homemade granola, strawberries or honey, she said.

“Sugar is not a UPF, but just because it doesn’t have a UPF doesn’t mean you can eat as much of it as you want,” Ludlam-Raine said.

It encourages people to eat unprocessed foods without worry while paying attention to sugar and fat content.

Take potato chips for example: You can get potato chips without UPF, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pay attention to portion size, Ludlam-Raine said.

For this reason, Ludlam-Raine believes it is a mistake to only pay attention to whether a food has a UPF when many factors determine how healthy something is.