I gave up UPFs completely – here's what I found out

I felt conflicted. On the one hand, I know my mini fridge of energy drinks would make a nutritionist shudder, but is a daily bowl of my favourite cereal really going to kill me? The more I investigated UPFs, the more I realised just how much they permeated my diet, without me even realising. So, in a bid to see whether it was possible to give them up completely, I went cold-turkey.

In the UK more than half of the average diet is made up of UPFs, and this rises to a shocking two thirds in adolescents. But what is an ultra-processed food? It’s a tricky category to define, but it’s essentially a food that has been processed in a way that is different to how it would be prepared at home.

Many say it’s a food that contains an ingredient that you wouldn’t have in your kitchen cupboard – think stabilisers, emulsifiers, preservatives and sweeteners. In his book Ultra Processed People: Why do we all eat stuff that isn’t food, and why can’t we stop?, Chris van Tulleken argues that a UPF is a food that disrupts our appetite regulation, and is often softer, sweeter, saltier and slicker than whole foods – foods that are essentially driving the obesity epidemic.

When I began researching into what qualifies at a UPF, I admit, I was taken aback. While things like ready meals, crisps and carbonated drinks were unsurprising, I had rarely thought that breakfast cereals, instant soups, packaged bread, non-dairy milks, fruit yoghurts, baked beans and even my favourite post-dinner Solero all qualified as one. I felt horrified when I realised, I’d have to forgo the gallons of squash I drink a day.

Days 1 - 4

Armed with my new knowledge, the weekly food shop took double the amount of time it usually would as I carefully inspected the ingredients list of everything. I swapped my £1.50 packet of bagels for a staggeringly expensive £4.60 loaf of sourdough, fruit flavoured protein yoghurts for plain Greek and ditched my daily ginger shot, because a chat forum online had hundreds of comments arguing whether it was a UPF or not.

At the till I felt chuffed that my trolley didn’t look too dissimilar to what I’d normally buy, and somehow – despite the sourdough – it wasn’t any more expensive either. But it didn’t include some of my favourites, that I had to skip completely (sorry to my husband for the lack of hot sauce during this experiment).

“I am going to nail this,” I thought to myself as I cooked dinner on the second night. So far, omitting ultra-processed foods from my diet really wasn’t that hard.

But there was the elephant in the room I had been trying hard to ignore – my dislike of plain water and tendency to drink all sorts of other stuff instead. Fizzy drinks including energy drinks, bottled smoothies, iced coffees and protein shakes are all considered a UPF, and were all drinks I loved to indulge in. Over the last year I’ve been actively cutting back on the amount of alcohol I consume, but where I once would enjoy a glass of wine or two as I cooked dinner in the evenings, I now pull on the tab of one of the MANY cans of fizz I have, including flavoured sparkling water, sugar-free energy drinks, and my beloved Diet Coke.

Dinner was also a little bit more of a faff. Long workdays mean I often rely on store cupboard sauces, spices and seasonings to give mealtimes a kick, but my trusty kitchen companions like hoisin sauce, curry pastes and jarred pesto were all banned. I couldn’t even throw a sauce together for my stir fry because the ingredients I’d use including MSG, sesame oil and honey are, you guessed it, UPFs. However, the simple combo of 100% peanut butter and soy sauce worked an absolute treat, and is certainly something I’ll do again.

Days 5 – 9

Things began to get a little rough when I found out having a jacket potato with baked beans would be considered a failure in the ‘no UPF’ game, so instead I opted for tuna mayonnaise – except the low-fat mayo I had in my fridge was a no-go, so I had to concoct a makeshift Greek yogurt tuna number. I could have just popped to the shops for a quick meal deal, but that would have been a minefield I’d never survive.

My daily, pre-workout protein shake was also banned, and at one point I found myself scoffing two boiled eggs, and even a completely plain chicken breast in attempt to up my protein content for the day – something I usually did in the form of a shake, or protein bar. And where I’d try and reduce calories and sugar intake by adding sweetener to my coffee, and unable to curb the sweet craving, I was opting for sugar instead.

As I ventured towards the weekend my appetite for home-cooked food began to wane, as did the contents of my fridge, and my usual convenient go-to’s were out of bounds. During the times I need convenience I often opt for something pre-made or easy-to-prepare like packets of sushi, shop-bought sandwiches, instant ramen and a thrown-together pasta dish with sauce from a jar. Instead, I found myself doing another mini food shop, and my lunch hour dwindling away trying to rustle something up.

By the time the weekend rolled around my usual post-gym smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel was out of the question thanks to the cream cheese and the bagel, while the bacon or sausage sandwich alternative was also a no-go. However poached eggs and avocado was a solid win, so I can’t argue.

Our usual Sunday pub quiz involves a glass of gin and tonic and a packet of crisps, the bag torn open so everyone can dip in. But distilled spirits are a UPF, and did you really think I’d get away with crisps? BUT a glass of Prosecco and a bag of Nobby’s salted peanuts to myself was the price I was willing to pay.

Days 10 – 14

I was utterly bored now. Yes, maybe I did feel a little less sluggish, and it felt good knowing that I was thinking more about what I put in my body, but there’s only my husband and I to feed which made me think about my friends with children. How do they do it?

“It’s really hard,” my friend Alex, a mother of two, admitted. “I try hard to avoid UPFs where I can, but it gets expensive, plus the kids are at that picky eating age where frozen chips, chicken nuggets and ketchup are the only things they’ll have on their plate. Sometimes you have to turn a blind eye just to make sure you’re all eating.”

It also seemed that vegetarians and vegans were at a serious disadvantage as all plant-based milks seem to be a UPF as did any plant-based convenience proteins like vegan sausages and burgers. “I do try and eat whole foods anyway,” my vegan friend Ellen told me when I questioned her. “But the plant milk thing is a nightmare.”

I’ll be honest. Day 11 I did crack and had a sugar-free energy drink, mainly down to the fact that I couldn’t bear the taste of my non-sweetened coffee anymore. I also missed my daily immunity juice shot but I drew the line at juicing my own ginger. Yes, I could probably live without hot sauce, and the concoction of other seasonings I had in my cupboard, but why would I want to?

Simple ways to cut out UPFs from registered nutritionist Jemma Joel:

• Swapping out flavoured yoghurt for plain yoghurt with fruit (frozen fruit microwaved to a little soft and warm was great).

• Instead of buying shop-bought granola, make your own

• Swap out takeaways for homemade versions

• If opting for a snack on the go, try something like a Nakd bar (as they’re just fruit and nuts) instead of bars that are marketed as ‘high protein’. “They are usually full of sugar, sweeteners and preservatives,” says Joel.

• Swap sweet cereals for wholegrain cereals like porridge, malted wheat cereal and wheat biscuits.

• Buy sausages from your local butcher’s as they are likely to be made from natural ingredients.

• If you have time, make your own soup or pasta sauces, they only need to be a few ingredients to taste delicious.

• Buying butter and not margarine.

• Instead of ready-meals for convenience, try and set time aside to bulk make slower cooked meals you can then freeze.

• Swap out instant noodles for things like wholegrain microwaveable rice.

• Limit processed meats to once a week.

• Get protein sources from things like eggs and chicken as opposed to protein shakes and bars.

The verdict

So how did I feel after my UPF-free fast? I wish I could say I came out of this experiment with a newfound love of whole foods, but If I’m being honest, I felt no different, yet slightly more agitated about the lack of convenience. I eat well anyway, but having a better understanding of EVERYTHING I put in my stomach was a real eye-opener.

Cutting out protein shakes and bars was probably my biggest win. They cost me a lot of money, and thinking more about getting my protein from natural sources like eggs, cottage cheese and chicken definitely made me feel a lot better too. Yes, I can probably cut back on the Diet Coke and sugar-free energy drinks, but do I drink them enough for it to be concerning? Probably not.

For me, the biggest drawback was the lack of accessibility, and things I relied on for sustenance during busy times like instant ramen and supermarket meal deals were out of the question. It also made me think a lot about those who can’t afford the luxury of eating less ultra-processed food.

For millions of people, it’s merely about getting affordable food on the table for their family, and if that means frozen breaded chicken and jarred pasta sauces then so be it. For those that say cutting out ultra-processed food is easy, they are afforded the luxury of doing so, not just financially but having the time and mental energy to as well.

Yes, I think cutting down on UPF-laden cakes, biscuits and chocolate is better for your health, but would I judge a parent simply trying to do the best for their family? Absolutely not.

Read more

The truth about UPFs, one year on from the warnings
The 10 worst UPFs you can eat
What is processed food?
Which UPFs to avoid
What are UPFs?
Unprocessed recipe ideas

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