[vkk8]

Indeed. I hate the term "ultraprocessed" so much, because I have no idea what to look for if I try to avoid it.

If I chop my potatoes before boiling them, is that processing? If not, which steps in cooking count as "processing"? And how many of those steps need to be included for the food to be "ultraprocessed"? How can I avoid accidentally "ultraprocessing" my food when I cook it at home?

[prewett]

The definition I heard (apparently by the Brazilian woman that did the first research) was "any ingredient that wouldn't be found in a regular kitchen". Not meaning things like rutabagas or mangosteen, but rather things like xantham gum, soy lecithin, and things with organic chemical names. So by definition you cannot ultra-process your food in your home kitchen.

I think the name is lousy, but I think the reason is that things like xantham gum and soy lecithin are there to provide texture. For example, low-fat yogurt has some of these in it because if you take the fat out, it doesn't have the same texture (probably isn't even solid), so you need to do some processing to get it to the same place. See [1] for a summary.

There's a podcast on the BBC where a doctor tries to get his twin doctor brother of ultra-processed food. Unfortunately, most of the episodes involve emotional issues, but they do have a few minutes of interviews with major researchers. [3] is sort of a summary.

[1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/what_is_ultra-processed_...

[2] https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0017tcz/episodes/player

[3] https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/van_tulleken

[mrob]

Xanthan gum is sold in major UK supermarkets. I have some myself; I use it for thickening home-made hot sauce. It works well for this because it exhibits "shear thinning". It's viscous enough to hold everything in suspension when it's in the bottle, but when you pour it the viscosity decreases, so it's easy to get it out.

[tjansen]

If that's the case. shouldn't someone be able to find out which ingredients are harmful? It's unlikely all of them are.

[helmholtz]

Why are you seeking absolute definitions where none exist? If you have to ask, its probably bad for you. Edges of the grocery store, avoid the aisles, ingredients-not-meals, things not in packaging.... Rules of thumbs abound. Next, a bit of ultra processed stuff is obviously not going to kill you. Some soy sauce, or the ocassional frozen pizza is obviously OK. And its obvious that your example is needlessly contrived. No, its not processing.

This whole thread reads like pedantry for the sake of it.