It’s not hard to tell the difference between an unprocessed ear of corn and an ultra-processed bag of corn chips. But it can be challenging to determine how much processing goes into foods that come boxed, bagged, canned, or frozen.
“Food manufacturers are not required to label if food is ultra-processed, and anything boxed, canned, or frozen does not automatically mean they are ultra-processed,” says Dr. Glenn. “Some foods that people may assume are ultra-processed foods are not actually ultra-processed foods — like canned or frozen fruits and vegetables,” she adds.
- Canned corn (processed) versus corn chips (ultra-processed)
- Apple juice (processed) versus apple pie (ultra-processed)
- Baked potato (processed) versus french fries (ultra-processed)
- Flour (processed) versus cookies (ultra-processed)
Focusing on these items is a good, if imperfect, way to identify ultra-processed foods, Glenn says.
“Consumers can examine the label and check out the ingredient list to get a sense if a product is ultra-processed or not,” Glenn says. “Ingredients are listed by weight in the ingredient list, so if you see a lot of ingredients you typically would not use in the kitchen at the beginning of the list then the food is considered ultra-processed.”
Ingredients Commonly Used in Ultra-Processed Foods
- Isolates (specifically, sources of protein such as hydrolyzed proteins, soy protein isolate, gluten, casein, whey protein, and “mechanically separated meat”)
- High-fructose corn syrup, as well as other varieties of sugars including fructose, “fruit juice concentrates,” invert sugar, maltodextrin, dextrose, and lactose
- Hydrogenated oils and interesterified oils
- Additives on the label like colors and sweeteners
Beyond this, Mozaffarian says there are some other things to look for on labels and try to avoid:
- Refined Sugar and Starch Use a 10:1 rule when you look at how much carbohydrates and fiber you see on the label. You want to have at least 1 gram of fiber for every 10 grams of carbohydrates.
- Sodium Choose products with the lowest amount of sodium on the label.
- Saturated Fat Total fat listed on the label should be much bigger than the amount of saturated fat. This means you’re getting products made with healthier fats.
- Shelf Life Before you pick up a food product, check the expiration date — it shouldn’t be too far away. Products that don’t expire for many months, or longer, have to be heavily processed to extend their shelf life.
Healthy Ultra-Processed Foods
As for items within the ulta-processed category as per Nova, ideally people want to minimize these as much as possible, but some of these foods may be healthier than others, says Glenn.
“For example, some soy milk products would be considered ultra-processed, or foods like breakfast cereals or fruit yogurts, where in research studies the data looks okay so far, although I would love to continue to see more research on this topic and on these specific products,” she says.