What are they?
There are different layers in the definition of processed food. When the food gets this label in our app it's because we believe it's gone through some kind of processing where parts of the whole food has been removed and/or being combined with other ingredients such as sweeteners, flavours, colours, and preservatives.
What are the recommendations?
There is an upper limit/recommendation for highly processed food items, which is 10 E% of your daily calorie intake. This since these type of foods typically are high in energy, while low in nutrients. If a majority of your daily calorie intake consists of processed foods, there is a greater risk you aren't getting all the essential vitamins and minerals you need, and that you instead exceed your energy recommendation.
Foods to avoid:
What we count as processed food:
- jam
- canned fruit
- bread
- crackers, biscuits, croissants, muffins
- couscous, pasta, noodles
- potato dishes (instant mashed potatoes, french fries, potato bake, gratin)
- cake mix
- dressings & sauces
- breakfast cereal/granola
- lunch meat
- spreads
- ice cream, candy, cookies, chocolate, cake, bars
- carbonated drinks
- snacks (chips/ crisps, popcorn, coated nuts)
- prepared deli foods, ready meals, frozen meals, entrées, pot pies, pizza, pancakes, waffles, pies, rolls
- margarine
With that said; you can of course enjoy these type of food every now and then, but it is important to fill the majority of your daily inake with nutrient dense foods in order to reach your daily recommendation of nutrients.
To read more about processed food and see what we base our recommendations on, read more here: