Avoiding Processed Food

Avoiding processed foods is used as an anti aging method by many, as processed foods typically have lost much or most of their nutritients in them.

Some replace the name "processed foods" with "empty calories" due to this lack of nutritients in such foods.

But processed foods are worse than just empty calories. Many of the processed foods contain preservatives, additives, and chemicals that interfere with many bodily functions including hormones.

Of course, there is much more to anti aging diets than just avoiding processed foods (including calorie restriction and the correct combination of foods and food ingredients, as promoted in the popular Zone diet, for example), but it is an important part for many practitioners none the less.

There is research that supports the notion of avoiding processed food, including a Harvard study, in which avoiding high-carb processed foods cut heart disease risk in women by 30 percent.

The lead researcher of the study was Frank Hu, an associate professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health.

As another example, in one research study, processed meat consumption resulted in 67% increase in pancreatic cancer risk. The study was conducted at the University of Hawaii and followed nearly 200,000 men and women for seven years.

Pancreatic cancer isn't the only negative side effect of consuming processed meats such as hot dogs. Leukemia also skyrockets by 700% following the consumption of hot dogs, according to Preston-Martin, S. et al. "N-nitroso compounds and childhood brain tumors: A case-control study" research paper.

Also, a study published in July 2009 by researchers at Rhode Island Hospital found a substantial link between increased levels of nitrates in the environment and foods with increased deaths from diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease.

According to the study, the exponentially increasing death rates from Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and diabetes and the progressive increases in human exposure to nitrates, nitrites and nitrosamines through processed and preserved foods as well as fertilizers show strong linkages.

Avoiding Processed Food - Studies

Preston-Martin, S. et al. "N-nitroso compounds and childhood brain tumors: A case-control study." Cancer Res. 1982; 42:5240-5.

Suzanne M. de la Monte, Alexander Neusner, Jennifer Chu and Margot Lawton "Epidemilogical Trends Strongly Suggest Exposures as Etiologic Agents in the Pathogenesis of Sporadic Alzheimer’s Disease, Diabetes Mellitus, and Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis." Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, Volume 17:3, July 2009, pages 519-529.


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