Ultraprocessed people – by Chris van Tulleken – reviewed by James Atkins
Ultra-processed People was published in Hungarian in June this year. It is a highly
recommended book about ultra-processed food, the industry which manufactures it, and the
effect it has on our physical and mental health.
The author, Chris van Tulleken, is an associate professor at University College London and
a practicing infectious diseases doctor. The book exposes the cynical practices of the food industry. explains how ultra-processed
foods have been designed to be hard to resist and to by-pass the normal dietary controls –
the sense of fullness – which allow us to avoid eating too much.
It catalogues the burden on our physical and mental health of diets which are dominated with
synthetic ingredients which our bodies are not to handle safely; a burden which puts ultra-
processed foods as among the leading cause of early death globally.
What are ultra-processed foods, though? There are complex scientific definitions, but there
is also a very practical one. If it is wrapped in plastic and contains ingredients which you
would not have in your kitchen, then it is probably an ultra-processed food.
The positive side of the story, though, is how quickly our bodies can repair when we stop
eating ultra-processed foods. By shifting to a diet of fresh, home-made foods, made from
real ingredients, and supplementing that with fermented foods rich in probiotics, within days
people begin to feel the physical and mental benefits as they wean themselves off ultra-
processed foods.
“Ultraprocessed people” does not examine in any depth the impacts of different farming
systems on health, but focuses on processed foods, however if does highlight some of the
environmental impacts of human diets based on ultra-processed foods.
If you are interested in diet and nutrition, in how the world’s food industry functions to sustain
itself, or if you just need reinforcing your convictions about the importance of eating real
food, this book is definitely worth a read. You can buy the book in any major bookshops or order online.
Source: bookline.hu
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