|Is ‘processed’ a four-letter word?| |Thursday, 02 August 2012|
An article published in Advances in Nutrition explores the role
of processed foods in meeting the Dietary Guidelines for
Americans. Additionally, it aims to address the widely held
misconceptions about processed foods, a situation that presents
challenges to both food scientists and nutritionists and public
health professionals alike. [Click graphic to enlarge] Foods are
processed to have longer shelf lives as well as no or limited
preparation. However, as the authors point out, processing can
also confer many other important benefits. For example,
pasteurization of milk reduces the risk of dangerous microbial
pathogens and blanching and freezing vegetables immediately
after harvesting preserves peak nutritional values. Processing
also enables manufacturers to eliminate gluten and lactose from
foods, providing more options for consumers with celiac disease
and lactose intolerance. The authors note, too, that the
enrichment and fortification of pr