Yes, eating processed food makes you fat! In fact, it plays a pivotal role in the obesity crisis in the United States, where one out of every three adults is obese - that is, 20 percent over the ideal weight for height.

What is processed food?

Any food item that comes in a box, bag, or carton is processed. Basically, it is high-calorie and low-quality food .You can easily get it not only from fast-food restaurants but also from supermarkets. On average, an individual spends at least 60 percent of his or her money on food to buy processed food.

What is wrong with it? And how does it make you fat?

Take a loaf of white wheat bread that you pick up at a supermarket.

The manufacturer removes the outer shell of the grain of wheat of that loaf of bread. By doing so, your white wheat bread has little or no fiber because it is the outer shell of the grain that provides fiber to your body. Fiber makes you feel fuller and less hungry, and therefore you eat less. In the process of removing the outer shell of the grain of wheat, essential fats and vitamin E are also removed.

What remains in the loaf of bread is the starch of the grain, which is then ground into fine powder, and subsequently bleached white. In that process, most of the remaining vitamins and nutrients are lost.

The loaf of white bread is essentially deficient in vitamins and minerals. To make it qualified as "food", the manufacturer has to add fortified man-made vitamins and minerals, which are only chemicals aimed at meeting the requirements of FDA to be qualified as "food".

To make it palatable to the consumer, the manufacturer has to add sugar, salt, artificial flavorings, and partially hydrogenated fats to that loaf of bread. To extend the product's shelf-lifespan, preservatives are also added.

So, you can see why eating a loaf of white bread does not satisfy your hunger: it provides only empty calories. In other words, you have been short-changed in your purchase. When your body does not get the nutrients it requires, it tells you to eat more. The more processed food you eat, the more nutrient-deficient you become, the more you would want to eat, and the more weight you would gain. The result is obesity.

Weight gain can be explained by the way your body stores fat. When you eat too much carbohydrates and sugars (which are usually the main components of processed food), your body increases its production of insulin from your pancreas to lower your blood sugar when it becomes too high. However, insulin not only causes your body to store fat but also prevents your body from burning fat stored for energy. This double whammy results in rapid weight gain.

In the above scenario when your pancreas secrets more insulin to lower the elevated blood sugar, your blood sugar may become too low that it may affect the functioning of your brain, which needs glucose. When your brain does not get the glucose it requires, it automatically sends signals of food cravings, hunger, and mood swings - which are symptoms of food addiction. You want to eat more sugar and starch. Thus, begins the vicious cycle of binge eating.

Eating processed or convenient food only conveniently makes you fat. Eat naturally to avoid processed food obesity.

Copyright (c) 2009 Stephen Lau