Grocery store aisle filled with colorful packaged foods
Most grocery store aisles are dominated by brightly packaged, highly processed foods, making “eating less ultraprocessed” harder than it sounds.

Why “Just Avoid Ultraprocessed Food” Is Almost Impossible Advice

You’ve probably heard this advice: “Just eat less ultraprocessed food.” It sounds straightforward—until you push a cart into your local supermarket and realize that close to 70% of what’s on the shelves could fall into that category. Even nutrition professionals and regulators, as reported by CNN, struggle to give a clear, consistent definition of what “ultraprocessed” means in daily life.

If you’ve ever stared at a food label wondering whether a favorite bread, cereal, or plant-based burger is secretly “ultraprocessed,” you’re not alone. This confusion isn’t a personal failure—it reflects a real scientific and regulatory puzzle.

In this guide, we’ll unpack why the term is so hard to pin down, what the latest research actually suggests about health risks, and how you can make calm, confident choices without needing a PhD in food science or a complete pantry overhaul.


The Ultraprocessed Food Problem: A Term Without a Clear Map

When CNN journalists covering nutrition say they still can’t neatly define or avoid ultraprocessed foods, that tells us something: the problem isn’t just willpower. It’s that our current food system—and the way we classify foods—is complicated, messy, and still evolving.

  • Most of our calories come from these foods. In the US and many other countries, over half of daily calories now come from foods considered “ultraprocessed.”
  • They’re deeply woven into daily life. Breakfast cereals, flavored yogurts, coffee creamers, protein bars, frozen meals, and many plant-based products fall into this bucket.
  • But the category is broad and inconsistent. Some items clearly seem less healthy (soda, chips), while others (fortified whole-grain bread, certain yogurts) may offer real benefits.

This leaves consumers in a tough spot: you’re told to avoid something that’s everywhere, vaguely defined, and not always clearly harmful on a case-by-case basis.

“The label ‘ultra-processed’ is a warning light, not a diagnosis. It tells us to pause and look closer, not to panic and throw everything out.” — Registered Dietitian & Food Policy Researcher

What Does “Ultraprocessed” Actually Mean? (And Why Experts Disagree)

Most discussions about ultraprocessed foods are based on the NOVA classification system, developed by researchers in Brazil. NOVA groups foods into four categories:

  1. Unprocessed or minimally processed: Fruits, vegetables, beans, plain yogurt, eggs, raw nuts, plain meats.
  2. Processed culinary ingredients: Oils, butter, sugar, salt.
  3. Processed foods: Cheese, canned beans, simple breads, canned fish with added salt or oil.
  4. Ultraprocessed foods: Industrial formulations with added flavors, colors, emulsifiers, sweeteners, or other additives not commonly used at home.

That sounds clear on paper, but in practice, it gets tricky:

  • Same ingredient, different label: Bread made with flour, yeast, salt, and water is “processed,” but add emulsifiers or flavorings and it becomes “ultraprocessed.”
  • Health halos can mislead: A plant-based nugget or “high-protein” bar may seem healthy yet checks many ultraprocessed boxes.
  • Some fortified foods help public health: Breakfast cereals and plant milks often provide added vitamins and minerals that many people rely on.

Regulators, including in the US and Europe, haven’t fully adopted NOVA for official guidelines because they worry the definition is too broad and may lump together very different foods under one scary label.


What the Latest Science Says About Ultraprocessed Foods and Your Health

Person choosing between fresh produce and packaged snacks on a kitchen counter
Research links high intakes of ultraprocessed foods with poorer health outcomes, but individual choices still matter more than any single label.

Over the past decade, dozens of large observational studies have linked higher intake of ultraprocessed foods with:

  • Weight gain and higher risk of obesity
  • Greater risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease
  • Increased risk of certain cancers
  • Higher overall mortality (earlier death)
  • Worse markers of mental health in some studies
“Ultraprocessed food consumption is consistently associated with poorer health outcomes across multiple populations and diseases. While observational, the evidence is strong enough to justify precautionary advice.” — Summary from recent meta-analyses published in leading nutrition journals

One of the few tightly controlled trials, led by Dr. Kevin Hall at the US National Institutes of Health, offered participants either an ultraprocessed or minimally processed diet matched for calories, sugar, fat, and fiber. Those eating the ultraprocessed diet:

  • Ate about 500 more calories per day without realizing it
  • Gained weight over two weeks, while the minimally processed group lost a little

Still, the overall picture suggests that diets dominated by ultraprocessed foods are likely to be less satisfying, easier to overeat, and less supportive of long-term health.

For more detail, see summaries from organizations like the World Health Organization and reviews in journals such as The BMJ and Advances in Nutrition.


Why Even Experts Can’t Just “Cut Out Ultraprocessed Foods”

The CNN article captures a relatable dilemma: even someone who reports on nutrition for a living, who understands the research deeply, still finds it impossible to fully avoid ultraprocessed foods. That’s not hypocrisy—it’s reality.

Here are some of the main obstacles:

  • Time and energy: Cooking from scratch for every meal is unrealistic for most households juggling work, kids, and tight schedules.
  • Cost and access: Packaged foods can be cheaper, shelf-stable, and more reliably available—especially in food deserts.
  • Confusing labels: Ingredient lists can be long and technical. Isolated additives may sound scary but be harmless in small amounts.
  • Cultural and social life: Many beloved foods—holiday treats, sports snacks, birthday cakes—are technically ultraprocessed.
  • Mixed messages: Some ultraprocessed items are marketed as “high protein,” “plant-based,” or “low sugar,” making it harder to judge on sight.

So if you’ve tried to overhaul your diet overnight and “failed,” that doesn’t mean you lack discipline. It means the instruction itself isn’t designed for the real world.


A Real-World Case Study: From All-or-Nothing to “Less Ultraprocessed, More Real Food”

Parent cooking a simple meal at home with a child helping
Small, repeatable changes—like cooking one extra simple meal per week—often matter more than strict rules about “never” eating certain foods.

Consider a composite example based on several families I’ve worked with as a nutrition consultant, blended to protect privacy.

A working parent of two, let’s call her Maya, read about ultraprocessed foods and felt alarmed. She tried to:

  • Ban boxed cereal, frozen waffles, and snack bars
  • Cook everything from scratch on weekends
  • Swap all kids’ snacks for only fresh fruit and nuts

Within two weeks she was exhausted, the kids were frustrated, and ultra-convenient fast food crept back in—even more than before.

When we reframed the goal from “avoid ultraprocessed food” to “add more real, minimally processed foods where it’s easiest”, things changed:

  • She kept some favorites (a particular cereal and frozen pizza) but paired them with fruit and a side salad.
  • She shifted one weeknight to a super-simple bean-and-rice meal with frozen vegetables.
  • She replaced one type of snack (chips) with pre-portioned nuts and plain popcorn.

Over a few months, the family’s overall diet quality improved meaningfully, with no strict bans and no need to decode every ingredient list.


A Practical Framework: From “Is This Ultraprocessed?” to “Is This a Smart Choice for Me?”

Instead of obsessing over whether a food falls exactly into NOVA group 4, try asking three simpler questions:

  1. How close is this to its original form? The more it resembles recognizable ingredients (grains, beans, nuts, vegetables, fruits), the better the odds it supports health.
  2. How often and how much will I eat it? A small serving of cake at a birthday party is very different nutritionally from daily sugary drinks and snack cakes.
  3. What is it displacing? If a packaged food helps you eat more vegetables or beans (for example, a frozen stir-fry mix), it may be more helpful than harmful.

This framework leaves room for nuance: some technically ultraprocessed foods can still be part of a healthy pattern, especially when they:

  • Are rich in fiber, protein, or essential nutrients
  • Help you cook more at home (like spice mixes, canned beans, frozen vegetables)
  • Replace something clearly worse (e.g., sparkling water instead of sugary soda)

Grocery-Store Strategies: How to Gently Shift Away from Ultraprocessed Foods

Person holding a shopping basket filled with fresh fruits and vegetables in a supermarket
Think “add more real foods” rather than “ban all packaged foods” to create a more realistic, sustainable shopping routine.

Here’s a realistic, step-by-step way to tilt your cart toward less ultraprocessed food without blowing your budget or your bandwidth.

1. Start with simple “swaps,” not total overhauls

  • Swap sugary breakfast cereal for oats or a lower-sugar cereal plus fruit.
  • Trade soda or energy drinks for water, sparkling water, or tea most days.
  • Replace some chips with nuts, seeds, or plain popcorn.

2. Build meals around “anchor” whole foods

Choose one or two minimally processed components per meal:

  • Breakfast: oats + fruit + nuts
  • Lunch: canned beans + salad mix + olive oil
  • Dinner: frozen vegetables + whole grains + eggs or frozen fish

3. Use packaged foods as “helpers,” not the entire meal

Instead of three separate ultraprocessed items per meal, aim for one helper plus real ingredients:

  • Jarred sauce over whole-grain pasta with added vegetables and beans.
  • Frozen pizza bulked up with extra veggies and a side salad.
  • Rotisserie chicken (technically processed) with microwaved frozen vegetables and quick-cook grains.

Reading Labels Without Losing Your Mind: 30-Second Decisions

Person reading a nutrition label in a grocery store aisle
Rather than decoding every additive, focus on a few key cues: ingredient order, added sugars, fiber, and whether you recognize most ingredients.

Instead of scanning labels for every suspicious-sounding additive, you can use this quick, evidence-informed checklist:

  1. Scan the first 3 ingredients.
    Are they foods you’d cook with at home (oats, beans, nuts, vegetables, whole grains), or mostly refined flours, sugars, and oils?
  2. Check added sugars.
    For everyday foods (breakfast cereals, yogurts, drinks), aim to keep added sugars modest—ideally under about 6–9 teaspoons (24–36 g) per day total for most adults, as suggested by organizations like the American Heart Association.
  3. Look for fiber and protein.
    Higher-fiber, higher-protein options tend to be more filling and supportive of overall health.
  4. Notice ultra-craveable combos.
    Products engineered with high sugar + salt + fat and strong flavors are easiest to overeat—approach them as occasional treats, not staples.

Common Obstacles—and How to Navigate Them Without Guilt

As you try to lean away from ultraprocessed foods, you’ll likely run into some very normal barriers.

“I’m too busy to cook from scratch.”

You don’t have to. Instead:

  • Batch-cook one or two basics (like grains or beans) on weekends.
  • Use frozen or pre-cut vegetables to cut prep time.
  • Embrace “assembly meals”: canned beans + jarred salsa + prewashed greens.

“Healthy food is too expensive.”

Some items are, but many staples are quite affordable:

  • Buy store brands for oats, rice, beans, frozen vegetables, and plain yogurt.
  • Choose in-season produce and rely on frozen out of season.
  • Compare unit prices; often, whole foods are cheaper per serving than snack foods.

“My family won’t eat anything ‘healthy.’”

Change is easiest when it’s gradual and collaborative:

  • Keep favorite foods but adjust portions and add produce on the side.
  • Involve kids or partners in choosing one new food or recipe per week.
  • Use sauces, dips, and seasonings to make vegetables taste good, not like punishment.
Behavior change research consistently shows that small, enjoyable shifts are far more sustainable than strict, fear-based rules. Aim for “better,” not “perfect.”

Why Regulators Are Still Debating—and What That Means for You

Policy makers in multiple countries are watching the ultraprocessed-food research closely, but they face a genuine dilemma:

  • If they adopt a strict definition (like NOVA), they risk over-simplifying and unfairly demonizing some useful foods.
  • If they ignore the concept, they miss an opportunity to address the role of industrial processing in overconsumption and diet-related disease.

Some public health experts advocate for using ultraprocessed-food intake as one of several indicators when designing:

  • Food marketing regulations (especially for children)
  • Front-of-pack labeling systems
  • Taxes or subsidies that nudge consumption patterns

In other words, you don’t need to wait for perfect definitions or new labels to start moving your own diet in a healthier direction.


Before and After: A Realistic One-Week Ultraprocessed “Tune-Up”

Here’s how a typical busy person might gently reduce ultraprocessed foods over one week—without rigid rules.

Before

  • Breakfast: sweetened cereal + flavored coffee drink
  • Snack: chips + soda
  • Lunch: fast-food burger + fries
  • Snack: candy bar
  • Dinner: frozen meal + dessert most nights

After (Still Imperfect, Much Better)

  • Breakfast: oats with fruit & nuts + regular coffee
  • Snack: nuts or yogurt; soda only a few times per week
  • Lunch: sandwich on whole-grain bread + salad or fruit
  • Snack: plain popcorn or carrots with hummus
  • Dinner: Mix of home-cooked quick meals and some frozen options, but with extra vegetables added.

Both weeks still include some processing and convenience foods. The shift is in proportion: more real, minimally processed anchors; fewer ultra-sweet, ultra-salty, ultra-convenient items.


Moving Forward: Aim for “More Real Food,” Not Perfect Purity

It’s understandable to feel overwhelmed when experts themselves admit they can’t draw a perfect line around ultraprocessed foods. But you don’t need a flawless definition to make meaningful progress.

  • Use “ultraprocessed” as a signal to pause, not a reason to panic.
  • Focus on adding minimally processed foods rather than obsessively cutting out everything packaged.
  • Make small, sustainable swaps that respect your time, budget, and family preferences.
  • Remember that overall patterns matter more than individual foods or ingredients.

You don’t have to eat a perfect diet to protect your health. If all you do over the next month is cook one extra simple meal at home each week, drink one less sugary beverage most days, and add one fruit or vegetable to your usual routine, you’re already moving in a positive direction.

Your next step: Pick one small change from this article that feels doable this week—then treat it as an experiment, not a test. Adjust as you go, and let your habits evolve with you.