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Week 5 -
Healthy up
Processed
Convenience Foods
By C. Joyce Kleffner, Extension Educator
University of Maine Cooperative Extension
Favorite
fast foods and highly processed convenience
products can be part of a healthy diet if eaten
occasionally. These foods are typically high in
calories and loaded with fat, sugar, and sodium.
Because processing removes natural fiber, mega
sized portions with huge calorie counts are very
easy to swallow.
Minimally processed convenience foods can help
you get a meal on in record time by taking care
of washing, peeling, chopping or precooking
foods. Bagged salads, prepared fruits and
vegetables in fresh, canned, or frozen form
without sauce or seasoning, and precut meat,
fish or poultry are time saving examples.
But if you rely on highly processed foods for
snacks, meals, and ingredients consider making
some simple changes to lower the calories and
improve the nutrient value through omission,
substitution, dilution, and additions.
Refer to the table for ideas to improve the
nutritional value of some common highly
processed foods used for quick snack and meal
makers.
Convenience food
Problem & Solution... |
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Canned soups
High in sodium |
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Dilute: with low sodium broth or
tomato sauce or add fresh or frozen
plain vegetables like onion, tomato,
mushrooms, bell pepper, zucchini, etc |
Canned spaghetti sauce
High in sodium |
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Dilute: with low sodium tomato sauce
or fresh tomatoes, onion, bell pepper,
mushrooms, tomato, zucchini, etc. |
Sauced frozen or boxed vegetable
blends
High in calories, fat and sodium
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Add: more plain vegetables or omit
some of the sauce |
Frozen vegetable blends with sauce
and seasoning packets
High in saturated fat and sodium |
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Reduce: Use half the sauce or
seasoning. Dilute: Add more plain
vegetables |
Packaged meal in a box
High in sodium, fat and trans fat |
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Omit or substitute: Use less
seasoning, add plain herbs or plain
vegetables and use less lean meat, fish
or poultry |
Bottled salad dressings and marinades
High in sodium, fat and sweeteners or
too thick to limit to one serving |
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Dilute: with vinegar and water in
the bottle or by the serving. Thin
creamy dressings by the serving - not
the bottle - with buttermilk, a cultured
skim milk |
Packaged quick hot cereal packets
with fruit, spices, jam or sweeteners
High in calories, lower fiber per
serving |
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Omit or substitute: Use plain old
fashioned or quick oats. Use less of the
sweetener or add your own dried fruits,
spices, and sweeteners |
Microwave popcorn
High in sodium and trans fat |
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Omit or dilute: Add plain popcorn
popped in a hot air popper |
Boxed mac’ n cheese
High in calories and saturated fat
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Omit: Use skim milk and half the
butter or margarine. Additions:
Add more pasta or vegetables like peas
or broccoli |
Sauced frozen or boxed vegetable
blends
High in calories, fat and sodium |
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Add: more plain vegetables or omit
some of the sauce |
Cookie, muffin and quick bread mixes
High in calories, trans fat, sugars, and
low fiber |
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Additions: Add quick oats -up to ¼
of dry ingredients and increase the
liquid as needed |
Deli meats, sausages, hot dogs
High in sodium, high in saturated fat,
no fiber |
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Omit: Use less often or Dilute
by combining with low fat, low sodium
foods like adding thin slices to cabbage
apple salad, homemade vegetable soup, or
steamed garden green beans. |
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Becky, Claudia, Joan, Joyce and Jude shared
their success stories about losing
weight and maintaining that loss during the
week #5 meeting.
At the end week #4 the 45 teams have
accumulated a loss of 1,914 pounds. These
teams will be passing the ton goal very
early in the program.
The “Livin’ Life Large Girls” won the
“Victory Stick” for week #4. Their team
captain credits their losses to the support
that they give each other.
The “Slim Downs” from Otis came in second.
This team has been one of the top 3 losers
each of the 4 weeks.
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