by Cliff Smith
A sad report this week revealed that almost 60 percent of the total calories consumed in the U.S. are coming from "ultra-processed" foods. These “fake” foods are making America fat and ironically, hungry, too. Fake foods are problematic because they are typically loaded with excess calories that contain very few beneficial nutrients. They are almost always high in processed sugars, saturated fat, and sodium. All those “empty” calories are contributing to serious health complications, including obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and heart disease.
"What you're really getting are chemicals -- additives, things like preservatives, sweeteners, coloring, flavoring, trans fats, emulsifiers. These are all chemicals that are then put back into 'fake' foods to make them taste real," CBS News medical contributor Dr. Holly Phillips said on CBS This Morning – ‘Ultra-processed’ foods a huge chunk of American diet. Some examples of fake foods include soft drinks, packaged snacks, pre-packaged baked goods, chicken or fish nuggets and other reconstituted meat products, and instant noodles and soups.
These fake foods account for about 90 percent of the calorie intake that people are getting from added sugars. Just by eliminating ultra-processed foods, sugar intake could be diminshed by a significant amount. When ultra-processed foods are removed from the Standard American Diet, it’s easier for people to lose weight, reduce cholesterol and decrease risks for conditions related to heart disease and diabetes.
Alissa Rumsey, a registered dietitian and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, noted that "...ultra-processed foods tend to be low in fiber, antioxidants, and vitamins and minerals. They provide a lot of calories with very few beneficial nutrients. These ultra-processed foods create more cravings and hunger."
Fake Foods Make People Fat
The fake ingredients and sugars in ultra-processed foods and drinks are essentially tricking humans into thinking they are satisfied. Unfortunately, the scam is revealed when hunger and cravings strike again, usually not long after eating fake foods. The body simply does not know what to do with the un-natural additives, so it has to process them as waste. This takes up energy and clogs up the digestive system with unwanted garbage. For many, this loss of energy and lack of healthy digestion leads to numerous other health challenges.
Whole Foods Make People Whole
To outsmart the fake food makers, stock up on healthy foods and purge the fake foods from your life. Today, with all the convenient healthy options, like whole food concentrates, there’s just no need for fake foods. These healthy concentrates provide abundant nutrition in very few calories. They only require about 20 seconds to prepare and contain healthy whole food ingredients, no fake additives.
You don't need to sacrifice convenience in order to eat healthier foods. Sunbars provide maximum whole food nutrition in fewer calories than other snack bars. Sunbars are made with real, high quality ingredients such as dried fruits, nuts, psyllium, and even bamboo fiber to make you feel full and energized without artificial fillers, processed sugars or empty calories.
You don't have to give up fun snacks, either. For a super-healthy snack alternative, NuPuffs are made with real foods. They make it possible to joyfully pass up chips or other junk-food snacks loaded with sodium, trans-fats, and hydrogenated oils 
that only add empty calories to the diet.
The sugar in soft drinks is a serious problem, but also, the artificial sweeteners in diet sodas are just as bad, if not worse. Read this and drink Fortune Delight, instead.
More articles on this topic:
How To Make Healthier Choices Today
Are You Sure You’re Eating the Right Foods?
How Do You Know What Is Really Healthy for You?
