The first is “unprocessed or minimally processed food”, such as fresh meat and fish, fresh, frozen and dried fruit and vegetables, nuts and seeds. Third is “processed foods” such as tinned food, cured meats and freshly made bread and cheese. Be mindful, he says, that companies know we’re biologically designed to eat foods that are high in energy and they want to make foods that we will consume quickly and in large quantities. Often that is vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein foods. If she asks about sources of protein, “protein powder”, “protein bar”, “protein shake” comes back about 70 per cent of the time.

Source: The Irish Times February 08, 2026 15:34 UTC