Glossary · Food categories

Processed food

A food altered from its natural state for preservation, palatability, or convenience: canned beans, frozen vegetables, sliced bread. Processing is not a problem in itself, since pasteurized milk and fortified cereal are processed and beneficial, so the degree and the ingredients are what matter.

Helpful processing

Many processed foods make family meals easier and are good everyday choices: frozen vegetables and fruit, canned beans and fish, pasteurized milk and cheese, plain yogurt, whole wheat bread and iron-fortified cereal. Pasteurizing milk, freezing peas and canning tomatoes all count as processing. Canned fish packed in water and frozen fish fillets make an easy fish night.

What to look at on the label

The ingredients list: short, with foods you recognize, is usually a good sign.
Sugar near the top of the list.
Salt, often listed as sodium. Compare two similar products and pick the lower one, especially for babies and toddlers.
Plain versions: plain yogurt, unsweetened applesauce, no-salt-added beans.

Processed foods by age

For babies from around 6 months, choose plain versions without added salt or sugar: plain yogurt, unsalted canned beans rinsed well, frozen vegetables and iron-fortified baby cereal. Sausages, ham, crackers and ready-made sauces carry a lot of salt for a small body, so they're better kept off the baby plate. As children grow, the family's processed basics become their basics too.

How it fits into everyday meals

You don't need to avoid processed foods. A quick dinner of frozen peas, canned salmon and whole wheat pasta is a great family meal. The habit worth building is using processed basics as ingredients, and keeping salty and sugary snacks and ready meals as occasional extras rather than the base of the week.

References

Related terms

Miriel uses this concept across food scans, meal plans, and AI Coach responses where it is relevant to a child's profile. For the underlying clinical and scientific basis, see the research page.