I grew up on spaghetti hoops, frozen fish fingers and oven-baked fries. When I had my gut health tested recently, my microbiome was in poor condition
“Just try this, you might like it.” I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard this phrase. And not just when I was a young child, as parents and relatives tried to coax me to eat something other than frozen chicken nuggets and chocolate buttons. It’s now my boyfriend telling me, a 23-year-old, to broaden my admittedly beige palate.
When we first met, he booked us into a steak restaurant. Most people would probably be delighted, but although I appreciated the gesture, I was filled with anxiety. I’d never eaten steak in my life. I didn’t know if I could eat a whole plate of expensive beef without looking ungrateful. But I’ve never been vegetarian: I was raised a UPF kid.
Not a day goes by without another warning about ultra-processed foods – defined as foods that are industrially produced and containing high levels of additives and ingredients not found in home kitchens. Research has linked them to illnesses including diabetes, cancers, dementia, depression and a shorter lifespan.
New FeatureIn ShortQuick Stories. Same trusted journalism.
But the fact is, like a large number of Britons, I was raised on them. The plates I was presented with as a child and teenager were dominated by spaghetti hoops, frozen fish fingers and oven-baked fries. My mum says as a toddler I’d only eat cheese, plain pasta and Heinz baked beans on repeat. As I grew up, I had an unhealthy obsession with sugary cereal, and often had an extra bowl before bed, and a selection of Cadbury’s was always on hand in the kitchen.
For a treat, we went to McDonald’s, KFC or the local Chinese takeaway. And though we like to tell ourselves that fussy eaters grow out of their habits eventually – I never did. My diet remains extremely limited. So when I found myself going out to eat with my boyfriend, who was raised on homemade casseroles and stews and knew what sushi and salmon tasted like, I felt confused and ashamed.
I’m not the only one who grew up on a beige, mostly frozen, diet. Ever since microwaves and ready meals arrived in the 1970s, Britain has embraced convenience food. Today, adolescents in the UK consume around two-thirds of their daily calories from UPFs, according to data from the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey. The research, led by scientists from the universities of Cambridge and Bristol, found consumption was highest among those from deprived backgrounds.
Brits are eating fewer vegetables than any time over the past 50 years. The average person consumed nearly one kilogram of fresh and processed vegetables, excluding potatoes, according to the annual Family Food Survey – a decline of around 12 per cent since 1974.
I grew up with four siblings, a single parent, and had free school meals. My mother was extremely busy and exhausted with five children who would never agree on the dinner they wanted, and an expensive food shopping bill. I was introduced to vegetables – my great Nan would make a roast dinner every Christmas and occasionally present me with a stew – but I, as a seven-year-old, took one look at it and refused.
I’d take one look at a home cooked meal and refuse
My mother had more home cooked meals than I did growing up – her mother learned from my great Nan – but the gene seemed to have stopped there. My mum didn’t have the confidence, nor patience, to stand over the hob for hours, or experiment with making meals from scratch. I don’t resent her for how she fed us. Unlike her ancestors, she grew up in the era of fast food and microwave meals, irresistibly cheap and convenient, with little conversation about the harm they did to health.
I was the fussiest of the five of us. I loved pizza, but only margherita; I liked frozen nuggets, but only one brand; refused to touch the cheaper alternatives to Coco Pops or Krave cereal (my favourite as a 10-year-old). Mum did try to get me to eat fruit, vegetables and other fresh foods, but her threats of “starve or have this” didn’t work. I’d wait for the following day to be reunited with my beige plate.
Lucy Upton, a paediatric dietitian and author of The Ultimate Guide to Children’s Nutrition, says “childhood is a formative time for developing food preferences and familiarity, which can pave the way forward for adulthood”.
She’s seen an increase in families trying to make the switch from ultra-processed foods, but she understands why they go for them. “When families are already living on the breadline, the cost of fruit and vegetables is often one of the first things to go because they’re expensive for what they are. Perhaps they also don’t know what to do with them, or how to prepare them, so there’s then an element of time, resource and money.
“I don’t think we can underestimate parents looking for convenience. They’re thinking that they have a hungry child, it’s half an hour before bedtime, what can I do quickly?”
As a teenager, I saw what other kids would bring for lunch – salads, apples, nut bars – but I presumed that was just “posh” given I was one of the only ones at my grammar school to live on a council estate. But when I’d go for meals out with them, or have sleepovers, we’d always have a takeaway, which now I realise was normal for me, and a treat for them.
Unsurprisngly, my diet has had a big effect on my health. I was an overweight child, so much so that my secondary school invested in a Fitbit for me to lose weight. I didn’t have a healthy BMI until my very late teens, when I got into the gym and stopped snacking on a whole bag of Cadbury’s buttons twice a day.
As a child, I had an unhealthy obsession with sugary cereal (Photo: Steve Morgan)
As a teenager I was quite often moody and had very low energy levels. I napped everyday and begged for a lift to school so I didn’t need to walk the 10 minutes myself. I’ve suffered with acne since I was 13. When I had my gut health tested earlier this year, the results revealed my microbiome was in poor condition.
Upton says UPFs tend to be low in nutrients and fibre, both of which are essential for healthy digestion and a diverse microbiome. They also tend to be high in salt, saturated fat and sugar, raising the risk of obesity and metabolic conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
She says a diet high in processed foods can also raise the risk of digestive problems such as irritable bowel syndrome. “Some children, on the face of it, will seem unscathed but it might impact their mood and behaviour. Often the cards come out on the table as they get older.”
Embarrassingly, I have only became conscious of just how limited my diet was in the past few years. When I started working as a journalist, and took more interest in the gym, I learned about the importance of diet and health for the first time. Having a partner who can cook has also made a huge difference. I started making homemade basic meals (chicken in the air fryer with plain rice) and trying new meals with him at restaurants.
So can I undo the damage of a processed diet in childhood? Nutritionist Rhiannon Lambert says: “The body has a remarkable capacity to adapt and repair, even after many years of less-than-ideal dietary patterns. Making positive changes to your eating habits today can support long-term health and reduce the risk of future disease.”
Although I’m still under the recommended five-a-day, my diet looks wildly different to 10 years ago. I’ll cook chicken breast instead of frozen nuggets, have porridge for breakfast instead of sugary cereal, and have greens on my plate. It wasn’t an easy switch -– I still find cauliflower, sprouts and most greens hard to stomach, but I can put up with broccoli. I’ve trained my tastebuds so my chocolate cravings have dissipated, and now can feel satisfied with fruit (although watermelon is still a no-go).
The more I noticed the benefits, the easier these changes have been to stick to. The biggest difference has been to my energy levels. At 18, I’d slog through a day of work, but now at 23 I have energy all day, wake up at 5am, get myself to the gym, and don’t feel hungry every hour.
That’s not to say I don’t still consume UPFs. Regularly, I have a baked treat (usually a croissant, which I also tried for the first time last year), oat milk in my coffee every day, and cereal for occasional convenience. “Not all UPFs are bad,” stresses Upton. “I’m much less concerned about a low salt, low-sugar cereal that’s going to help meet fibre and iron requirements than 15 packets of crisps a day.”
Making switches to be completely UPF-free is too optimistic. “It’s not as easy as making everything from scratch because that’s not realistic,” says Upton. “It might start with saying we’ll have the fish fingers but we’ll chop up potatoes and make wedges instead of buying them and put peas in the microwave. Parents are increasingly riddled with guilt and worry about the fact their child consumes these foods, it’s not as easy as cutting them out. It’s about making measurable swaps that are going to work for each family.”
My diet is far from perfect. My obsession with sugar has been replaced with sugar-free drinks, usually a Pepsi, which has its own health-implicating research. But since broadening my own palate, I’ve tried things like sushi, salmon, gnocchi, sourdough and an array of fruit that I’d only ever walked past in the supermarket, and, yes, I like steak. I’m still no Nigella Lawson, and rely on my air fryer for most things, but my freezer is full of fruit and veg, not potato wedges. I feel much better for it, and I can only hope that it will repair some of the long-term impact from my heavy consumption of UPFs.
I wish I’d done this sooner, but I don’t blame any adult I had in my life for my diet. I’m sympathetic to the fact that these harmful foods weren’t spoken about like they are now, and were convenient at a time where that was needed. I know I was also not the easiest child to feed; I remember how dramatic I was at the table if a hint of green was on my plate.
But if I ever have children, I won’t be so lenient. I don’t want to them to have to reset their taste buds as an adult like I did. I’ll encourage them to eat a fresh, balanced diet, try everything, and eat for energy and health rather than just pleasure or boredom. Of course, they’ll have treats though – and they’ll definitely be trying a croissant before they turn 23.
Simple swaps to make, from Upton and British Heart Foundation dietitian Dell Stanford
Choose plain natural yoghurt instead of flavoured yoghurt and add your own fruit
Have porridge for breakfast instead of sugary cereal
Buy tinned tomatoes, onions and peppers and make your own pasta sauce instead of shop-bought jars
Snack on unsalted nuts and dried fruit rather than chocolate and crisps
Make homemade popcorn, or vegetable sticks with hummus for lunchboxes