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Human “biology was never intended to handle” ultraprocessed foods, former FDA head David Kessler warns

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  1. atombara on

    Say more, try it in a way that makes sense.

    It’s not like I want to advocate for processed foods, though you would be surprised how not-shelf-stable most things are. But this:

    >David Kessler: Pick up any one of these products. You ever look at the– the ingredient label?

    >Bill Whitaker: A lot of ’em are things I can’t even pronounce.

    >David Kessler: Right. Is that food? Corn syrup, corn solids, maltodextrin, dextrose, xylose, high-fructose corn syrup. And then these ingredients were subjected to industrial processing so that our system can’t handle it.

    this is facebook grandma logic.

  4. Romantic_Piscean on

    I mean, we could also break down corn, for example, into its various chemical components and make it sound frightening. The issue isn’t the stabilizing additives, it’s that we’ve trained our collective tastebuds and corporate food delivers for it.

    But when Democrats talked about limiting the size of sodas, these same chuckleheads melted down. Now if they want to make good foods affordable instead of cheap calories, wonderful. But this ain’t that.

  6. GrumpyOldDad65 on

    Yep. My body has been telling me that exact thing the past two weeks. Sucks. I love me some ultra processed food.

  7. PhotonArmy on

    Water toxemia is a real thing and a 35 year old mother died in 2023 simply by drinking too much water on vacation, causing her brain to swell.

    … but try living without it.

  10. mok000 on

    Well, biology, or rather biochemistry, can handle ultra processed food, but you will become sick over time from the high levels glucose and fructose they contain.

  11. twitch_delta_blues on

    So we should improve school lunches? Make fresh food more available to poor people? Fill in food deserts?

  14. BronzeRider on

    Spoken like a guy who doesn’t even have a high school level understanding of evolutionary biology.

    “Never intended to handle”. That’s not even the right framing. Because clearly the human body CAN handle processed foods. It has been doing so for literal decades. And nothing in human evolution is “intended” for anything. It has functions, not intentions.

    Idk, I’m probably just being too pedantic, but shit like that annoys me. “The human body was never intended to handle processed foods”. That shit does mean anything. What’s the consequence? Is there malnutrition? Problems with development of…..idk teeth or the GI system?

  21. Kaizen2468 on

    Well, mine has been handling it most days. And I’ll probably live longer than most people in history so I’ll take the good with the bad d

  22. Bloaf on

    > biology was never intended to handle” ultraprocessed foods

    of course not, that’s a teleological fallacy. Its the same reasoning anti-LGBTQ people use to argue that LGBTQ stuff is “unnatural”.

    Ultraprocessed foods **were intended** to handle our biology, that’s the problem.

  24. Brilliant_Voice1126 on

    Biology doesn’t have “intent”. While I admire Kessler’s intentions he’s not a scientist and never has been. This type of teleological thinking are why he has fallen into the trap of the naturalistic fallacy theoughout his career leading to the disastrous decision to help deregulation the supplements and vitamin trade spawning a million huxsters and an endless stream of health disinformation and antivax sentiments.

    He needs to come with data, not the naturalistic fallacy. Nature doesn’t intend things. We’re all just a series of happy accidents.

  25. givin_u_the_high_hat on

    It’s crazy. The Dems voiced this concern a long time ago. It was the GOP that said kids should be allowed to choose ultra processed lunches and giant sodas, and a president that chooses McDonald’s over any other type of meal. They even showed up on Fox drinking from their Big Gulps.

  26. Top_Pirate699 on

    We were never intended to deal with a billionaire pedophile class intent on climate destruction, I’m a little more afraid of that than oreos

  32. OldGaffer66 on

    So why didn’t he do something about it when he WAS FDA head? Too little too late, my little man.

  33. deadbeatsummers on

    I encourage everyone to read about the history of corporate lobbying against FDA regulations

  36. Paper_Clip100 on

    But when Michelle Obama said we should limit ultra processed juices my cousins fucking FREAKED out in Facebook

  39. lizkbyer on

    And now I don’t believe a word that comes out of the departments mouth. That’s where we are. Congratulations.

  41. SaltyPinKY on

    What about the animals that we force on processed food?  I’m going to get hate for this…but I’ll trade a few years of longevity for everyone getting nutrition of some sort.   I have no problem with processed foods.   

  44. Regina_Phalange2 on

    Reconstituted meat products, like ham, hot dogs, chicken sausage, fish sticks and chicken nuggets.
    Potato chips.
    Frozen French fries.
    Candy.
    Store-bought cookies.
    Soft drinks.
    Refined grain pretzels.
    Commercial bread.

  45. Difficult_Ladder369 on

    Like vegan food. It’s all processed. Chemicals and plants. If y’all only knew how many animals have to get killed for agricultural purposes

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