Alice Callahan

Alice Callahan, welcome to the show. Thank you. It's so good to be here, Sabrina.

Alice Callahan, welcome to the show. Thank you. It's so good to be here, Sabrina.

I do have a PhD in nutrition. That's right. So I started out in academia. I thought that I would be a nutrition scientist.

I do have a PhD in nutrition. That's right. So I started out in academia. I thought that I would be a nutrition scientist.

But pretty soon after, I actually decided to transition to science writing because I really wanted to be in a position where I could read the science, talk to the scientists, and then be able to turn around and kind of interpret it for everyday people who are trying to figure out what to eat.

But pretty soon after, I actually decided to transition to science writing because I really wanted to be in a position where I could read the science, talk to the scientists, and then be able to turn around and kind of interpret it for everyday people who are trying to figure out what to eat.

And one of the things that we've seen in just the last few years in this field is a real change in the way we talk about food. When I was in graduate school, we were learning all about carbs and fats and protein and vitamins and minerals and how we break these nutrients down and use them in our bodies. Nobody at that time was talking about how foods were processed.

And one of the things that we've seen in just the last few years in this field is a real change in the way we talk about food. When I was in graduate school, we were learning all about carbs and fats and protein and vitamins and minerals and how we break these nutrients down and use them in our bodies. Nobody at that time was talking about how foods were processed.

And now just in the last few years, we're seeing a lot of attention on how food processing might affect our health and especially this category of ultra-processed foods.

And now just in the last few years, we're seeing a lot of attention on how food processing might affect our health and especially this category of ultra-processed foods.

So ultra-processed foods are this giant category of products that include kind of anything edible that's industrially produced, things that you can't make in your own kitchen if you tried because you wouldn't be able to get the ingredients and you don't have like the machinery necessary to make that product.

So ultra-processed foods are this giant category of products that include kind of anything edible that's industrially produced, things that you can't make in your own kitchen if you tried because you wouldn't be able to get the ingredients and you don't have like the machinery necessary to make that product.

Yeah, that's definitely ultra-processed. You knew that.

Yeah, that's definitely ultra-processed. You knew that.

Yeah. So that unfortunately is also ultra processed.

Yeah. So that unfortunately is also ultra processed.

Yeah. So that's one thing about this category is that it's so huge and it includes lots of foods that we may think of and sort of know are not very good for us, like soda and hot dogs and chips and cookies, but also these foods like flavored yogurts, which like you can have an unprocessed or a non-ultra-processed yogurt if it just has the milk and the bacteria starter culture in it.

Yeah. So that's one thing about this category is that it's so huge and it includes lots of foods that we may think of and sort of know are not very good for us, like soda and hot dogs and chips and cookies, but also these foods like flavored yogurts, which like you can have an unprocessed or a non-ultra-processed yogurt if it just has the milk and the bacteria starter culture in it.

A plain yogurt would not be ultra-processed. But once you add the flavorings and the various ingredients that give it that creamy texture, it becomes ultra-processed. A packaged big brand whole wheat bread would also be ultra-processed probably because it has a few ingredients in it like emulsifiers that are important for the texture.

A plain yogurt would not be ultra-processed. But once you add the flavorings and the various ingredients that give it that creamy texture, it becomes ultra-processed. A packaged big brand whole wheat bread would also be ultra-processed probably because it has a few ingredients in it like emulsifiers that are important for the texture.