BBC Learnings · Section 20

Should we eat ultra-processed food

If you've eaten anything today, then it's likely that some of your food was ultra-processed

Level: B1 · 99 sentences

Transcript

  1. If you've eaten anything today, then it's likely
  2. that some of your food was ultra-processed
  3. food containing artificial ingredients like additives and sweeteners.
  4. Ultra-processed foods are everywhere, from sliced bread to chocolate biscuits and crisps.
  5. They might taste good, but the bad news
  6. is that ultra-processed foods have been linked to poor health.
  7. They often contain lots of sugar and salt
  8. and have been linked to problems like obesity and diabetes.
  9. So how can we tell what food is ultra-processed
  10. and what's not? Here's health reporter Annabel Rackham
  11. on BBC World Service programme What In The World.
  12. Ultra-processed foods are things that contain five or more ingredients
  13. and things that you wouldn't find in your average kitchen.
  14. It's going to have things on there like
  15. emulsifiers, preservatives, additives, dyes and sweeteners.
  16. Annabel describes ultra-processed foods as things
  17. containing ingredients you wouldn't find in your kitchen.
  18. Do you eat much ultra-processed food, Pippa,
  19. or do you try to avoid it?
  20. I used to eat a lot of ultra-processed foods.
  21. And now I try to cook everything myself
  22. and not eat things like chocolate and snacks all day.
  23. How about you? I think the same.
  24. I try to cook things using just your normal
  25. ingredients just so you know what's gone into it.
  26. In this episode, we'll be discussing ultra-processed food
  27. as well as learning some useful new vocabulary.
  28. But now I have a question for you, Pippa.
  29. Fizzy drinks like cola and lemonade
  30. are another example of popular ultra-processed foods.
  31. But when were fizzy drinks invented?
  32. Was it A. 1772, B. 1872 or C. 1972?
  33. Well, I think...
  34. It was before 1972, but 1772 sounds like too early,
  35. so I'm going to say B, 1872.
  36. We'll find out the answer at the end of the programme.
  37. One reason for the popularity of ultra-processed food is convenience.
  38. Let's hear more from health reporter Annabel,
  39. who talks here with Hannah Gelbart,
  40. presenter of BBC World Service's What in the World?
  41. So I do think convenience, it is the main issue there.
  42. And again, with a ready meal,
  43. you put it in the microwave for a couple of minutes,
  44. it's done, it's hot, it's served to you.
  45. Whereas, you know, sometimes cooking a fresh meal from scratch,
  46. that can take a really long time.
  47. What's your ultra-processed guilty food? I'm a chocolate girl.
  48. Packet of biscuits, something like that. A cake.
  49. That is my, that's my guilty pleasure.
  50. Ultra-processed foods, like ready meals, are convenient.
  51. A ready meal is a meal
  52. from a supermarket that has already been prepared
  53. and can be heated up quickly in a microwave.
  54. That's a lot quicker and easier than cooking from scratch,
  55. an idiom meaning to do something from the very beginning
  56. without using anything that's already been made.
  57. Even though ultra-processed foods are often unhealthy, they taste good.
  58. That's why Annabelle calls chocolate her guilty pleasure.
  59. A guilty pleasure is something you enjoy
  60. but think you shouldn't and feel a little embarrassed about.
  61. Ultra-processed food is a tricky topic.
  62. We know these foods have been linked to poor health,
  63. but at the same time they're cheap, convenient and taste good.
  64. So what should we do? Here's Hannah and Annabel
  65. discussing this for BBC programme What In The World.
  66. Is it OK for me to have a packet of crisps
  67. once in a while? Should we be cutting
  68. ultra-processed foods out of our diets completely
  69. or is there a way for us to still
  70. enjoy them from time to time?
  71. I think the best thing to do is just not to panic.
  72. Everything is fine in moderation.
  73. Hannah asks if it's OK to eat ultra-processed foods
  74. once in a while or from time to time.
  75. The phrases once in a while and from time to time
  76. mean occasionally. Sometimes. But not very often.
  77. Annabel replies using the phrase, everything in moderation,
  78. which advises us that it's best to avoid too much of anything.
  79. That sounds sensible to me, and it
  80. also means I won't feel bad about eating chocolate now and then.
  81. OK, Pippa, it's time to reveal the answer to my question.
  82. Now, I asked you when fizzy drinks were invented.
  83. You said... 1872. I'm afraid the correct answer was 1772.
  84. Apparently carbonated water was used to try
  85. to prevent scurvy on sea voyages.
  86. Wow, that is amazing.
  87. I wouldn't have thought it was that long ago.
  88. Right, let's recap the vocabulary we've learned, starting with ready meal.
  89. A meal from a supermarket that has already been prepared
  90. so you can heat it up quickly.
  91. If you do something from scratch,
  92. you do it from the very beginning
  93. without using anything that's already been made.
  94. A guilty pleasure is something you enjoy but feel guilty
  95. or embarrassed about because you think you shouldn't do it.
  96. The phrases once in a while and from time to time
  97. mean occasionally, not very often.
  98. And finally, the phrase everything in moderation is used to advise someone
  99. that it's best to avoid too much of anything.