Source
Wolf, Ronni, et al. “Acne and
Diet.” Clinics in
Dermatology, vol. 22, no. 5,
Sept. 2004, pp. 387–393.
Science Direct,
doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.c
lindermatol.2004.03.007.
“Processed Foods What’s OK “Processed food falls on a
and What to Avoid.” Edited
by Taylor Wolfram, Eat
Right. Academy of Nutrition
and Dietetics., 7 Nov. 2016,
www.eatright.org/food/nutriti
on/nutrition-facts-and-food-
labels/processed-foods-whats-
ok-and-what-to-avoid.
Summary
“The prevalence of acne is
lower in rural,
nonindustrialized societies
than in modernized Western
populations. There are no
systematic controlled studies
on the relationship between
acne and diet that dissociate
diet from other confounding
factors (particularly genetic
ones). Several isolated
observations and case reports,
however, suggest that acne
can develop in groups when a
high–glycemic index diet is
adopted.”
“In conclusion, this very
convincing study indicates
that sebaceous glands can and
do use fatty acids from the
bloodstream for the synthesis
of sebum.”
spectrum from minimally to
heavily processed:
● Minimally processed
foods — such as
bagged spinach, cut
vegetables and roasted
nuts — often are
simply pre-prepped
for convenience.
● Foods processed at
their peak to lock in
nutritional quality and
freshness include
canned tomatoes,
frozen fruit and
vegetables, and
canned tuna.
What does it mean for me
Without using the words
“processed foods” they are
pointing to the added sugar
and enriched foods that a
prevalent in westernized
processed foods as the culprit.
This answers my question that
research does show a link
between acne and processed
foods, and also blood sugar
maintenance, both parts of
health that I am concerned
with personally.
This means that it is possible
that the same oil I eat comes
out in my skin. Meaning if I
eat a lot of bad fats, it is going
to come out of my skin and
because I am prone to acne it
will clog my pores.
This is a very good
explanation of what processed
food means and where to
draw the line. Actually, it
explains more that the line is
a little blurry and some
processing is okay.
 ● Foods with ingredients
added for flavor and
texture (sweeteners,
spices, oils, colors and
preservatives) include
jarred pasta sauce,
salad dressing, yogurt
and cake mixes.
● Ready-to-eat foods —
such as crackers,
granola and deli meat
— are more heavily
processed.
● The most heavily
processed foods often
are pre-made meals
including frozen pizza
and microwaveable
dinners.”

“Eating processed food in

moderation is fine, but
consumers should be on the
lookout for hidden sugar,
sodium and fat.”
This goes into why processed
foods are bad. But, is the type
of added sugar important? For
example, is cane sugar better
than corn syrup? Which
ingredients in particular
should I be avoiding since the
added ingredients in
processed foods are what
make them unhealthy?

Winter, Ruth. A Antimicrobials used in Eating meat that has been

Consumer's animals have been shown to given antibiotics can be bad
Dictionary of transfer resistant bacteria to for my health. This is part of
Food Additives, humans processing
7th Edition.
Crown/Archetype,
2009, “...3 to 4 million cases of If it gives lab rats brain
books.google.com cancer per year could be tumors, I don't want to eat it
/books?id=- prevented by appropriate at all. Also, if there is any
KanEB_ytFQC&d diet.” “‘Given the cancer- controversy over it then I
q=ingredients+and causing potential of don’t want to eat it.
+harmful&lr=&so aspartame aka ‘Nutrasweet’
 urce=gbs_navlinks and ‘equal’ how would the
_s.
Kroger, Manfred, et al. “Low‐
Calorie Sweeteners and Other
Sugar Substitutes: A Review
of the Safety Issues.”
Comprehensive Reviews in
Food Science and Food
Safety, vol. 5, no. 2, 2006, pp.
35–47.,
doi:10.1111/crfs.2006.5.issue-
2.
FDA justify its position that it
views a certain amount of
aspartame as constituting an
allowable daily intake…?’”
“However,
because many of the products
that contain low-calorie
sweeten-
ers are foods of minimal
nutritional value, people who
are trying
to eat healthfully will likely
find it necessary to limit
consumption
of these foods to avoid
displacement of more
nutritious foods
from the diet.”
“One group of sweeteners
consists of substances with a
very in-
tense sweet taste that are used
in small amounts to replace
The remainder of what I read
gave a lot of information on
how and why things are
added to food, but not
necessarily the effects on
health. It mainly taught me
that there is a lot of
controversy over single
ingredients and there is so
much that we still do not
know. Next, I am looking for
what I can personally do to
look out for potentially
harmful ingredients (aka
name the most common ones)
and avoid them. I am going to
focus on sugars because they
affect acne.
This makes sense. I have been
putting my focus on what the
direct effects of processed
foods/manmade chemicals are
on the body, but the reason
processed foods are unhealthy
is because they lack
nutritional value. If a food has
added sugar, it is probably
because processing took
something out and now it
needs new flavor, so I
probably shouldn't eat it. I
would be getting more sugar
and less good stuff.
After reading this article, I
feel like I am okay with the
sweeteners on this list if a
person is trying to lose weight
 the or lower the amount of
sweetness of a much larger calories they consume.
amount of sugar. The 5 However, they are not for me.
sweeteners of
this type currently approved
for use in the United States
are ace-
sulfame-K, aspartame,
neotame, saccharin, and
sucralose (see Ta-
ble 1)”

Yoquinto, Luke. “The Truth
About Nitrite in Lunch
Meat.” Live Science, 30 Dec.
2011,
www.livescience.com/36057-
truth-nitrites-lunch-meat-
preservatives.html.
“The preservative sodium Nitrates are one of the most
nitrite fights harmful bacteria common ingredients that I
in ham, salami and other hear about that are bad for the
processed and cured meats body, but until now I didn't
and also lends them their pink know what they did.
coloration. However, under
certain conditions in the
human body, nitrite can
damage cells and also morph
into molecules that cause
cancer.”

“There are two answers. First, This seems to be a recurring

nitrite can be poisonous, but
only in huge quantities. And
second, a host of factors,
including the food and
bacteria in your gut,
determines whether nitrite in
moderate amounts becomes a
chemical friend or foe.”
theme in my research. These
added ingredients, at the
levels that the FDA has
approved, are safe and may
even be beneficial. But if you
ate a lot of it, it could be
harmful. What if an
ingredient is in everything
you eat and it all adds up?
Does the FDA take that into
account?

If all goes well in the body,

nitrite in the diet transforms
in the gut into nitric oxide,
which serves a variety of
important functions in the
body...But under certain
conditions, nitrite can instead
I like that this article explains
the science in plain terms so I
can really understand the
risks.
form nitrosamines, molecules
that cause cancer in lab
animals.
“Evidence is mounting that
nitrite preservatives are safe,
but that doesn't mean
processed meats are healthy.”
I love this quote because it
pretty much sums up what I
have learned during my
inquiry. The added
ingredients put into processed
foods, as regulated by the
FDA, are “safe” to eat.
However, just because
processed foods are “safe”,
that doesn't mean they are
healthy. They still lack
nutritional value that I could
be getting from real, whole
foods.