Processed vegetarian/vegan food

I promised to write more about Veggie Bite today (the vegan "fast food" two store chain in Chicago). The reason I want to talk about Veggie Bite has less to do with the "restaurants" themselves and much more to do with what they represent -- and that is a belief by vegans and vegetarians that when they cut out flesh (or all animal products for vegans) they are eating healthier no matter what. I never bought into that mentality entirely, but I certainly found myself filling half my cart from the frozen section in Whole Foods. That meant I had fake chicken nuggets, vegan TV dinners, soy ice cream sandwiches, vegan meatballs, and who knows what else. I started to realize how absurd it was that I could believe I was eating healthy. Above all else, our bodies cannot handle processed foods. I am a firm believer that processed foods are the cause of so many healthy problems today. Maybe my foods lacked processed (a/k/a hydrogenated) oils, or some of the worst of processed corn byproducts (like high fructose corn syrup) but they still entailed an ingredient list that took up the entire side of the box and contained few items I recognized or could pronounce. This cannot possible be healthy. Indeed, research has shown that unfermented soy products are not only a poor source of nutrition as they are not very digestible, but they can wreak havoc in other ways -- even impeding the bodies ability to absorb protein. (Note that soymilk is one type of unfermented soy product).

This goes back to the basic and sensible thought that natural is better then processed, no matter how bad you think the natural is. The butter v. margarine issue provides perhaps the best example. Margarine is clearly worse for you overall. Making the same spread contain less fat is to ignore the terrible things that the processed ingredients in margarine will do to you over time. This is the same with vegetarian and vegan meals. Vegetarians often think that now their diet lacks unhealthy meat so they can eat as much cheese and milk as they want (which in their current form in America is usually a poor choice for a meal -- more to come on that another day). And together with vegans, we reach for fake chicken nuggets and the like. Besides the soy argument, believe it or not, the unhealthy thing about a chicken nugget is not just the part about the chicken.

I'll end by admitting that I know when vegans and vegetarians reach for these foods at times. This comes down to comfort and convenience. We remember eating them as kids, etc. and the only way we can eat a ruben again is to eat one made out of fake ingredients so it takes and feels like the real thing. We also can't always have a fridge full of fresh veggies and the time to wash and prepare them all so sometimes you need to pull something out of the freezer.

I think we just need to be aware of how unhealthy these foods can be, and that there are alternatives. Seitan (the wheat gluten byproduct) for instance, is much healthier than unfermented soy (so long as you don't have any gluten intollerance). And there are plenty of all veggie dishes that don't require fake meat. Wendy's serves chili -- why hasn't Veggie Bite thought to add a vegan chili that would be filled with vegetables, protein-packed beans and great flavor without any health issues? The reason seems to be that they blindly subscribe to the idea that as long as their food can be made without harming an animal (besides those who digest it) and without any ingredients of or from an animal, it can be deep fried in oil, made of unfermented soy, filled with processed ingredients, and still do a body good.

PS. I do not want to give the impression that unfermented soy should be avoided at all costs. As I understand it there are some benefits to soy regardless of fermentation -- the point is to be aware of what you are eating and to eat certain items (such as unfermented soy) in moderation. Some nuitritionists recommend no more then two servings of soy per day -- and we're talking 1/2 cup servings here (not a Texas lunch). So if you're worried that you're killing yourself with your daily Starbucks venti soy latte, my personal advice would be to take it down to a tall and avoid unfermented soy the rest of the day.