Whole foods or fresh foods are packed with all the essential nutrients our bodies need and provide us with the necessary energy to carry out our daily activities. Processed foods include chemicals that allow large meal prep companies to keep their meals in storage longer, but could harm your health.
Fresh food is best consumed in its most natural state. At Pwrmeals we believe in making full use of all the benefits provided by natural and organic food. Our meals are freshly cooked each time you order, and we don't use any processed or frozen food. We even go so far as to make our sauces and marinades from scratch!
It would be unrealistic to eliminate processed food from our diets as we're surrounded by it, however we should try to minimise our intake as much possible to reduce the risks associated with it.
Processed food with artificial preservatives might be harmful to your health, and you can avoid their unnecessary use if you prioritise fresh food.
Let’s take a quick look at a comparison between fresh food, and processed food…
Fresh food vs. processed food
Processed foods are everywhere around us and they are frequently used by large meal delivery services to minimise spoilage and increase their meal storage time by up to several weeks.
Processing food in this way removes a lot of the essential nutrients required by our bodies. Instead of nutrients, we consume preservatives and additives that can be harmful to our bodies.
In addition to this, processed foods are also a leading contributor to unhealthy weight gain as they are frequently high in calories, sugar, and sodium. Combined with the fact that they often contain meagre quantities of fibre, you end up in a situation where you still have the urge to eat more even after consuming a large number of empty calories. We've all been there! 🙋🏽♀️😩
What about frozen foods? How do they compare to processed food?
Even though both processed and frozen foods should be avoided if you can eat fresh, frozen foods are a lot better than processed foods.
If no preservatives were added to the frozen food, the fibre should have remained intact and you'd still have most of the nutrients left in. It's the chemicals used in processed food to make them last longer that should be avoided.
Freezing food yourself is fine. The downside of frozen food comes when it's done by large manufacturers who need to blanch it before freezing. Check out our post on fresh vs frozen food to learn more about blanching.
Why eat fresh food?
In comparison to processed food, unprocessed and freshly cooked food contains all the essential nutrients and vitamins, and are free of additives and preservatives that can cause things like:
- Insulin resistance
- Diabetes
- Obesity
- Heart disease, and
- Fatty liver disease
Fresh food is a rich source of antioxidants and healthy fats that promotes a healthy heart. Fresh food contains a higher quantity of fibre, which is beneficial for metabolic health and digestive function (…and surprisingly hard to reach the recommended daily intake for, unless you're having All Bran for breakfast every day 😛).
Fresh food like blackberries, avocados, flaxseeds, beans, and legumes have many health benefits. The antioxidants contained in fresh food help fight against free radicals, reduce oxidative stress and decrease the chance of different maladaptive conditions.
But most importantly – they just taste better! 💕😋💕
What does this mean for Pwrmeals customers?
Pwrmeals offers healthy and fresh pre-cooked meals to our customers in Sydney. Your meals get cooked just hours before delivery so that they are as fresh and filled with nutrition as they they can be.
The artificial flavours, sugars, and preservatives in processed food are filled with chemicals that increase the shelf life and benefit large meal prep companies, but disadvantage you in many ways. We don't want to be that company…
And since we're passionate believers that fresh-is-best, we don’t need to use the techniques employed by large meal manufacturers.
A Pwrmeals meal plan for everyone
Pwrmeals help you focus on your weight loss regime by providing fresh and diet-friendly meals on a budget.
Simply pick a meal plan based on your goals and we'll deliver it to your doorstep, allowing you to focus on your gym routine rather than worrying about cooking your weight-friendly meal.
Whether you are a vegetarian or you have started a keto diet and looking for low carb meals, we have everything you need.
Our expert approved weight loss plans will help you reduce weight in no time! Check out our meal plans for more details on all the portion controlled plans we have.