clean and unclean?

I want to know what foods are clean and what are unclean (to the average person) Im not looking for the vegan or vegitarian answer to this.  Some of the things in my diet I am questioning are:

-cinnamon oatmeal (rarely eat)

-string cheese (not sure how processed it is)

-Frozen chicken

-homemade strawberry jam (rarely eat)

-Cottage cheese perogies (homemade, my fav. dish ever)

-Bean and bacon soup (campbells)

-Mushroom soup (campbells)

-Mozza sticks (Heinz)

- Apple cinnamon cherios (whole grains)

-Grilled cheese (real cheese, not processed slices)

- To Go yogurt tubes

If some of these are really bad, I can try to keep their consumption on the low end. But I don't want those to keep me from not losing inches on my mid-section because people say that to lose on the tummy you have to eat "clean". Please help!

cinnamon oatmeal is processed, but having it once in awhile is fine. if you wnated to eat cnnamon-flavoured oatmeal more often, you could even make your own homemade version.

string cheese is processed at well. as long as you don't eat 30 a day or something (maybe 1 a day), you'll be fine. they aren't even that processed really. my mom adores them, and i've looked at the package and there aren't that many preservatives added.

i eat frozen chicken, and i think it's mostly fine as long as it isn't battered or covered in oil or salt or something.

if the strawberry jam is homemade, then it should be fine.

the cottage cheese perogies depend on what ingredients you use. if you eat them rarely, then make them how you usually do and enjoy them as a treat, but if you eat them regularly, you may want to see what exactly is in the ingredients you're using. they sound delish!

campbells soups are very processed and filled with sodium. i'd stay away from them for the most part if i were you. if you want soup, you could always make your own homemade stuff.

are mozza sticks those cheese-stick things that are breaded? those are incredibly processed, and not really that good for you. they'd be okay as a rare treat, but definetely not as a regular thing.

well, all cereals are processed really, but as long as it's in moderation, you should be fine. i eat cereal almost every morning, and i'm not dead yet ;)! if you are really trying to cut down on preservatives, you could have cereal only a few days a week or something.

as for grilled cheese, as long as the bread is whole grain, it should be alright. just watch how much butter or oil you add to the grill.

yogurt tubes are very processed. personally, i don't find eating something out of a tube that appetizing. i eat yogurt by a brand called stoneyfield farms. it's organic, and it's actually the best-tasting yogurt i've ever had, you may want to give it a try.

i've never heard that clean-eating helps you lose fat from your stomach. as far as i know, you can't spot-reduce. i think the main goal of weight loss is to learn to accept your bodily imperfections. people who are apples (hold weight on top), may always have a little bit of belly flab, no matter how low of a weight they are. if your bmi is already low, you may just need to accept the fact that your body isn't perfect. i don't like the way my butt looks, but i've learned to accept it.

Basically everything on your list is processed.  It is hard to get away from that.  Anything that comes in a box or a bag is processed.

To me clean eating is staying away from chemicals and ingredients that I can not pronounce.  It is eating the way my grandma and great grandma cooked before the /70's when fast food was rare and TV dinners were just getting popular.

I try to stick to store bought foods that have less than five ingredients and sugar is not one of the first three.  There is not much on the shelf at a grocery store that works for me. 

Convience is a way of life now and life is short.  If you enjoy something, really savour it.

Thanks! That really helped! I dont make the perogies, but they are homemade so it is hard to tell the nutrition facts! Okay, I'll scratch the yogurt tubes! I dont eat them often anyways... I don't think I've tried organic yogurt, I'll look for it. As for the string cheese... hehe I love those.. I eat one a day. But I can cut back on those. I only eat oatmeal once every 2 months.

Hmm.. what if I got the "low sodium" version of campbells? I really love their soups especially the bean and bacon! Or unless anyone knows of a better version of campbells bean and bacon? yes I only eat 100% whole grain bread. I do have some weight to lose, so until I am down the 10 pounds I will have to accept anything that hasnt changed.

I agree with pretty much everything that Eerica said and the reason I am posting is to sing the praises of Stonyfield.  It really is the best yogurt that is available in supermarkets today.  I like their plain full fat version for my son who is 1.2 and needs the fat (it is pasteurized, but NOT homogenized, which is sooo rare - and Organic - and tastes delicious) and for myself I buy the bulk jar that is 2 lbs plain lowfat - also good! 

I would advise cooking the frozen chicken (lol)

Homemade bean soup is pretty easy, and you can freeze it too, if you are interested, I can give you my recipe. Only one of the ingredents I use is processed, and my honey loves it.

Yes I cook the chicken!!! LOL Oy that would not be good if I didn't!

Sure, I'd love to see your recipe. Does it taste anything like the campbells? Im horrible at cooking and do not want to waste food if it doesnt turn out right.

here is the recipe: http://caloriecount.about.com/katies-navy-bea n-soup-recipe-r147083

It is somewhat similar to Campbells, but alot heartier.

My breakfast is usually a cup of balkan yogurt with a half cup of rolled oats, honey and cinnamon.

Don't stop eating oatmeal because it is full of fibre, just learn new ways to prepare it.

Soups are easy to make at home.  You can put almost anything in a soup.  I make a fridge soup, which is basically prepared with any leftovers in the fridge and cupboards at the end of the week.  It is always a hit.

I personally eat tons of processed foods, and I am a size zero.  So don't worry about it...processed foods won't make you fat...excessive caloric consumption will.

clean food might make your skin nicer, your hair shinier, your attitude better, your digestive track happy -- but it will not take off the inches from your midsection any faster than any other type of eating.  where you begin to lose fat is not under your control, but rather the genetic makeup of your body.  any diet that tells you differently is lying.

hmmm its interesting... everyone here seems to have a different answer to beleive is the only right way. They say weight loss is 80% diet and 20% excercise... which seems reasonable... I know every body is different... but I still think that it would help more to eat cleaner foods...

The reason eating 'cleaner' foods helps control your weight is that unprocessed, 'whole' foods tend to be more satisfying, bulkier, more filling and more nutritious than heavily processed foods.  The evidence is that people who have diets mostly made up with processed foods need to eat a lot more in order to extract the necessary nutrition.  As a result, they consume more calories and that means they gain weight.

 A calorie is a calorie, admittedly.  But 1 x 70 calorie slice of heavily processed white bread does rather different things to the body than 1 x 70 cal slice of fibrous, wholemeal bread.  

Another feature of processed foods is that - because they need a long shelf-life - they tend to contain a lot of salts, sugars and other preservatives.  The perils of a long-term high sodium, high sugar diet are well-documented.  Short-term, it can lead to fluid retention..... and in an otherwise slim person that extra fluid can make the stomach more wobbly or make cellulite look worse than it is.  Losing the fluid retention can mean you 're-shape' a little if not actually lose weight.

Even if you didn't lose an ounce I would encourage you to adopt a 'cleaner' diet....  It means preparing and cooking foods more than you may have done in the past.   But the health benefits are very real and it can be a very rewarding/fun thing to do in itself.

thanks, that helps