Protein powder is an ultra-processed food — what the UPF panic misses

"Cut out all ultra-processed food" is simple to say and morally tidy. The problem is that following it literally means throwing out your protein powder first.

As one registered dietitian points out, ultra-processed food is a huge category that includes snack foods but also protein powder, tofu and high-fibre cereals. Diets high in ultra-processed food are genuinely associated with poor health outcomes. But that does not mean we should never consume these foods, or that every ultra-processed food is unhealthy or addictive.

Are shelf-stable foods nutritionally dead?

No. The claim that you should "run" when you hear shelf-stable, or that shelf-stable translates to nutrient-unstable, is inaccurate. Beans, tinned fish, vegetables, fruit, jarred sauces, pasta, oats, rice, nut butter — shelf-stable foods are packed to preserve nutrients, and they are enormously helpful for people short on time, money, or access to fresh food.

That distinction is unusually practical for lifters. Very few people hitting 1.6–2.2g of protein per kg of bodyweight every day are cooking three fresh meals to get there. Tinned tuna, frozen chicken breast and protein powder are viable options because they are processed.

What about seed oils?

The seed oil panic has the same shape. Despite a substantial body of evidence showing the polyunsaturated fats in seed oils are safe and healthy, the claim that seed oils are addictive keeps circulating. There is no good evidence for it.

The advice to achieve a "normalised ratio" of omega-3 to omega-6 fats is likewise not supported by science. What matters is not the ratio but getting adequate amounts of each essential fat.

Beef tallow, frequently recommended as the replacement, points the other way. Research shows a diet high in saturated fat, of the type in beef tallow, is linked to elevated LDL — a known risk factor for atherosclerotic heart disease.

Is premium worth paying for?

Usually not. Organic tinned beans cost more and are no more nutritious than non-organic tinned beans. Premium eggs marketed as more nutrient-dense may indeed carry slightly higher micronutrient content, but not enough to make an appreciable difference to health — while the extra cost makes a real dent in a low-income budget.

There is also a line item that costing exercises routinely omit. Writing "one tablespoon of olive oil" makes the cost look tiny, but you still have to buy the whole bottle. A recipe priced at a few dollars a serving, with the upfront cost of pantry staples left out, does not match the actual shopping trip. For reference, the USDA Thrifty Food Plan — designed to represent a low-cost but nutritionally adequate diet — allots about $2.75 per person per meal.

How this relates to your strength score

The dietary conditions for adding to your Big 3 are surprisingly plain: enough total calories, enough protein, and something you can keep doing for months. The third is where most diets fail, and the ultra-processed panic attacks precisely that condition — people who bin the protein powder and the tins usually miss their protein target, and drop the whole plan a few weeks later. Whether a diet works is answered by the total three months later, not by the ingredient list.

On structuring a diet during a cut, see calorie density dieting for lifters.