Diet guru’s drink labelled ‘ultra-processed’
FOOD experts have rounded on celebrity diet guru Tim Spector for launching an ‘ultra-processed’ probiotic yogurt drink.
The scientist is well-known for publicising the problems caused by consuming ultra-processed foods (UPFs) – the name given to readymade, pre-packaged foods – but critics have argued that his product falls into this unhealthy category.
Prof Spector, who is credited with creating the Zoe Covid symptom app as well as the hugely successful Zoe diet, has previously claimed that the availability of UPFs is a ‘future time bomb’ and a ‘complete disaster we’re sleepwalking into’. He has also warned that UPFs increase the risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, cancer, heart disease and mental illness.
The classification of these foods has caused debate among experts, but in an interview with Good Housekeeping magazine in November Prof Spector said an easy way to spot a UPF is when it has a long list of ingredients that includes ‘many things that you wouldn’t have in the kitchen and that you shouldn’t need in real food’.
He added: ‘If it’s got lots of packaging and health claims such as “extra vitamins”, “high in protein”, “low in fats” or “no added sugar”, then 99 per cent of the time it can be classed as a UPF.’
Zoe last week launched a partnership with Marks and Spencer to stock the brand’s Gut Shot – a fermented milk-based drink that sells for £2.
Among the ingredients are fruit and vegetable extracts, chicory fibre and baobab fruit pulp, which critics suggested were not things that most people would have in their kitchen.
University of Reading nutrition expert Prof Gunter Kuhnle says: ‘It’s extensively processed – to get the chicory fibre you need to process it, the baobab needs to be pulped, it’s all mixed together and then presumably you have to add ingredients to make it stable.’
Prof Giles Yeo, an obesity researcher at the University of Cambridge, agrees that the Gut Shot is ‘undoubtedly ultra-processed’, branding its launch a ‘slightly hypocritical’ move from Dr Spector. However, he argues that some UPFs can be part of a healthy diet, saying: ‘Some UPFs, such as chicken nuggets, are unhealthy, but this isn’t.’
Prof Spector claims the Zoe Gut Shot isn’t a UPF, saying it doesn’t contain any artificial chemicals not found in the kitchen. He adds: ‘In comparison to anything else, it’s certainly a processed food – but not an ultra-processed food.’
When pressed on whether he keeps the ingredients in his own home, Prof Spector said his kitchen cupboards do contain dried chicory fibres and baobab – although he did admit that these items would not be found on most people’s shelves.