zlacker

[parent] [thread] 66 comments
1. dizlex+(OP)[view] [source] 2026-01-12 12:59:51
... do you have any evidence to back up this claim?
replies(7): >>A4ET8a+z >>Drakim+a1 >>brador+O1 >>fellow+P1 >>vinter+k2 >>notdan+y7 >>buelle+qn
2. A4ET8a+z[view] [source] 2026-01-12 13:03:10
>>dizlex+(OP)
As meta as this comment is, I can't help but note that parent may simply be engaging in pattern recognition.
3. Drakim+a1[view] [source] 2026-01-12 13:06:21
>>dizlex+(OP)
I don't know about a full on conspiracy, but it's no secret that in the US they put a lot of additional sugar into products you wouldn't think had them.
replies(1): >>spider+B2
4. brador+O1[view] [source] 2026-01-12 13:09:06
>>dizlex+(OP)
Additives already added to food exist to circumvent natural protections. Small leap to extend this to bypassing glp.
replies(1): >>XorNot+U7
5. fellow+P1[view] [source] 2026-01-12 13:09:07
>>dizlex+(OP)
it’s actually true and they’re trying to develop GLP-1 resistant foods by using other sensory channels: https://archive.is/N0whF
replies(2): >>pjc50+55 >>buelle+Zn
6. vinter+k2[view] [source] 2026-01-12 13:11:50
>>dizlex+(OP)
It's a prediction. Not a terribly unreasonable one as far as I can see. If a drug can move 5% of the ~trillion dollars spent on groceries in the US, there's a lot of money available for clawing those 5% back.

Demanding evidence for predictions like this is a bit... hm. Arrogant, maybe. A prediction is a commitment. We want people to make predictions. The evidence we get when those predictions come true or not. Would you be willing to make the opposite prediction?

replies(6): >>domini+H3 >>delfin+N3 >>idiots+Y3 >>broken+R5 >>hyperp+38 >>semiqu+gk
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7. spider+B2[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:13:02
>>Drakim+a1
I was in the US for 4 weeks as a tourist, the amount of additional time and effort it takes in the US to eat healthy is mind boggling.
replies(3): >>nwiene+15 >>rjdj37+Y5 >>oklaho+A6
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8. domini+H3[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:17:57
>>vinter+k2
There are sometimes truly bizarre demands for evidence. I once posted a pure opinion piece -- essentially a moral judgment on what is good and what is bad (in the domain of technical writing) -- and got hit with "source?"

Me.

I am the source.

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9. delfin+N3[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:18:10
>>vinter+k2
They'll be hard pressed to find something that isn't running into medical regulation territory.
replies(1): >>vinter+0Q
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10. idiots+Y3[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:18:49
>>vinter+k2
Wanting evidence for random claims is arrogant? I'd say magical thinking is whats arrogant.
replies(1): >>capito+uh
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11. nwiene+15[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:24:05
>>spider+B2
Where did you visit? I don't think I've ever lived in a city where it wasn't trivially easy to find healthy food in abundance.
replies(1): >>spider+O22
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12. pjc50+55[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:24:29
>>fellow+P1
This should be viewed like attempts to put the cocaine back in coca-cola. The industry may be able to get away with "our food is naturally delicious", but engineering it for superior addictiveness should be banned. Not going to get there under the current FDA, though.
replies(1): >>Flaviu+w8
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13. broken+R5[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:28:30
>>vinter+k2
Why wouldn't they have already been looking for a way to make their food more palatable? There was already a lot of money on the line
replies(1): >>vinter+CP
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14. rjdj37+Y5[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:29:49
>>spider+B2
Are you sure the difference didn't mostly come down to being a tourist in temporary accommodation vs having access to a familiar grocery store and your home kitchen?
replies(1): >>wtcact+bk
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15. oklaho+A6[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:32:46
>>spider+B2
All the ingredients you get in Europe you can get in the US easily
replies(2): >>eru+z8 >>bmicra+Cq
16. notdan+y7[view] [source] 2026-01-12 13:37:37
>>dizlex+(OP)
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/...

Here are some first steps:

Earlier this year, Conagra started labeling some of its Healthy Choice frozen meals with high protein and fiber as "GLP-1 friendly." A spokesperson said those meals are selling faster than rival products making similar claims on their packaging. The company plans to introduce new Healthy Choice recipes with the same labeling in May and work with grocers like Walmart (WMT.O), and Kroger (KR.N), to market them, the spokesperson said.

Nestle, the world's biggest food company, has also introduced new frozen meals that cater specifically to GLP-1 users, called Vital Pursuit.

Fast-casual Mexican chain Chipotle (CMG.N),on Tuesday added a "High Protein Menu" that features, among other items, a single cup of chicken or steak.

replies(3): >>trilli+ad >>cookie+7m >>elil17+Ds
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17. XorNot+U7[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:39:28
>>brador+O1
What natural protections?
replies(1): >>brador+39
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18. hyperp+38[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:39:44
>>vinter+k2
I predict you’ll retract this comment.

I don’t have any evidence that you will, but since you seem to think that’s ok, here goes!

replies(2): >>Edman2+4g >>vinter+FO
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19. Flaviu+w8[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:41:48
>>pjc50+55
> Not going to get there under the current FDA, though.

Not going to get there under any FDA. The FDA never cared about food engineering and never will.

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20. eru+z8[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:41:57
>>oklaho+A6
Most of them, sure. But I doubt all of them. Just like you can't get all the different American ingredients in Europe.

Hell, you can't even get all the European ingredients in all of Europe. Good luck finding all the Danish ingredients in Italy.

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21. brador+39[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:44:09
>>XorNot+U7
Natural protection against overeating.
replies(1): >>XorNot+k9
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22. XorNot+k9[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 13:45:47
>>brador+39
Such as?
replies(1): >>array_+ck1
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23. trilli+ad[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:03:13
>>notdan+y7
bowl-slop is getting smaller and is now cup-slop
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24. Edman2+4g[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:18:01
>>hyperp+38
At what point does a demand for evidence come back around to making the requestor seem less like a prudent, rational truth seeker and more like someone with naive lack of personal, lived experience? Like, not a single soul will say "got evidence for that assertion?" when it's a news story about EA or Oracle or Adobe acquiring a company and people are predicting that the acquired product will be destroyed, and isolated demands for rigor will be laughed out of the comment section. Why is that - when does it flip over to "oh, so I guess it's okay to just nakedly assert that food companies will seek profit by reformulating their recipes, even though there isn't a shred of evidence to support that, therefore, we're now allowed to predict anything!"

The complement of the claim is essentially "food manufacturers will never again attempt to modify their recipes to make them more hyperpalatable, now that GLP-1 exists." Does that need evidence? It's the null hypothesis, but it certainly sounds a lot more unrealistic than the opposite.

replies(2): >>hyperp+8p >>SpicyL+sI2
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25. capito+uh[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:24:49
>>idiots+Y3
A prediction is not a claim.

Predictions operate on events that will happen in the future.

Proofs typically operate on things that already exist.

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26. wtcact+bk[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:35:46
>>rjdj37+Y5
I experienced the same, and no it isn’t.

In Europe you don’t expect your bread to have added sugar, for instance. That tasted disgustingly.

You also don’t normally expect sweeteners in your meat. Those sauces are also disgusting. Good beef meat (and in the USA there’s very good meat), needs only salt and maybe a bit of pepper. Not those weird sugary sauces they put in the USA.

Seriously, for someone from Europe, some food in the USA is just disgusting (and it’s not due the quality of the ingredients, as those are usually very good) but due to the stuff they add on top.

replies(3): >>wil421+yo >>rjdj37+Jx >>t-3+Rp2
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27. semiqu+gk[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:35:53
>>vinter+k2
The figure isn’t 5% of all grocery spending, it’s a 5% household change after one member starts GLP-1.
replies(1): >>vinter+BQ
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28. cookie+7m[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:45:22
>>notdan+y7
How do citizens of the US tolerate this?

I'm baffled how messed up the food industry in the US has gotten over the last decades. When I was in the US I remember ordering pancakes in the morning. Those pancakes for like 10 bucks lasted for the whole week because I couldn't stuff so much in my stomach.

I also don't understand why everything, literally everything, is fried in oil. Good luck trying to get an actual healthy salad where the toppings aren't full of sugar or oil. When we cook something with oil here and fry it, it's too much if you use 5 spoons of oil. When people in the US fry something in oil, they pour at least a gallon in the pot, and call it "good food" afterwards.

It's just such a reverse culture shock when you come back to the EU. I'm really glad I don't live in the US anymore. It was so exhausting having to buy whole foods and things without peanut, corn/maple, oil or sugar in it.

It's like 99% of processed food is made out of waste of those industries, can't explain it otherwise because it doesn't make sense to me. You have really great vegetables and fruits there because of having enough sun to grow them locally, yet it seems like nobody wants to eat them.

replies(5): >>jacobt+Lp >>foobar+8y >>SkyPun+oS >>93po+Fn1 >>t-3+Yo2
29. buelle+qn[view] [source] 2026-01-12 14:51:20
>>dizlex+(OP)
The evidence is the future event/state/action that proves or disproves the prediction.
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30. buelle+Zn[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:53:48
>>fellow+P1
Capitalism creates these monstrous corpo-organisms, and while we have found one way to strangle "Big Processed Food" this article shows that BPF has a will to survive.
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31. wil421+yo[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:56:26
>>wtcact+bk
What kind place were you eating at the puts sauce on steak? Are you complaining about a BBQ restaurant, they are notoriously unhealthy.
replies(2): >>wtcact+hr >>ceejay+3T
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32. hyperp+8p[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 14:59:05
>>Edman2+4g
Destroying a product is a well understood process, and we've witnessed many big companies do it. That's evidence!

Designing a food to be more appealing is also a relatively well understood process that is already carried out, but Ozempic seems to blunt the effectiveness of it.

Food companies will surely try to make food that is appealing for Ozempic users, and will do so if they can. But it is a massive assumption that they will be able to, given that they're already doing as much as possible to make food appealing to people.

So there is significant uncertainty that the food companies can do what the parent suggested they would do.

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33. jacobt+Lp[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 15:01:14
>>cookie+7m
>How do citizens of the US tolerate this?

Tolerate what, stupid misleading advertising on frozen junk food? Normal people just don’t buy it.

>I also don't understand why everything, literally everything, is fried in oil.

Did you travel here and only go to fast food places or something?

>It's just such a reverse culture shock when you come back to the EU.

When I traveled to EU, I was surprised at the number of nasty people smoking cigarettes outside at cafes, walking down the street, everywhere. You’d sure think that a lot of younger people don’t care about their health in EU based on all the smoking.

>You have really great vegetables and fruits there because of having enough sun to grow them locally, yet it seems like nobody wants to eat them.

That’s a weird assumption because the produce section of my grocery store is pretty much the most crowded section.

replies(1): >>rootus+rs2
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34. bmicra+Cq[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 15:05:43
>>oklaho+A6
Truly spoken like someone who's never been out of their region.
replies(1): >>bobsmo+JF1
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35. wtcact+hr[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 15:08:43
>>wil421+yo
One of those places, was a very fancy restaurant in Washington DC, with photos of presidents dining there hung on its walls.

So, let’s not act like it’s not something normal there. These sugary sauces are everywhere in the USA. From low level to high level eating places.

replies(1): >>t-3+iq2
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36. elil17+Ds[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 15:16:56
>>notdan+y7
I don't really understand how this is big food "winning against GLP-1 agonists."

Aren't they just selling healthier meals with smaller portion sizes?

replies(1): >>gpt5+tK
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37. rjdj37+Jx[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 15:41:30
>>wtcact+bk
All of the things you described are available, that's true, but any major supermarket, even in rural areas, will have plenty of healthier options available as well.

Take bread for example. Sure there will be some crappy sliced white bread on the shelf. But there will also be organic sprouted 7-grain high fiber next to it. In fact, there will probably be more healthy varieties available than just about any other country.

replies(1): >>SkyPun+dT
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38. foobar+8y[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 15:43:19
>>cookie+7m
That's funny, I feel I had the opposite experience going into EU. Maybe it's regional? Anyway we were eating out a bunch around Slovenia and menus had a lot of "mixed meat" "fried cheese" type foods and servers would look at you funny if you wanted just vegetables. I got the vibe that they felt like they were letting you down if they didn't offer you their best meat so maybe it's a cultural leftover from hungrier times
replies(2): >>zoidb+tt1 >>u8080+Lq3
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39. gpt5+tK[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 16:31:13
>>elil17+Ds
They are eating healthier, the above is not at all evidence for the original claim.

All research on GLP-1 diet changes shows that people on GLP-1 naturally shift away from junk snacks, soda, and fast food. With a significant increase in high protein food, especially "mushy" one like yogurt and cottage.

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40. vinter+FO[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 16:48:22
>>hyperp+38
It IS OK. You're on.
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41. vinter+CP[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 16:52:14
>>broken+R5
I think if there were certain foods which, for some reason, aren't as affected by Ozempic-type drugs' (GLP-1 agonists?) appetite suppression effect - and I'm not an expert, but I totally wouldn't be surprised if there was - then I think the food industry would be very interested in finding them.
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42. vinter+0Q[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 16:53:46
>>delfin+N3
But will medical regulation be an obstacle? All sorts of laws feel like they aren't the protection they used to be.
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43. vinter+BQ[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 16:56:05
>>semiqu+gk
Fair enough. The ~trillion dollars also includes things which presumably wouldn't be affected by ozempic, like overpriced razors. But either way you look at it, it's probably going to move enough money to seriously hit the food industry.
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44. SkyPun+oS[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 17:03:23
>>cookie+7m
I've just learned to ignore everything that's not factual on a box. I'm basically flipping it over to read the ingredients.

Nutrition labels are hit or miss. Portions are pretty much a useless, arbitrary measure so I'm really just look at them to understand the general ratios.

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45. ceejay+3T[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 17:06:16
>>wil421+yo
> What kind place were you eating at the puts sauce on steak?

You've never had a steak au poivre or a red wine reduction?

Sauce is good enough for Ruth's Chris. https://ruthschris.net/blog/choose-best-entree-complement-st...

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46. SkyPun+dT[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 17:06:47
>>rjdj37+Jx
The options are there, but it can be exhausting to actually find them.

There are far too many products that try to position themselves as "healthy", but are closer to the rest of the crap on the shelves than actual "healthy" food. Even more frustrating is the insane amount of food now using sugar replacements to masquerade as a healthy option.

I personally, find it exhausting to shop at new stores because it can take looking at 2 to 5 items to find one that's actually made healthy.

replies(1): >>rjdj37+Gz2
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47. array_+ck1[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 19:20:41
>>XorNot+k9
Fiber mostly, but that's not an addictive, I guess that's a subtractive.

But think about, say, oranges. They naturally have fiber in them to make you feel more full and to slow the absorption of sugar. Then we remove all the fiber by juicing them, and now you can eat 6 oranges in 60 seconds, which is typically impossible or, at least, very uncomfortable.

It's the same story for the entire food industry. Whole foods are complex, we often zone in on some aspect of them and extract it, essentially concentrating it.

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48. 93po+Fn1[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 19:38:23
>>cookie+7m
i dont think nearly anyone in the US considers anything fried to be healthy.

i agree everything is very sugar-filled though, i think in part because of the misguided culture shift around everything needing to be fat free and manufacturers simply replaced fats with sugars

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49. zoidb+tt1[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 20:07:06
>>foobar+8y
It's more typical of that country and especially the balkans.
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50. bobsmo+JF1[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 21:02:37
>>bmicra+Cq
Name an ingredient and I guarantee I'll be able to find it in either walmart or walgreens.
replies(1): >>bmicra+qob
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51. spider+O22[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-12 23:44:48
>>nwiene+15
Every day another city or village in 4 different states. I won't go into everything I saw or noticed while staying there. HN doesn't like criticism of the US.
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52. t-3+Yo2[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 03:34:49
>>cookie+7m
> You have really great vegetables and fruits there because of having enough sun to grow them locally, yet it seems like nobody wants to eat them.

Most of the fruit and vegetables in the supermarket aren't grown locally, those are usually imported (and rarely from other US states, most from South America). Farmers markets have the local stuff.

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53. t-3+Rp2[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 03:45:20
>>wtcact+bk
> In Europe you don’t expect your bread to have added sugar, for instance.

Were you eating sweet bread meant for coffee or desserts and thinking it was for making a sandwich? Most breads use just enough sugar to rise the yeast.

> You also don’t normally expect sweeteners in your meat.

Were you eating barbecue, where the sauce is whole point? There is plenty of unsauced meat in the US. Any steakhouse will give you as much meat as you want without any sauce unless you pour it on yourself.

replies(1): >>ceejay+yp3
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54. t-3+iq2[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 03:50:25
>>wtcact+hr
Putting sauce on steak is blasphemy for a lot of people. It's not something normal unless it's the customer adding it to their own meat.
replies(1): >>ceejay+8p3
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55. rootus+rs2[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 04:19:14
>>jacobt+Lp
> Did you travel here and only go to fast food places or something

I attribute much of the weird slop like that post to bots or paid trolls driving an agenda. They say things that only really make sense in the online fantasy world.

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56. rjdj37+Gz2[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 06:02:16
>>SkyPun+dT
That's fair. If one follows the path of least resistance, you'll end up eating crap.
replies(1): >>spider+bE6
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57. SpicyL+sI2[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 07:44:21
>>Edman2+4g
It needs evidence that there's a general phenomenon of "hyperpalatable" food companies can search for, not just a latent property of how certain macronutrients balance in food. Otherwise, it's like proposing that public transit is pointless because car companies will somehow defeat it by making up more reasons to drive.
replies(1): >>Edman2+1p9
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58. ceejay+8p3[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 13:53:41
>>t-3+iq2
This is true for A1 or ketchup.

If you order a steak au poivre, it’s gonna have sauce.

replies(1): >>t-3+j54
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59. ceejay+yp3[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 13:56:07
>>t-3+Rp2
America hides sugar in everything. Plain old white sandwich bread often has loads of added sugar.

https://www.businessinsider.com/breads-high-in-sugar-2018-11

Sugar isn’t necessary for bread making. Yeast can break down the starch. That’s what it evolved to do. Flour, water, yeast, salt, done.

replies(1): >>t-3+9Y3
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60. u8080+Lq3[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 14:03:40
>>foobar+8y
This is Balkan stuff mainly, large portions with a lot of fatty meat. Puzzling to me how obesity rates are pretty moderate in those countries.
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61. t-3+9Y3[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 16:22:15
>>ceejay+yp3
> America hides sugar in everything. Plain old white sandwich bread often has loads of added sugar.

It's not hidden, it's on the label, and expected. I just don't buy garbage bread.

> Sugar isn’t necessary for bread making. Yeast can break down the starch. That’s what it evolved to do. Flour, water, yeast, salt, done.

That usually means that malt is added to the flour (most bread flour). You can get breads without added sugar or malt, but you're going to have to go to a bakery that makes their own dough and buys flour without additives, which is getting rarer and rarer.

replies(1): >>ceejay+Sa5
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62. t-3+j54[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 16:47:53
>>ceejay+8p3
French food having sugary sauces has nothing to do with American food having too much sugar though, and I'd wager 99% of the US has never heard of steak au poivre. We may know of pepper steak, but that doesn't always have sauce.
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63. ceejay+Sa5[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-13 20:49:21
>>t-3+9Y3
> It's not hidden, it's on the label

Potato, potahtoe. It's not quite "beware of the leopard" territory, but folks here remain quite surprised at how much sugar is added to their bread.

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64. spider+bE6[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-14 07:40:29
>>rjdj37+Gz2
...in the USA. On the path of least resistance in Europe, you can still eat healthy. And you don't have to take the car.
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65. Edman2+1p9[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-14 21:41:01
>>SpicyL+sI2
But that's what happened. I mean, it doesn't mean that proposing public transit is pointless, but if someone in 1930 heard about a trolley track being run in town and another person said "it's only a matter of time before the car companies try to sabotage mass transit", they would've been right. That's what actually happened.
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66. bmicra+qob[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-15 12:43:50
>>bobsmo+JF1
You can't even get half the cheese ww have here
replies(1): >>bobsmo+9Oc
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67. bobsmo+9Oc[view] [source] [discussion] 2026-01-15 18:39:52
>>bmicra+qob
Again, name an ingredient. If it's not in walmart it'll be in whole foods.
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