That's just one of pollan's "rules". Taken out of context, I agree. Put it in context with the others where he suggests, for example "Stay out of the middle of the supermarket; shop on the perimeter of the store. Real food tends to be on the outer edge of the store near the loading docks, where it can be replaced with fresh foods when it goes bad" (or...to paraphrase...eat fresh foods)...and it's fine.
I also think his "rules" can be somewhat hyperbolic. It's not "anything" with more than 5 ingredients....as, for example, a great hot n sour soup has WAY more than that. Holistically his rules would be...understand what you're eating..eat less processed food...eat mostly plants, etc.
I also think his "rules" can be somewhat hyperbolic. It's not "anything" with more than 5 ingredients....as, for example, a great hot n sour soup has WAY more than that. Holistically his rules would be...understand what you're eating..eat less processed food...eat mostly plants, etc.