Processed food has a bad reputation as a diet saboteur. It's blamed for our nation's obesity epidemic, high blood pressure and the prevalence of Type 2 diabetes. But processed food is more than boxed macaroni and cheese, potato chips and drive-thru hamburgers. It may be a surprise to learn that whole-wheat bread, homemade soup or a chopped apples are also processed foods.

While some processed foods should be consumed with caution, many actually have a place in a balanced diet. Here's how to sort the nutritious from the not-so-nutritious.

"We have to determine what processed really means when we're talking about processed food," says Andrea Giancoli, registered dietitian and past spokesperson of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. For example, Giancoli considers white bread refined since most of the healthy fiber has been removed during the processing. "It's also processed, but keep in mind, that as a cook you're doing processing yourself. Have you ever heard of something called a food processor? I think we get really caught up in the word processed without realizing what it truly means."

Processed food can be beneficial to your diet. Milk and juices are sometimes fortified with calcium and vitamin D, and breakfast cereal may have added fiber. Canned fruit (packed in water or its own juice) is a good option when fresh fruit is not available. Some minimally processed food, such as pre-cut vegetables, are quality convenience foods for busy people.

Eating processed food in moderation is fine, but consumers should be on the lookout for hidden sugar, sodium and fat.

"We have tons of added sugars in our food supply," says Giancoli. "We think that just because a product says 'organic' or 'natural,' that means it's better and healthier for us, but that's not always the case — whether [a product] has added high-fructose corn syrup or natural cane sugar, we need to be wary of both."

Sugar isn't just hidden in processed sweets. It's added to bread to give it an appealing browned hue, and there's often a surprising amount added to jarred pasta sauces and cereal. The number of carbohydrates on the nutrition label also includes naturally occurring sugars, which may be a significant amount in foods such as yogurt and fruit. Instead, review a product's ingredients list and look for added sugars among the first two or three ingredients including sugar, maltose, brown sugar, corn syrup, cane sugar, honey and fruit juice concentrate.

When it comes to sodium, another ingredient found in heavily processed foods, most canned vegetables, soups and sauces have added sodium, which enhances taste and texture and acts as a preservative. We need some sodium, but we often consume much more than the Dietary Guidelines for Americans' recommendation of less than 2,300 milligrams a day.

Surprisingly, a heavy hand with table salt may not be to blame for our overconsumption of sodium. "Three quarters of our sodium intake comes from processed foods," says Giancoli. "Only 20 or 25 percent of it comes from salting our food. The salt shaker is not the major problem."

Q AND A

Q: Is it true that you get more nutrients from cooked carrots than raw ones?

A: Yes, but you still get plenty of nutrients from raw carrots. Cooking, especially prolonged boiling, does reduce the vitamin content of vegetables. But carotenoids, such as the beta carotene in carrots are more readily available when vegetables are cooked or processed (such as chopped or pureed). Cooking and processing help release the carotenoids, which are bound to the cell wall "matrix" of the vegetables. The same is true of tomatoes. Studies have found that people consuming an ounce or two of tomato paste ended up with more than twice as much lycopene (another carotenoid) in their blood as when they ate much larger amounts of fresh tomatoes. Once for once, processed tomato products (such as sauce, paste or juice) contain 2 to 10 times as much available lycopene as fresh tomatoes. However, for most vegetables, especially those rich in vitamin C, it's best to keep heating to a minimum - steam them quickly or microwave them to preserve the most vitamins. IN the end, it doesn't matter much - raw or cooked - you can't go wrong with vegetables. - University of California, Berkeley Wellness Letter.

RECIPE

In the kitchen, fall means squash, apples and all things pumpkin. This recipe for Roasted Acorn Squash with Cider Drizzle, from Eating Well magazine, celebrates fall's flavors.

Roasted Acorn Squash with Cider Drizzle

1 medium acorn squash (about 1 3/4 pounds)

1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 cups apple cider

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

1 1 3-inch cinnamon stick

3-5 whole cloves

2 teaspoons butter

Preheat oven to 400 F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Cut each half in half again lengthwise. Brush the cut sides of the squash with oil and season with salt and pepper. Place the squash, cut-side down, on the prepared baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes, turn the squash over so the opposite cut side is down, and continue roasting until tender, 15 to 20 minutes more. Meanwhile, combine cider, brown sugar, cinnamon stick and cloves to taste in a small saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced to a thin, syrupy glaze, 20 to 25 minutes. (Watch carefully toward the end to prevent burning.) Remove from the heat and discard the cinnamon stick and cloves. Stir in butter until melted. Serve the roasted squash with the cider drizzle. Makes: 4 servings.

Per serving: 209 calories, 2 g protein, 47 g carbohydrates, 3 g fat, 5 mg cholesterol, 9 g fiber, 154 mg sodium.

Charlyn Fargo is a registered dietitian at Hy-Vee in Springfield, Ill., and the media representative for the Illinois Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. For comments or questions, contact her at charfarg@aol.com or follow her on Twitter @Nutrition Rd. To find out more about Charlyn Fargo and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.