Ultra-processed foods contain ingredients that are “never or rarely used in home cooking or types of additives that make dishes taste better or more appealing.”
According to CNN, in a statement, Helen Croker, Assistant Director of Research and Policy at the World Cancer Research Fund, which funded the study, stated: “What is particularly important in this research is that consuming a high amount of ultra-processed foods, especially animal products and sugary drinks, is associated with an increased risk of developing cancer along with other conditions such as stroke or diabetes.”
However, the increased risk is very modest, said Tom Sanders, Emeritus Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics at King’s College London, who did not participate in the study.
Sanders remarked: “This study warns of a 9% increase in disease risk associated with higher consumption of ultra-processed foods.”
“The food intake was measured through a questionnaire a long time ago. This is significant because dietary patterns have changed quite dramatically over the past 25 years, with more foods being eaten out and more ultra-processed foods being purchased,” Sanders noted.
Nutrition researcher Ian Johnson, an honorary member at the Quadram Institute Bioscience in Norwich, UK, stated that while this study could not convincingly prove that ultra-processed foods directly cause many diseases, numerous other studies have indicated a link between certain types of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and health harms. He did not participate in the study.
“Along with all the other scientific evidence, it is quite likely that some types of ultra-processed foods increase the risk of later diseases, either because they are directly harmful or because they replace healthier foods such as vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, and olive oil,” Johnson explained.
Heinz Freisling, a nutrition and metabolism scientist at the International Agency for Research on Cancer and co-author of the study, remarked: “The findings of this study are concerning because in Europe, ultra-processed foods account for ‘more than half of daily food intake.’ In the US, a 2019 study estimated that about 71% of the food supply could be ultra-processed foods.”
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, ultra-processed foods contain ingredients that are “never or rarely used in home cooking or types of additives that make dishes taste better or more appealing.”
Consuming many ultra-processed foods increases the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.
The category of additives includes preservatives to prevent mold and bacteria; emulsifiers to stabilize incompatible ingredients, for example, two immiscible liquids mixed together; colorants and artificial dyes; anti-foaming agents, leavening agents, bleaching agents, gelling agents, and glazing agents; adding or altering sugar, salt, and fats to make dishes more appealing.
Not All Ultra-Processed Foods Are Harmful
A study published on November 13 in The Lancet gathered dietary information from 266,666 men and women from 7 European countries from 1992 to 2000.
Over the course of 11 years, researchers tracked participants to see who developed various chronic diseases, including cancer.
When participating in the study, each individual was asked to recall what they typically ate in the past 12 months, and researchers classified foods according to the NOVA food classification system. This system considers nutrients as well as how the food is made.
Duane Mellor, a nutrition expert and senior lecturer at Aston University Medical School in Birmingham, UK, stated: “To estimate this, researchers had to break foods down into many different components to try to determine whether they were ultra-processed or not,” Mellor did not participate in the study.
Reynalda Córdova, a postdoctoral researcher in pharmaceutical sciences, nutrition, and sports at the University of Vienna and the lead author of the study, noted that when ultra-processed foods were examined in smaller groups, not all were linked to the development of chronic diseases.
Córdova mentioned: “While certain groups, such as animal products and sugary drinks, are associated with an increased risk of some diseases, other groups, such as ‘ultra-processed’ bread and cereals or plant-based alternatives, showed no link to the aforementioned risks.”
“Our study emphasizes that it is not necessary to completely avoid ultra-processed foods; instead, we should limit consumption and prioritize fresh or minimally processed foods,” Freisling, co-author of the study, stated.
According to the NOVA classification, foods can be categorized into groups: unprocessed (fruits, vegetables, nuts, eggs, meat), minimally processed (dried, sterilized, cooked, frozen), processed (preserved vegetables, canned fish, cheese), and ultra-processed. Ultra-processed foods, as defined by NOVA, are foods that have undergone multiple processing stages, many of which cannot be performed at home but are done in factories: hydrogenation, molding…, not using common cooking seasonings (oils, salt, sugar) but industrial products (artificial sweeteners, hydrolyzed protein, hydrogenated oils, and emulsifiers). Ultimately, ultra-processed foods often come in attractive packaging and are sold under aggressive marketing campaigns. |
