Recently, researchers from two large European studies have found new evidence that eating highly processed foods is linked to high risks of heart disease and death.
They call for policies that encourage people to eat fresh or minimally processed foods over highly processed foods.
Highly processed foods include packaged baked goods and snacks, fizzy drinks, sugary cereals, ready meals containing food additives, dehydrated vegetable soups, and reconstituted meat and fish products.
These foods often have high levels of added sugar, fat, and salt, but they lack essential vitamins and fiber.
They may contribute to about 25-60% of daily energy intake in many countries.
Previous studies have found ultra-processed foods are linked to higher risks of obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and some cancers.
In the first study, a team based in France and Brazil examined the link between ultra-processed foods and risk of heart disease and stroke.
They examined 105,159 French people with an average age of 43 years.
These people completed an average of six 24-hour dietary questionnaires to measure usual intake of 3,300 different food items.
The team found that a 10% increase in the proportion of ultra-processed food in the diet was linked to about 12% increased rates of coronary heart disease and stroke.
In contrast, eating unprocessed or minimally processed foods was linked to lower risks of these diseases.
In the second study, a team based in Spain examined the link between ultra-processed food intake and risk of death from any cause.
They tested 19,899 Spanish university graduates with an average age of 38 years. These people completed a 136-item dietary questionnaire.
The researchers found that higher eating of ultra-processed foods (more than 4 servings per day) was linked to a 62% increased risk of death compared with lower eating (less than 2 servings per day).
For each additional daily serving of ultra-processed food, death risk increased by 18%.
Both studies confirm highly processed foods are linked with poor health and that lifestyle and dietary habits play important roles in people’s health.
Policies that limit ultra-processed foods in the diet and promote unprocessed foods are needed to improve global public health.
Further work needs to better understand these effects, and a direct (causal) link remains to be established.
The two studies are published in The BMJ and The BMJ.
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