According to the world’s largest scientific review, the consumption of ultra-processed foods can cause harm to major organs.
A new series of studies published in “The Lancet” revealed just how harmful ultra-processed foods are, and now experts are sounding the alarm for global change.
“The first paper in this Lancet series indicates that ultra-processed foods harm every major organ system in the human body,” Prof Carlos Monteiro, professor of public health nutrition at the University of São Paulo, told The Guardian. “ The evidence strongly suggests that humans are not biologically adapted to consume them.”
According to Johns Hopkins, ultra-processed foods (UPF) are items that have “have one or more ingredients that wouldn’t be found in a kitchen, like chemical-based preservatives, emulsifiers like hydrogenated oils, sweeteners like high fructose corn syrup, and artificial colors and flavors.” This includes items such as energy drinks, sliced bread, hot dogs, etc. And while UPFs are increasingly common in most Americans’ diets, these foods are especially prevalent in the diets of lower-income households.
The other two papers in the series explore the regulations surrounding UPFs, proposing policies be enacted to reduce the production, marketing and consumption of these ultra-processed foods. However, the study found that the spike in UPF consumption is not a result of poor individual choices, but rather global corporations. According to the study’s authors this category for food is leading cause of the growing “chronic disease pandemic.”
“The growing consumption of ultra-processed foods is reshaping diets worldwide, displacing fresh and minimally processed foods and meals,” Monteiro noted. “This change in what people eat is fueled by powerful global corporations who generate huge profits by prioritizing ultra-processed products, supported by extensive marketing and political lobbying to stop effective public health policies to support healthy eating.”
The study’s co-author, Dr Phillip Baker, from the University of Sydney, told BBC that the resolution to this issue is “a strong global public health response – like the coordinated efforts to challenge the tobacco industry.”
However, the study has limitations. The review notes a lack of clinical trials that show precisely how UPFs damage consumers’ health. Similarly, critics and fellow industry professionals, like Prof. Kevin McConway from Open University, explained that these findings show “a correlation …but can’t be certain about cause and effect.”
“It seems to me likely that at least some UPFs could cause increases in the risk of some chronic diseases,” he told BBC, adding that there is still “room for doubt and for clarification from further research.”
