Eat large amounts in ultra-processed foods increases your risk of being diagnosed with multimorbidity or having multiple chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer, according to a new study.
“What is particularly significant in this large study is that consuming more ultra-processed foods, in particular animal products and sugary drinkswas associated with an increased risk of developing cancer alongside another disease, such as stroke or diabetes,” said Helen Croker, assistant director of research and policy at the World Cancer Research Fund International, who financed the study, in a statement.
However, the increased risk was modest, said Tom Sanders, professor emeritus of nutrition and dietetics at King’s College London, who was not involved in the study.
“This paper reports a 9% increase in the risk of multimorbidity associated with higher intake of ultra-processed foods,” Sanders said.
“Food intake was measured by a questionnaire on one occasion a long time ago. This is important because eating patterns have changed markedly over the last twenty-five years, with more food consumed away from home and more ready-to-eat food being purchased,” said Sanders.
Although the study cannot conclusively prove that ultra-processed foods are the direct cause of multiple diseases, much other research has shown a connection between certain ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and health harm, said nutrition researcher Ian Johnson, a research scientist. emeritus of the Quadram Institute Bioscience in Norwich, United Kingdom. He is not involved in the study.
“Considering all other scientific evidence, it is very likely that some types of UPF increase the risk of later diseases, either because they are directly harmful or because they replace healthier foods, such as vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, olive oils, etc.,” he said. Johnson in a statement.
The study’s findings are worrying because in Europe ultra-processed foods constitute “more than half of our daily food intake,” said co-author Heinz Freisling, a nutrition and metabolism scientist at the International Agency for Research on Cancer, in a statement. . In the United States, a 2019 study estimated that around 71% of the food supply can be ultra-processed.
Ultra-processed foods contain ingredients “never or rarely used in kitchens, or classes of additives whose function is to make the final product palatable or more attractive”, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
The list of additives includes preservatives to resist mold and bacteria; emulsifiers to prevent separation of incompatible ingredients; artificial dyes and dyes; antifoaming, bulking, whitening, gelling and coating agents; and adding or altering sugar, salt, and fats designed to make foods more appealing.
Not all ultra-processed foods were harmful
The study, published Monday in The Lancet, collected dietary information from 266,666 men and women from seven European countries between 1992 and 2000. Researchers followed participants for 11 years to see who developed various chronic diseases, including cancer.
As they entered the study, each person was asked to recall what they typically ate over the past 12 months, and researchers categorized the foods by NOVA classification systemwhich goes beyond nutrients and addresses the way food is produced.
“To estimate this, researchers had to break down foods into different ingredients to try to figure out whether they were ultra-processed or not,” said Duane Mellor, a registered dietitian and senior lecturer at Aston Medical School in Birmingham, UK. Mellor was not involved in the study.
“This approach, especially since the food data is up to 30 years old, could make this type of interpretation of historical data using a modern definition open to error,” Mellor said in a statement.
When ultra-processed foods were examined by subgroups, not all appeared to be associated with the development of multiple chronic conditions, said lead author Reynalda Córdova, a postdoctoral student in pharmaceutical, nutritional and sports sciences at the University of Vienna.
“While certain groups, such as animal products and artificially sweetened and sugar-containing beverages, have been associated with an increased risk, other groups, such as ultra-processed breads and cereals or plant-based alternative products, have shown no association with risk.” , Córdova said in a statement.
“Our study emphasizes that it is not necessary to completely avoid ultra-processed foods: instead, their consumption should be limited and preference should be given to fresh or minimally processed foods,” said co-author Freisling in a statement.
Source: CNN Brasil
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