Ultraprocessed Food Intake Tied To Higher Cardiovascular and All-Cause Mortality
Ultra-processed food Intake Tied To Higher Cardiovascular and All-Cause Mortality
“Ultraprocessed food (UPF) “intake was associated with higher cardiovascular and all-cause mortality rates for people with type 2 diabetes” (T2D), “regardless of the nutritional quality of the rest of their diet,” investigators concluded in findings were published online ahead of print in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. To reach this conclusion, researchers “conducted a prospective observational cohort study to evaluate the connections between UPF consumption and mortality among 1,065 participants with type 2 diabetes who completed a 188-item food frequency questionnaire.”
Background food
Objectives
Methods
Results food ultraprocessed
Conclusions
Ultra-processed foods, also referred to as ultra-processed food products (UPP), is a category of the NOVA food classification that has been proposed to categorise foods according to the degree of food processing. Epidemiological data suggests that ultra-processed food intake can increase the risk of certain diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes and cancer. Some countries have introduced dietary recommendations and other measures to reduce ultra-processed food intake. Some studies consider ultra-processed foods to have higher environmental impacts than fresh foods.
The concept of ultra-processed foods is not universally accepted and is currently discussed among nutrition and public health scientists. Key criticisms are the ambiguity of the definition and the inclusion of foods in the category that are considered healthy under the nutrient profile system.
NOVA food classification
The NOVA (a name, not an acronym) food classification system that was initially developed by the Brazilian nutrition researcher Carlos Monteiro, with his team at the Center for Epidemiological Research in Nutrition and Health (NUPENS) at the University of São Paulo, Brazil. It is based on the assumption that food processing is more relevant for health than individual foods or nutrients. NOVA categorises foods into four categories:
- Unprocessed or minimally processed foods
- Processed culinary ingredients
- Processed foods
- Ultra processed food and drink products
Processing as such is essential, and virtually all food is processed in some way. The term ultra-processing refers to the processing of industrial ingredients derived from foods, for example by extruding, moulding, re-shaping, hydrogenation, and hydrolysis. Ultra-processed foods generally also include additives such as preservatives, sweeteners, sensory enhancers, colourants, flavours, and processing aids, but little or no whole food. Infant formula and medical food are also considered ultra-processed. However, food additives are not necessarily a marker of ultra-processed foods as the use of preservatives, for example antioxidant or nitrite, are permitted for category 3.
The definition is currently not used by the European Food Safety Authority or the Food and Drug Administration for regulatory purposes.
Epidemiological data suggests that ultra-processed food intake can increase the risk of certain diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes and cancer and an approximately 20% higher risk of earlier death. A 2023 review found that high consumption of ultra-processed food is associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer.
Four Latin American countries—Brazil, Uruguay, Peru, and Ecuador—have so far published national official dietary guidelines that recommend avoiding ultra-processed foods. Chile has introduced a tax on ultra-processed foods.
https://www.diabetesasia.org/magazine/a-simple-guide-on-diabetes-and-the-ketogenic-diet-3/