A study published in the December 2022 issue of Department of Neurology, JAMAwhich followed 10,775 people over 10 years, found that higher consumption of ultra-processed foods was associated with lower cognitive function.
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Although it does not indicate a causal relationship and factors such as socioeconomic status and education should be considered, there is a strong link between ultra-processed foods and health problems such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and type 2 diabetes. Health Dietitian Rosemary Stanton, Ph.D.
In addition to their inflammatory effects, ultra-processed foods are generally low in fiber and have a soft texture that requires little chewing, adds Stanton.
They are consumed in excess, are usually cheap (although oats are more affordable than many highly processed cereals, for example), and are often absorbed differently by our bodies. “An obvious example is how the way bread is made alters the way it is digested and its nutrients are absorbed,” she explains. That means the dough will rise in about five minutes, whereas traditional bread making with yeast takes several hours to rise.”
These various processes change the structure of the starch in the bread, affecting how it is absorbed by the body and how quickly glucose is released into the bloodstream.
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Lack of safety studies many Food additives are another matter. “Although the additives have been tested individually, there have been no studies of whether combinations of additives are problematic,” says Stanton, a senior visiting researcher at the University of New South Wales School of Medicine. Processed foods typically contain large amounts of additives.”
Jeyaparan agrees. “The combination of fats, sugars, all additives, thickeners, emulsifiers… what are we doing to someone’s body as a whole rather than the individual ingredients we pull out? [and test]?”
The effects of ultra-processed foods are, in many respects, still unknown, she added. food-induced inflammation diminishes the overall positive effects of food?
There are both known and unknown concerns about the mass consumption of ultra-processed foods, Jeyaparan says, especially when young children have grown up eating these foods. “Are we putting them off from having a healthy start in life?”
The question is how to minimize these foods. health wash?
The answer is not in the processed food nutrition panel. “By focusing only on nutrients, you can add a little bit of fiber to something that doesn’t naturally contain fiber, so you can unintentionally promote ultra-processed foods, which boosts Health Star ratings,” Jeyaparan explains. To do.
Current labels that make it difficult to decipher all the different names of sugar are also useless because added sugar is not distinguished from naturally occurring sugar. Although opposed, it is supported by public health experts, including both Jayapalan and Stanton.
Ultimately, policy changes are needed to help people, especially the most vulnerable. “We really need to think about addressing food-related issues as a fundamental problem and reducing barriers to health for marginalized groups,” says Jeyaparan.
But as individuals trying to navigate confusing labels and minimize ultra-processed foods, there are things we can do.
Jeyapalan just look at the first three items on the product’s ingredient list.
“Are you aware they are whole foods? So whole apples or apple extracts or concentrates? Are oils the first, not whole foods?”
For years, Stanton has advised people to read ingredient lists:
“Years before Michael Pollan, if the ingredient list was long and included things you couldn’t pronounce or things your grandmother never heard of, you wouldn’t buy the product, or at least rarely. I told people it was probably for the best.”
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