About 14% of premature deaths in England attributable to unhealthy food, the most among surveyed countries

Consuming large amounts of ultra-processed food (UPF) increases the risk of an early death, according to a international study that has reignited calls for a crackdown on UPF.

Each 10% extra intake of UPF, such as bread, cakes and ready meals, increases someone’s risk of dying before they reach 75 by 3%, according to research in countries including the US and England.

UPF is so damaging to health that it is implicated in as many as one in seven of all premature deaths that occur in some countries, according to a paper in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

They are associated with 124,107 early deaths in the US a year and 17,781 deaths every year in England, the review of dietary and mortality data from eight countries found.

  • HellsBelle@sh.itjust.worksOPEnglish
    0·
    1 year ago

    There is no single definition of ultra-processed foods, but in general they contain ingredients not used in home cooking.

    Many are chemicals, colourings and sweeteners, used to improve the food’s appearance, taste or texture.

    Fizzy drinks, sweets and chicken nuggets are all examples. However, they can also include less obvious foods, including some breads, breakfast cereals and yoghurts.

    A product containing more than five ingredients is likely to be ultra-processed, according to public health expert Prof Maira Bes-Rastrollo of the University of Navarra in Spain.

    Ultra-processed foods are often high in salt, sugar and saturated fats. In the UK, look out for a “traffic light” label on the packaging.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/what_is_ultra-processed_food

    • atzanteol@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      3·
      1 year ago

      Thank you for the details - as you point out this is a functionally useless definition.

      It reeks of “You know what I mean - that bad stuff”. And that’s not a good scientific definition.

      A product containing more than five ingredients is likely to be ultra-processed

      Curry is “ultra-processed” - you heard it hear first.

      Like I said - “Sports are dangerous” is a very bad way to try to categorize risky activity. Golf and football are very different as are Curry and Twizzlers.

    • Scipitie@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      2·
      1 year ago

      In this reply you you talked about “some breads”, the OP Post only talks about bread - and that for sure had only ingredients in using at home.

      Same for French fries: potato, salt, fat .

      I’m with the poor downvoted fellow, I don’t understand where the risk comes from when it’s described this vague.

      Are home made burgers better? Is it the freezing process and I should lower my meal prep? Is it additives?

    • barsoap@lemm.eeEnglish
      1·
      1 year ago

      A product containing more than five ingredients is likely to be ultra-processed

      Ugh. No. That amounts to saying “anything that contains five spice is ultra-processed”. Why do you hate Chinese cuisine.

      The “not used in home cooking” rule of thumb is way better though you can certainly make absolutely filthy dishes at home. Home cooking also uses “chemicals, colouring and sweeteners”, and also home cooks care about appearance, taste, and texture.

      What I’d actually be interested in is comparing EU vs. US standards UPC. EU products use colourings such as red beet extract, beta-carotene, stabilisers, gelling agents etc. like guar gum or arrowroot, when they use fully synthetic stuff then it’s generally something actually found in nature. Companies add ascorbic acid as antioxidant, grandma added a splash of lemon juice, same difference really.

      A EU strawberry yoghurt which says “natural aroma” is shoddy, yes, you’re getting fewer strawberries and more strawberry aroma produced by fungi, but I’m rather sceptical when it comes to claims that it’s less healthy.