Ultraprocessed Food Consumption and Early Death

A study shows that eating a lot of highly processed foods is likely causing a significant number of early deaths around the world. First, a dose–response meta-analysis of observational cohort studies was performed to assess the association between ultraprocessed food consumption and all-cause mortality. Then, an estimation was made for how many early deaths in eight countries could be connected to eating these foods. The countries were chosen to represent low (Colombia and Brazil), medium (Chile and Mexico), and high (Australia, Canada, the UK, and the U.S.) levels of ultraprocessed food consumption. The meta-analysis showed a linear dose–response association between the ultraprocessed food consumption and all-cause mortality. For every 10% increase in ultraprocessed food in the diet, the risk of death rose by 3%. Based on this, the study estimated that ultraprocessed foods may be responsible for between 4% (in Colombia) and 14% (in the UK and U.S.) of early deaths in the countries studied. Highly processed foods are taking up a bigger and bigger share of what people eat around the world. The findings support that ultraprocessed food intake contributes significantly to the overall burden of disease and death, and its reduction should be a priority for national health recommendations and public health policies. Source: https://www.ajpmonline.org/