Foods that make up more than half of the typical British diet are fuelling the risk of cancer, diabetes and early death, a major study has suggested.
uncertain
study → make → cancer
Scientists found that every additional 100g of ultra-processed food (UPF) eaten each day was linked to a 14 per cent higher risk of a major heart event, a four per cent higher risk of cancer and a three per cent increased risk of dying from any cause.
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g → find → cause
UPFs include everything from crisps, biscuits and sweets to breakfast cereals, sliced bread and ready meals – which studies suggest account for around 54 per cent of the calories eaten by UK adults, rising to 64 per cent among children and 68 per cent among teenagers.
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studies → include → teenagers
And the dangers appeared to mount among those with the most UPF-heavy diets.
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dangers → appear → diets
Compared with those who ate the least, the biggest consumers were around a quarter more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke, become obese or experience anxiety or depression.
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consumers → compare → anxiety
They also faced a 31 per cent higher risk of digestive problems and were around a fifth more likely to die early.
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They → face → problems
Additive-laden foods such as crisps and sweets have been vilified for decades over their supposed risks, with dozens of studies linking them to type 2 diabetes and other diseases
The study, published in the BMJ journal Family Medicine and Community Health, pooled findings from 51 studies involving more than eight million people aged between 23 and 77 across North America, Europe, Asia and Oceania.
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study → lade → America
Some participants were tracked for up to 32 years, with their diets assessed using questionnaires and food diaries.
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diets → track → questionnaires
Researchers compared their UPF intake with their risk of developing a range of conditions, including high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, cancer, diabetes, digestive diseases, obesity, depression and anxiety, as well as dying from any cause.
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Researchers → compare → cause
They found a clear pattern: the more UPFs people ate, the greater their risk of ill health.
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people → find → health
For every ten per cent increase in the proportion of UPFs in a person's diet, their risk of diabetes rose by 16 per cent.
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risk → rise → cent
The researchers concluded: 'Our findings suggest reducing consumption of UPFs and replacing them with minimally processed alternatives could help prevent chronic disease and reduce the burden on health services.'
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reducing → conclude → services
They said global consumption of UPFs has risen rapidly over the past two decades because the foods are often cheap, convenient and heavily marketed.
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foods → say → decades
Scientists believe several mechanisms could explain the apparent link with ill health.
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mechanisms → believe → health
Many UPFs are high in sugar and salt and low in fibre, while emerging evidence suggests combinations of additives may have a 'cocktail effect', potentially disrupting gut bacteria, increasing inflammation and affecting the body's ability to regulate blood sugar.
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combinations → emerge → sugar
Compounds formed during processing may also play a role.
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Compounds → form → role
One example is acrylamide, a chemical produced when starchy foods are cooked at high temperatures and found in foods including crisps, chips and biscuits.
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foods → produce → crisps
The researchers said it has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease.
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it → say → disease
However, the authors stressed that their findings do not prove UPFs directly cause disease.
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UPFs → stress → disease
Many of the studies relied on people accurately recalling and reporting what they ate, while other differences between those who consume large and small amounts of UPF – including income, education, exercise and alcohol consumption – could also influence their health.
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who → rely → health
Professor Gunter Kuhnle, a food scientist at the University of Reading who was not involved in the research, said: 'Measuring food intake is notoriously difficult, as people are often not very good at remembering what they ate.
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they → involve → what
'Estimating UPF intake is even more difficult because the definition is not always clear, with some breads for example not being ultra-processed, while supermarket loaves generally are.'
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loaves → estimate → example
He added that a high UPF intake could be a marker of other poor dietary choices and that the study cannot prove cause and effect.
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study → add → cause
The NHS advises people to eat a balanced diet based largely on fruit and vegetables, beans, pulses, fish, eggs and other sources of protein, while choosing higher-fibre starchy carbohydrates such as wholegrain bread, pasta and rice where possible.
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NHS → advise → bread
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