LONDON – Eating junk foods — which scientists often call ultra-processed foods — including sugary drinks, sliced bread and convenience foods can increase your cancer risk with every bite. A new study warns that these foods are typically high in salt, fat, sugar and contain artificial additives and can also lead to obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. They are often cheaper, more convenient to purchase, and heavily marketed compared to other healthier options. Now researchers say they may increase the risk of death from cancer, especially in women.
“The average person in the UK consumes more than half of their daily energy intake from ultra-processed foods. This is exceptionally high and concerning, as ultra-processed foods are produced with industrially sourced ingredients and often use food additives to adjust color, flavor, consistency, texture or extend shelf life,” says the study’s first author, Dr Kiara Chang of Imperial College London School of public health in a press release.
“Our bodies may not react to these ultra-processed ingredients and additives in the same way as they do to fresh, nutritious minimally processed foods. However, ultra-processed foods are everywhere and heavily marketed with cheap prices and attractive packaging to encourage consumption This shows that our food environment needs urgent reform to protect people from ultra-processed foods.
Ultra-processed foods significantly increase cancers in women
The researchers used UK Biobank records to gather their data. They studied the diets of 200,000 middle-aged adults, monitoring their health over 10 years and looking at each person’s overall risk of developing cancer, as well as the specific risk of developing 34 different types of cancer.
The team also looked at the risk of people dying from cancer. The study finds that higher consumption of ultra-processed foods shows a link with a higher risk of developing cancer in general, while putting people at particular risk for ovarian and brain cancers. Eating too much junk food has also been shown to be linked to an increased risk of dying from cancer, including ovarian and breast cancers.
For every 10% increase in ultra-processed foods in a person’s diet, there was a 2% increase in the incidence of cancer in general and 19% of ovarian cancer in particular. For adults, the more they ate these ultra-processed foods, the higher their risk of developing obesity and type 2 diabetes.
These associations remained even after adjusting for a range of socioeconomic, behavioral and dietary factors, such as smoking status, physical activity and body mass index (BMI). The Imperial College London team previously reported that consumption levels of ultra-processed foods in the UK are the highest in Europe for adults and children.
“We need clear front-of-package warning labels for ultra-processed foods”
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations have previously recommended restricting ultra-processed foods as part of a healthy and sustainable diet. Efforts are currently being made to reduce the consumption of ultra-processed foods around the world.
Countries like Brazil, France and Canada have updated their national dietary guidelines with recommendations to limit these foods. Brazil has also banned the marketing of ultra-processed foods in schools.
“We need clear front-of-package warning labels for ultra-processed foods to help consumers choose, and our sugar tax should be extended to cover ultra-processed soft drinks. , fruit and milk-based beverages, and other ultra-processed products. products,” adds Dr. Chang.
“Low-income households are particularly vulnerable to these cheap and unhealthy ultra-processed foods. Minimally processed, freshly prepared meals should be subsidized to ensure everyone has access to healthy, nutritious and affordable options.
“This study adds to the growing evidence that ultra-processed foods are likely to have a negative impact on our health, including our risk of cancer. Given the high levels of consumption among adults and children in the UK, this has important implications for future health outcomes,” says lead author Dr Eszter Vamos from the School of Public Health at Imperial College London.
“Although our study cannot prove causation, other available evidence shows that reducing ultra-processed foods in our diets may provide important health benefits. Further research is needed to confirm these findings and understand the best public health strategies to reduce the widespread presence and harms of ultra-processed foods in our diets.
The study is published in the journal ECMedicineClinical.
South West News Service editor Alice Clifford contributed to this report.
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