Eating ultra-processed foods may accelerate the onset of serious chronic diseases, with just 100 grams a day more increasing the risk of hypertension, cancer and mortality, a study published today in Neurology found.
Consuming more than 11 daily servings of industrial products with multiple processing steps, low in nutrients and rich in sugars, saturated fats, salt and additives is also linked to early signs of Parkinson’s disease, the authors stress.
The work, which will be presented next weekend at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology and the Singapore Cardiac Society, held this year in the Asian country, analyzed 41 prospective studies conducted in more than 8.2 million people worldwide.
Their findings conclude that an additional 100 grams per day of ultra-processed foods is associated with a 14.5 percent increase in the risk of hypertension, a 5.9 increase in cardiovascular events, a 1.2 increase in cancer, a 19.5 increase in digestive diseases, and a 2.6 percent increase in all-cause mortality. They also observed links to obesity, type 2 diabetes, depression and anxiety.
Ultraprocessed foods, as the name suggests, are industrial products with multiple processing steps, low in nutrients and rich in sugars, saturated fats, salt and additives.
Regular consumption of these foods can alter the gut microbiome, promote chronic inflammation, oxidative stress and insulin resistance, says Xiao Liu, a cardiologist at Sun Yat-sen Hospital in Guangzhou, China, and one of the authors of the study.
Other research shows that high consumption of ultra-processed foods may also be associated with an increased likelihood of early signs of Parkinson’s disease.
These early symptoms – such as sleep disorders, olfactory problems, daytime sleepiness, body pain or depression – can appear years or even decades before the disease is diagnosed.
The research included 42,853 people without Parkinson’s at the start of the study, with a follow-up of up to 26 years.
Those who consumed 11 or more daily servings of ultra-processed foods (equivalent, for example, to a can of soda, a sausage or a spoonful of ketchup per serving) had a 2.5 times greater probability of presenting at least three prodromal symptoms of Parkinson’s, compared to those who ate less than three daily servings.
With information from Prensa Latina
Translated by Aliani Rojas Fernandez
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