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Ultra-processed foods may raise cancer risk: study

Adults also have a higher risk of developing obesity and type 2 diabetes when eating these foods.

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(Photo by HamZa NOUASRIA on Unsplash)

By Alice Clifford via SWNS

Ultra-processed foods such as sliced bread, breakfast cereals, fizzy soda and many ready meals could put people more at risk of cancer, warns a new study.

They are generally high in salt, fat, sugar and contain artificial additives and can also lead to obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

And scientists say they are often cheap, convenient and heavily marketed.

Study first author Dr. Kiara Chang, of Imperial College London's School of Public Health, said: “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 derived ingredients and often use food additives to adjust color, flavor, consistency, texture, or extend shelf life.

“Our bodies may not react the same way to these ultra-processed ingredients and additives as they do to fresh and nutritious minimally processed foods.

“However, ultra-processed foods are everywhere and highly marketed with cheap price and attractive packaging to promote consumption.

“This shows our food environment needs urgent reform to protect the population from ultra-processed foods.”

The researchers used UK Biobank records to gather their data. They studied the diets of 200,000 middle-aged adults.

They monitored their health over 10 years, looking at the risk of developing any cancer overall as well as the specific risk of developing 34 different types of cancer.

The team also looked into the risk of people dying from cancer.

The study revealed that the higher consumption of ultra-processed foods was associated with a greater risk of developing cancer overall while putting people more at risk specifically of ovarian and brain cancers.

It was also associated with an increased risk of dying from cancer, most notably with ovarian and breast cancers.

For every 10 percent increase in ultra-processed food in a person’s diet, there was an increased incidence of two percent for cancer overall and a 19 percent increase for ovarian cancer specifically.

For adults, the more of this ultra-processed food they ate, the higher the risk they had of developing obesity and type two diabetes.

With children in the UK, the more ultra-processed foods they ate, the more weight they gained.

These links remained even after adjusting for a range of socio-economic, behavioral and dietary factors, such as smoking status, physical activity and body mass index.

The Imperial College London team have previously reported that levels of consumption of ultra-processed foods in the UK are the highest in Europe for both adults and children.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization has previously recommended restricting ultra-processed foods as part of a healthy, sustainable diet.

There are now ongoing efforts to reduce ultra-processed food consumption around the world.

Countries such as Brazil, France and Canada have updated their national dietary guidelines with recommendations to limit such foods.

Brazil has also banned the marketing of ultra-processed foods in schools.

However, there are currently no similar measures to tackle ultra-processed foods in the UK.

Chang added: “We need clear front of pack warning labels for ultra-processed foods to aid consumer choices, and our sugar tax should be extended to cover ultra-processed fizzy drinks, fruit-based and milk-based drinks, as well as other ultra-processed products.

“Lower income households are particularly vulnerable to these cheap and unhealthy ultra-processed foods.

"Minimally processed and freshly prepared meals should be subsidized to ensure everyone has access to healthy, nutritious and affordable options.”

Lead author Dr. Eszter Vamos, of the University’s School of Public Health, said: “This study adds to the growing evidence that ultra-processed foods are likely to negatively impact our health including our risk for cancer.

"Given the high levels of consumption in UK adults and children, this has important implications for future health outcomes.

“Although our study cannot prove causation, other available evidence shows that reducing ultra-processed foods in our diet could 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 diet.”

The study was published in the journal EClinicalMedicine.

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