Fizzy drinks and ice cream raise lung cancer risk
A major new study has revealed that those who consume the most ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are a lot more likely to get the disease.
An international team of experts have revealed that junk food is particularly bad for non-small cell lung cancer and the aggressive small cell type.
The research tracked the diets and health of over 100,000 adults in the US over a period over 12 years and found that 1,706 people went on to develop lung cancer.
Those who gorged on UPFs were 41 per cent more likely to get lung cancer but the experts warned that the findings do not prove that UPFs cause the disease.
Professor Sam Hare, a consultant chest radiologist at the Royal Free London NHS Trust, says that additional work is needed "to establish direct causation between UPFs and lung cancer".
He said: "Crucially, whilst this study does make some adjustments for smoking status, the amount of smoking is not factored in, which is known to be directly related to lung cancer development.
"Dietary habits also change considerably over the course of such long-term studies.
"It's difficult to directly conclude that lung cancer is related to the level of UPF consumption alone given it was only declared at the start of the study."
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Perth Now
3 days ago
- Perth Now
Fizzy drinks and ice cream raise lung cancer risk
Fizzy drinks and ice cream increase the risk of lung cancer by 41 per cent. A major new study has revealed that those who consume the most ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are a lot more likely to get the disease. An international team of experts have revealed that junk food is particularly bad for non-small cell lung cancer and the aggressive small cell type. The research tracked the diets and health of over 100,000 adults in the US over a period over 12 years and found that 1,706 people went on to develop lung cancer. Those who gorged on UPFs were 41 per cent more likely to get lung cancer but the experts warned that the findings do not prove that UPFs cause the disease. Professor Sam Hare, a consultant chest radiologist at the Royal Free London NHS Trust, says that additional work is needed "to establish direct causation between UPFs and lung cancer". He said: "Crucially, whilst this study does make some adjustments for smoking status, the amount of smoking is not factored in, which is known to be directly related to lung cancer development. "Dietary habits also change considerably over the course of such long-term studies. "It's difficult to directly conclude that lung cancer is related to the level of UPF consumption alone given it was only declared at the start of the study."
7NEWS
3 days ago
- 7NEWS
Study links ultra processed foods and lung cancer
Academics have found a link between consuming high levels of ultra processed foods (UPFs) and lung cancer. An international team of researchers tracked the health and food habits of more than 100,000 US adults, with an average age of 63. After an average of 12 years the team identified 1706 cases of lung cancer. The food survey questionnaires revealed consumption of UPFs, including ice cream, fried foods, bread, cakes, pastries, salty snacks, breakfast cereals, instant noodles, soups, margarine, confectionery, soft drinks, sweetened fruit drinks, hamburgers, hot dogs, and pizza. The research team, led by academics in China, found that average UPF consumption was nearly three servings a day, but ranged from 0.5 to six. The three types of food that featured the most were lunch meat and soft drinks. People who consumed the highest amounts of UPFs were 41 per cent more likely to develop lung cancer compared with those who consumed the least amount, academics wrote in the journal Thorax. They found an increased risk found for both non small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer. The authors said they did make adjustments to their findings based on whether or not people smoked but they did not make adjustments for smoking intensity, which may have an impact. They stressed that 'causality cannot be determined' from their findings and the data should be interpreted with caution. 'Although additional research in other populations and settings is warranted, these findings suggest the healthy benefits of limiting UPF,' the authors said. 'Limiting trends of UPF intake globally could contribute to reducing the burden of lung cancer.' Commenting on the study, Sam Hare, a chest radiologist at the Royal Free London NHS Trust, said: 'A quarter of lung cancer cases occur in non-smokers so we do need research exploring whether other factors are associated with lung cancer. 'We also know immunity is linked to cancer biology so it is a good idea to do research into factors like diet,' Professor Hare said. 'However, further work is needed to establish direct causation between UPFs and lung cancer, crucially, whilst the study does make some adjustments for smoking status, the amount of smoking is not factored in, which is known to be directly related to lung cancer development. 'Dietary habits also change considerably over the course of such long-term studies, as such, it is difficult to directly conclude that lung cancer is related to the level of UPF consumption alone given it was only declared at the start of the study. Prof Hare added that evidence-based advancement in the early diagnosis of lung cancer in non-smokers was needed but 'this study isn't quite able to give us the answers yet'.
News.com.au
29-04-2025
- News.com.au
Common food could cause more deaths than dangerous drug: study
Ultraprocessed foods could be killing more Americans than fentanyl, a new study has found. The unhealthy food group, popularised for its convenience, often contains high levels of sugar, salt and unhealthy fats — and are believed to make up over 70 per cent of the US food supply. Australians also consume a large amount of ultra-processed foods, also known as UPFs, with research suggesting they make up around 40 to 42 per cent of their daily energy intake. Alarmingly, consumption of ultraprocessed foods has also been tied to a growing list of health conditions, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some cancers. Now, researchers have examined data from the US and seven other countries to estimate the percentage of premature, preventable deaths due to the consumption of UPFs like packaged snacks, sugary drinks, processed meats and sweetened breakfast cereals, the New York Post reports. 'We looked at the risk of a person dying from eating more ultra-processed foods between the ages of 30 and 69, a time when it would be premature to die,' study co-author Carlos Augusto Monteiro, emeritus professor of nutrition and public health in the School of Public Health at Brazil's University of São Paulo, told CNN. Monteiro's team found that the risk of early death rises by nearly 3 per cent for every 10 per cent increase in calories from UPFs. The findings were published Monday in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine in an article titled, 'Premature Mortality Attributable to Ultraprocessed Food Consumption in 8 Countries'. Prior research has linked UPFs to 32 negative health outcomes, including elevated risks of heart disease, cancer, Type 2 diabetes and mental health woes. Some 124,000 premature US deaths were attributable to UPF consumption in 2018, said Eduardo Augusto Fernandes Nilson, lead investigator of the new study. To compare, nearly 74,000 Americans died from a fentanyl overdose in 2022. Fernandes Nilson and his colleagues built a computer model that estimated percentages of UPF-related early deaths based on data from nearly 240,000 people and almost 15,000 deaths. The results ranged from 4 per cent in countries with lower UPF consumption (Colombia) to almost 14 per cent in countries with higher UPF consumption (the UK and US). The other countries studied were Brazil (low consumption), Chile and Mexico (intermediate) and Australia and Canada (high). 'The findings support that ultra-processed food intake contributes significantly to the overall burden of disease in many countries, and its reduction should be included in national dietary guideline recommendations and addressed in public policies,' the researchers wrote in their paper. However, the study could not determine if the deaths were 'caused by UPF consumption,' nutrition scientist Nerys Astbury — an associate professor of diet and obesity at the UK's University of Oxford who was not involved in the study — pointed out to CNN. The research also drew criticism from Sarah Gallo — senior vice president of product policy for the Consumer Brands Association, which represents the food industry. 'This is another example of a misleading study that will ultimately lead to consumer confusion. Currently, there is no scientific agreement on the definition of ultra-processed foods,' Gallo told the New York Post. 'Demonising convenient, affordable and shelf-ready food and beverage products could limit access to and cause avoidance of nutrient-dense foods, resulting in decreased diet quality, increased risk of food-borne illness and exacerbated health disparities.'
