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Daily Mail
28-04-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Scientists finally reveal true death toll from ultraprocessed foods... and it's worse than anyone feared
Ultraprocessed foods are killing more Americans than fentanyl, a shock study suggests. Using death records and nutritional data, researchers estimated that 125,000 premature deaths in the US could be blamed on consuming these types of foods in 2017-2018. For comparison, 73,000 died from fentanyl overdoses in 2022, the latest data shows. Ultraprocessed food is thought to increase the risk of conditions like diabetes and heart disease due to high levels of saturated fat and sugar, as well as artificial additives. The study looked into diets in eight countries, including the US and UK. They then estimated how many of those deaths could be linked to ultraprocessed foods like meats, candy, ice cream and even some salads and breads through nutritional surveys. The study found one in seven of the nearly 1million premature deaths in the US could be blamed on ultraprocessed foods from 2017 to 2018. According to the study, ultraprocessed foods also make up more than half of the calories the average American consumes every day - more than any other country in the world. The above table shows the percentage of calories ultraprocessed foods account for in all countries studied and the number of premature deaths associated with them And for every 10 percent of extra ultraprocessed food consumed, the risk of early death increases by three percent. Ultraprocessed foods have long been under scrutiny for containing high levels of saturated fat, salt, sugar and additives like emulsifiers and artificial colors not typically found in home cooking. As a result, the researchers associated them with 32 chronic diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, obesity and some forms of cancer. Dr Eduardo Nilson, lead study author from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation in Brazil, said: 'UPFs affect health beyond the individual impact of high content of critical nutrients (sodium, trans fats and sugar) because of the changes in the foods during industrial processing and the use of artificial ingredients, including colorants, artificial flavors and sweeteners, emulsifiers, and many other additives and processing aids.' He noted because of this, 'assessing deaths from all-causes associated with UPF consumption allows an overall estimate of the effect of industrial food processing on health.' Independent researchers, however, cautioned the findings do not prove ultraprocessed foods directly lead to an early death and called for additional studies. The study, published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, calculated the number of premature deaths in the US, UK, Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Australia and Canada. From 2017 to 2018, the US experienced 906,795 premature deaths, which is defined as death before a country's average life expectancy. In the US, this is 77 years old. That was nearly twice the amount of the next closest country, Brazil, which had 556,696. The team then collected nutritional data from national surveys to calculate how pervasive ultraprocessed foods are in each country's diet. In the US, ultraprocessed foods were responsible for 54 percent of the average person's consumed calories. The researchers found 124,107 premature deaths in the US could be blamed on ultraprocessed foods. This is about 14 percent or one in seven. Meanwhile 17,781 deaths could be linked to these foods in the UK, also totaling about 14 percent. Colombia, Brazil and Chile, however, attributed ultraprocessed foods to four to six percent of their premature deaths. The researchers suggested this could be because these foods are less common in these countries. For example, ultraprocessed foods only make up 15 percent of the average calories consumed in Colombia. In Brazil and Chile, these foods account for 17 and 23 percent of the average resident's diet, respectively. Studies have linked ultra processed foods to cancer, diabetes, mental health conditions and obesity The researchers wrote: 'Premature deaths attributable to consumptions of ultraprocessed foods increase significantly according to their share in individuals' total energy intake. 'A high amount of UPF intake can significantly affect health.' A study published last year in BMJ, for example, found people who consumed the highest amount of ultraprocessed foods had a four percent higher risk of death overall and a nine percent greater risk of dying from a chronic disease other than cancer or heart disease. Those researchers suggested the increased risk could be due to high amounts of sugar, saturated fat and sodium. The team behind the new study urged lawmakers worldwide to introduce measures to eliminate ultraprocessed foods from the food supply, such as tighter regulations of food marketing and restrictions on selling them in schools. There were several limitations to the study, mainly including the findigns showing associations rather than direct causes. Independent experts also raised concerns about the findings. Professor Nita Forouhi, professor of health and nutrition at the University of Cambridge, said: 'There are limitations to this paper, including the points the authors themselves raised. 'Nonetheless, evidence on the 'health harms of UPF' are accumulating and this paper does add to that body of evidence, and UPFs are unlikely to be healthful.' Forouhi emphasized correlation does not mean ultraprocessed foods directly cause death, though observational studies 'are often the best we are going to get realistically.' 'We should not ignore such findings, especially as the current research has reported consistently similar associations in several countries which increases the degree of confidence,' she added. Professor Kevin McConway, emeritus professor of applied statistics at Open University in England, said: 'The researchers may appear to be making a simple comparison, but in fact it's a lot more complicated than you might think. Like Forouhi, McConway noted the data is observational and does not prove causation. 'Researchers record what people eat, and then follow them up for a long time and record if and when they died,' he said. 'This all means that it's impossible, for any one study like that, to be sure whether differences in mortality between people who consume different UPF amounts are actually caused by differences in their UPF consumption. 'There are bound to be many other differences between groups who consume different UPF amounts, in terms of other details of their diet, their lifestyle, their economic position, their sex and age, and so on. These differences might be, in part or in whole, the reason for the differences in the risk of early death.' He added: 'I'm certainly not saying that there is no association between UPF consumption and ill health – just that it's still far from clear whether consumption of just any UPF at all is bad for health, or of what aspect of UPFs might be involved.'
Telegraph
28-04-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Scale of Britain's junk food crisis laid bare
Junk food is behind almost 20,000 premature deaths in the UK each year, a study has suggested. Ultra-processed foods – such as ice cream, processed meats such as ham, mass-produced bread, breakfast cereals, ready meals, biscuits, and fizzy drinks – are being increasingly linked to bad health. The concept of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) has been popularised by figures such as Prof Tim Spector, founder of the wellness project Zoe, and Dr Chris van Tulleken, the TV doctor and author. UPFs have previously been linked to increasing rates of obesity, heart disease and cancer, and now experts believe they may be behind thousands of early deaths each year. They often contain high levels of saturated fat, salt and sugar, and typically include additives, preservatives and other ingredients not used in home cooking – such as emulsifiers and artificial colours and flavours – which are added by manufacturers. They have been the result of society's shift toward buying food that can be eaten quickly or on-the-go, like meal deals and ready meals, combined with extending shelf life of products and what experts say are the addictive characteristics of UPFs. But concerns are growing about the impact these types of food are having on our health. Stop signs on food packaging Researchers from Brazil's scientific institution, the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, analysed the impact of UPFs on the rates of premature deaths in eight separate countries. The study, published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, found UPFs made up 53 per cent of people's food energy consumption in the UK. This was the second highest behind only the US at 55 per cent. Using mathematical modelling, the authors found the proportion of premature deaths attributable to UPFs ranged from 4 per cent in Colombia, where consumption is lower and regulations are stricter, up to 14 per cent of premature deaths in the UK and US. The researchers said that in 2018-19, some 17,781 premature deaths in the UK could have been linked to UPFs, according to their model. Many countries in South America require UPFs to have black octagonal stop signs on their packaging so consumers are aware, with proposals for them to be used in the UK put forward by former government food tsar and National Food Strategy author Henry Dimbleby. Eduardo Nilson, lead investigator of the study from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, said the impact of UPFs on health went 'beyond the individual impact' of high levels of salt, fat and sugar. He suggested this was 'because of the changes in the foods during industrial processing and the use of artificial ingredients, including colourants, artificial flavours and sweeteners, emulsifiers, and many other additives and processing aids'. 'So assessing deaths from all causes associated with UPF consumption allows an overall estimate of the effect of industrial food processing on health,' he said. Dr Nilson added that the study found 'each 10 per cent increase in the participation of UPFs in the diet increases the risk of death from all causes by 3 per cent.' The research team also looked at data from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile and Mexico. 'Health harms of UPFs' Scientists are not sure whether the link to poor health and early death is just because of the high content of known risk factors – salt, sugar and fat – or whether there is something additional at play when foods are 'ultra-processed'. Prof Nita Forouhi, professor of population health and nutrition at the University of Cambridge, said the study had limitations but 'nonetheless, evidence on the health harms of UPFs are accumulating and this paper does add to that body of evidence'. She said while this study was observational and could not prove a link between the two, it was 'the best we are going to get realistically', adding that 'we should not ignore such findings, especially as the current research has reported consistently similar associations in several countries which increases the degree of confidence'. Stephen Burgess, statistician at the University of Cambridge, said it was possible the actual cause was a 'related risk factor such as better physical fitness', but the replication of the trend across countries and cultures 'raises suspicion that ultra-processed foods may be more than a bystander'. Nerys Astbury, associate professor from the University of Oxford, disagreed with the study authors' call for UPFs to be added to national dietary guideline recommendations, such as the suggested limits on daily sugar and salt intake. ' Many UPF tend to be high in these nutrients, and studies to date have been unable to determine with certainty whether the effects of UPF are independent of the already established effects of diets high in foods which are energy dense and contain large amounts of fat and sugar,' she said. 'Rushing to add recommendations on UPF to these recommendations is not warranted based on this study in my opinion.'
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Ultra-processed foods tied to 124,000 premature deaths over 2 years in U.S., study finds
ST. PAUL, Minn., April 28 (UPI) -- A study released Monday links a total of more than 124,000 preventable, premature deaths in the United States over two years to adverse health affects from consuming ultra-processed foods. The study's Brazilian authors also analyzed data on ultra-processed food consumption from seven other countries, concluding that premature deaths tied to unhealthy diets are a growing global phenomenon calling for coordinated international action. In addition to the nearly 125,000 premature U.S. deaths for 2017 and 2018, the study, published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, also estimated that more than 25,000 Brazilians died prematurely during those years because of poor health outcomes tied to ultra-processed foods. The researchers' statistical model also showed more than 17,000 such deaths in Britain during 2018 and 2019 and another 17,000 in Mexico during a single year, 2016. Similarly, Canada had more than 7,700 premature deaths attributed to ultra-processed foods in 2016, the authors estimated, while Australia recorded 3,277 in 2016, Colombia had 2,813 in 2015 and Chile tallied 1,874 in 2010. Ultra-processed foods, or UPFs, generally are defined as those that include mass-produced ingredients that can't be made at home, such as preservatives, emulsifiers and sweeteners. They often contain added fats, starches, sugars, salts and hydrogenated oils extracted from other foods. Sugary drinks, sweets and chocolates, pizzas, hamburgers, chicken nuggets and other highly popular food items are defined as UPFs under the NOVA food classification system. High consumption of these foods has been associated with many different diseases, including cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, some types of cancer and depression. By 2018, UPFs already made up more than half of the total dietary energy consumed in high-income countries such as the United States, Canada and Britain, and between one-fifth and one-third of total dietary energy in middle-income countries such as Brazil, Mexico and Chile, according to a University of São Paulo study. The topic is receiving renewed attention due to the agenda of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is focusing on the perceived dangers of UPFs during his "Make American Healthy Again" tour this month. To calculate their numbers, the study's authors developed a comparative risk assessment looking at dietary share of UPFs and all-cause mortality in each country. They then employed a statistical model to estimate the percentage of all premature preventable deaths due to the consumption of UPFs, tapping studies from many countries and the landmark Global Burden of Disease report of 2021, according to lead author Eduardo A.F. Nilson, a nutrition researcher at the University of São Paulo. They determined the percentage of UPF-attributable premature deaths vary from 4% in countries with lower UPF consumption to almost 14% in countries with the highest UPF consumption such as the United States and Britain. Nilson told UPI that while it wasn't much of a surprise the United States has the highest percentage of UPF-associated premature deaths, he noted the trajectory of U.S. deaths has stabilized in recent years while they continue to rise in low- and middle-income nations such as Brazil, Chile and Colombia. "Our findings on the attributable deaths to UPF in low- and middle-income countries shows that UPFs are replacing traditional fresh and minimally processed foods ,and that this may increase deaths from non-communicable diseases associated with unhealthy dietary patterns," Nilson said in emailed comments. "These countries are already facing accelerated nutritional and epidemiological transitions and the replacement of traditional diets by UPFs is increasing especially among low income families, reinforcing the challenges of the double burden of malnutrition." Global food systems have made UPFs more available and affordable in all countries, triggering changes in diets all over the world as well as new heath problems that "demand policy responses by national governments" the Brazilian researcher said. UPF consumption "represents a global priority, and it requires more than consumer education because food choices are determined by many factors beyond consumers, mostly related to the food environment," Nilson said. "Food choices are influenced by price, availability, information and other factors and education by itself is insufficient to ensure healthy diets. Therefore, we need to make healthy dietary behaviors easier and more accessible and affordable." He added: "This means implementing fiscal and regulatory policies, including subsidies to fresh and minimally processed foods, taxation of UPFs -- as is already done for sugar-sweetened beverages in some countries -- improving front-of-pack food labelling, regulating food marketing and regulating food sales in settings such as schools, workplaces and hospitals, for example."
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Suicide prevention model used in Colorado schools led to 29% decrease in attempts: study
DENVER (KDVR) — Colorado was recognized for its efforts in youth suicide prevention by participating in a study funded by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, according to Sources of Strength, a Colorado-based youth mental promotion and suicide prevention program. The study published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine centered around the Sources of Strength prevention model. Report: Colorado a leader in national tech growth The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment partnered with the University of Rochester and the University of North Carolina to implement the model to help combat the increase in suicide attempts and fatality rates among adolescents and young adults. Sources have been committed to helping prevent youth suicide for 30 years and institute its model by training student leaders to utilize peer social influence. Sources said it aims to transform school environments and empower students to create cultures of hope, help and strength. 'Young people have a tremendous power to create positive transformation in their schools and communities,' said Scott LoMurray, CEO of Sources of Strength. 'When students and caring adults partner together and are empowered to create protective communities of connection, belonging and well-being, they are not only preventing crises but are actively cultivating the conditions of a well world. This study is a pivotal moment for youth mental health and suicide prevention.' The study spanned across 20 high schools in Colorado and involved 6,500 students. Within those groups, Sources trained 226 student leaders and 79 adult advisors on how to implement the Sources model. Sources said the study discovered key findings including: The program reduced suicide attempts by 29% The program built stronger, connected schools where students felt seen and supported Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people aged 10-24 The model supported students from different demographics regardless of gender, race and ethnicity The program is looking to expand into studies of those who have recently experienced sexual violence, as separate support must be developed for those individuals Another round of snow moves into Colorado on Thursday and Friday Sources partners with thousands of elementary, middle and high schools across the country and in some Canadian provinces. The organization also works with universities, LGBTQ+ centers and organizations, cultural community centers, faith-based groups, detention centers and the military. To access the study or for more information on the program, visit the Sources of Strength website. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
