In the UK and US, more than half the average diet now consists of UPFs such as breakfast cereals, ready meals, protein bars, fizzy drinks and fast food

Thousands of deaths from heart disease could be prevented by cutting back on ultra-processed foods, according to a new study that adds to growing concern over modern diets. Researchers estimate that heavily processed products may be contributing to up to a third of heart disease cases in high-income countries, prompting renewed calls for tougher public health action.

Junk Food Under Fresh Scrutiny

The modelling study suggests between 23% and 37% of heart disease cases, and between 23% and 38% of related deaths, could be linked to the consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs).

The findings, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine and presented at the International Congress on Obesity in Mexico, focused on Canada. Researchers said the overall trend is likely to apply across other wealthy nations where UPFs dominate supermarket shelves.

Modern Diets Driving Rising Risks

Ultra-processed foods include products such as ready meals, breakfast cereals, protein bars, fizzy drinks and fast food. In the UK and the US, they now make up more than half of the average diet, while some younger people and those living in disadvantaged communities consume diets made up of as much as 80% UPFs.

The researchers described excessive consumption as a widespread problem driven by the modern food environment rather than individual choice alone. They argued that reducing intake could become a key part of preventing cardiovascular disease.

Pressure Builds for Tougher Action

The study's authors said education campaigns alone would not be enough to reverse current trends. Instead, they called for broader measures including food taxes, clearer front-of-pack labelling, tighter restrictions on marketing and targets to improve the nutritional quality of processed products.

They argued that structural reforms are needed to make healthier choices easier and reduce dependence on heavily processed foods.

Experts Urge Caution Over Findings

Despite the headline figures, independent experts warned the study has important limitations. Professor Kevin McConway, emeritus professor of applied statistics at the Open University, said the modelling was an interesting exercise but cautioned against placing too much confidence in its precise estimates.

While previous research has linked ultra-processed foods to a range of health problems, scientists say further studies are needed to establish exactly how much they contribute to heart disease and premature death.

Reducing ultra-processed foods could prevent thousands of heart disease deaths, study suggests | Ultra-processed foods | The Guardian

20 minutes ago, bannork said:

Despite the headline figures, independent experts warned the study has important limitations. Professor Kevin McConway, emeritus professor of applied statistics at the Open University, said the modelling was an interesting exercise but cautioned against placing too much confidence in its precise estimates.

While previous research has linked ultra-processed foods to a range of health problems, scientists say further studies are needed to establish exactly how much they contribute to heart disease and premature death.

And at the same time 'evidence' of side effects and preventable death from a certain

'safe and effective' have been rigorously swept under the carpet.

Has little to do with it being processed and everything to do with eating too much of it. I eat loads of processed food and at 59 have excellent blood numbers, blood pressure, and insulin flexibility. People like to blame anything but themselves. If you can't restrain yourself from binge eating processed food then the simple solution is don't eat it.

1 minute ago, atpeace said:

the simple solution is don't eat it.

Excellent advice 👍

5 minutes ago, johng said:

And at the same time 'evidence' of side effects and preventable death from a certain

'safe and effective' have been rigorously swept under the carpet.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40364-025-00831-w

The oncogenic potential of SARS-CoV-2 has been hypothetically proposed, but real-world data on COVID-19 infection and vaccination are insufficient. Therefore, this large-scale population-based retrospective study in Seoul, South Korea, aimed to estimate the cumulative incidences and subsequent risks of overall cancers 1 year after COVID-19 vaccination.

7 minutes ago, johng said:

And at the same time 'evidence' of side effects and preventable death from a certain

'safe and effective' have been rigorously swept under the carpet.

Processed foods are having a much bigger impact on people's health than the Covid jab.

It's not even close.

7 minutes ago, atpeace said:

Has little to do with it being processed and everything to do with eating too much of it. I eat loads of processed food and at 59 have excellent blood numbers, blood pressure, and insulin flexibility.

Ideally, we all would like to know what the most amount of junk food we can get away with without having a negative impact on our health, since we all love this CRAP and it's hard to give it up.

But there are no studies available to decide how much is too much.

Same with alcohol ... are you pushing your luck with more than 2 drinks a week? Who knows?

I guess if you keep testing your blood work, then that might be a good strategy.

You may be playing with fire a little bit ...

But good luck to you if you can pull it off.

Edited 26 minutes ago26 min by save the frogs

5 minutes ago, atpeace said:

Has little to do with it being processed and everything to do with eating too much of it. I eat loads of processed food and at 59 have excellent blood numbers, blood pressure, and insulin flexibility. People like to blame anything but themselves. If you can't restrain yourself from binge eating processed food then the simple solution is don't eat it.

Easy to say but for the kids and younger generation, processed food is everywhere.

Look at the ubiquitous 7-11s in Thailand. Then in the UK, Tesco Express shops are everywhere, full of 'ready meals'.

Local greengrocers can't compete with their prices.

Look at these figures, and then the youngsters waddling down the streets of Thailand, the US and UK.

Adult obesity rates have nearly tripled globally since 1975, rising from around 5% to 6% in the early 1970s to nearly 20% today. In the United States, adult obesity climbed from about 15% in the 1970s to over 40%. Childhood obesity has seen an even sharper climb, increasing tenfold.

Key trends highlight the scale of the increase:

• Global Adults: According to the World Health Organization, worldwide adult obesity has more than doubled since 1990, with over 890 million adults living with obesity as of 2022.

• Children and Adolescents: In 1970, about 1 in 20 children were affected by obesity. That figure has surged to nearly 1 in 5, marking an accelerated increase.

• Severe Obesity: The prevalence of severe obesity has surged even faster. For instance, UK data from UK Health Security Agency indicates a multi-fold increase over the past few decades, indicating the heaviest individuals are getting heavier.

how much has obesity increased since 1970 - Google Search

1 minute ago, save the frogs said:

Processed foods are having a much bigger impact on people's health than the Covid jab.

It's not even close.

I think you are probably correct that ultra processed foods are having a big impact long before

the experimental jabs but combine them together and we have the unfolding disaster

we see now.

3 minutes ago, bannork said:

Easy to say but for the kids and younger generation, processed food is everywhere.

Kids are too young to understand the link between food and health.

But they are also in the fortunate position that their bodies are highly resilient and they have time to bounce back from negative eating habits.

When you're older, there is less room for error and the diseases are much more likely to kick in.

18 minutes ago, atpeace said:

Has little to do with it being processed and everything to do with eating too much of it. I eat loads of processed food and at 59 have excellent blood numbers, blood pressure, and insulin flexibility. People like to blame anything but themselves. If you can't restrain yourself from binge eating processed food then the simple solution is don't eat it.

Stay lucky.

You’re throwing a dice loaded against you.

2 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Kids are too young to understand the link between food and health.

But they are also in the fortunate position that their bodies are highly resilient and they have time to bounce back from negative eating habits.

When you're older, there is less room for error and the diseases are much more likely to kick in.

Only partly true. Kids eating junk from a very young age, for example in school breaks, can develop diabetes in their 20s.

When Kate, Princess of Wales developed some form of stomach/intestinal cancer, a doctor specialising in such diseases said he was seeing people in their late 30s/ early 40s with such cancers. This was rare in the past, he said.

5 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Kids are too young to understand the link between food and health.

But they are also in the fortunate position that their bodies are highly resilient and they have time to bounce back from negative eating habits.

When you're older, there is less room for error and the diseases are much more likely to kick in.

Conversely, life habits are set in children and almost impossible to change later in life.

3 minutes ago, bannork said:

Only partly true. Kids eating junk from a very young age, for example in school breaks, can develop diabetes in their 20s.

Very rare though.

Smart parents + smart kids though ... they can be taught young and will get it.

But stupid or rebellious kids won't listen, but it's rare for major issues to surface that young.

Realistically, most diseases start in middle age.

4 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Conversely, life habits are set in children and almost impossible to change later in life.

For people who have arrested development.

18 minutes ago, johng said:

the experimental jabs but combine them together and we have the unfolding disaster

we see now.

why bring up covid here?

there hasn't been a covid thread in more than 2 weeks?