In 2021, a link between processed foods and cancers had already been demonstrated. INSERM researchers in charge of monitoring the Nutrient cohort (study of nutrition-health relationships) have just published results on mortality linked to ultra-processed foods (or AUT).
Study on ultra-processed foods
44,551 people aged 45 or over were followed for about 7 years. These people came from the French Nutrinet-Santé cohort study, the objective of which is to study the relationship between Nutrition and Health.
In this group, the proportion of ultra-processed foods was as follows:
- 14.4% by weight
- 29.1% energy
TUEs are food and beverage products whose manufacture involves several processing steps and which call upon a variety of ingredients, many of which are used exclusively by industry. These are products typically consumed in the form of snacks, desserts, or quick meals, which replace dishes that would be prepared from natural ingredients, for example, sweets, chicken nuggets, breaded fish, crisps, instant noodles, ready-to-eat frozen meals, etc.
To know! Ultra-processed foods are high in saturated fats or refined carbohydrates, energy-dense, and low in fiber. They may also contain additives and contaminants introduced by their manufacturing process.
Several factors are responsible for an increase in the proportion of ultra-processed foods in the food intake such as age (someone younger will be more likely to consume ultra-processed foods), lower income, low education, high BMI (body mass index), low physical activity.
When these people added 10% more ultra-processed foods to their diets, saturated fat intake increased by 3%, and salt intake increased by 2%. At the same time, there was a decrease in fiber by 4.9%, and minerals and essential vitamins by 2 to 10%.
After correlating all the elements of the study with each other, the researchers were able to conclude that a 10% increase in ultra-processed foods in a diet would be the cause of a 14% increase in the risk of mortality.
Why do these ultra-processed foods increase the risk of death?
Several factors may explain the increased risk of mortality linked to the consumption of TUEs.
Diseases and mortality can be favored by high consumption of:
- Sodium
- Added sugars
- cold cuts
This risk is nevertheless reduced by taking the:
- fibers
- Vitamins and minerals
Additives, which are bad for your health, cause inflammatory, digestive, or even carcinogenic effects. In addition, sweeteners (substances that give food a sweet taste) can disrupt the gut microbiota but also promote inflammation. Food packaging contains bisphenol-A (a chemical substance used in the manufacture of plastic), responsible for cancers and hormone-dependent diseases.
However, the results of this study must be qualified. They will have to be confirmed by other studies in order to better specify the factors involved.