Obesity, diabetes, depression Researchers warn against "ultra-processed food"
Fat, sugar, salt - and a long list of additives: To make ready-made products last longer and taste good to as many people as possible, they are given a helping hand. But highly processed foods are increasingly ending up on our plates - with consequences for our health, according to a new study.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- An international analysis warns of the health risks of highly processed foods, which contribute to obesity, diabetes and mental illness worldwide.
- The growing influence of the UPF industry is crowding out fresh food, especially in low-income countries.
- Experts are calling for political measures such as advertising bans, taxation and better access to healthy food - similar to the fight against the tobacco industry.
Frozen pizza, burger patties, crunchy muesli - such foods are delicious, convenient and ubiquitous. But what looks like a convenient, quick meal at first glance can be harmful to your health in the long term. A diet increasingly dominated by highly processed foods is contributing to the global rise in obesity, diabetes and mental illness, warned Phillip Baker from the University of Sydney (Australia), co-author of a comprehensive analysis on the subject. What is needed is a strong global response similar to the coordinated efforts against the tobacco industry, the team concludes.
The displacement of established eating habits by highly processed foods is a key driver of the increasing global burden of diet-related chronic diseases, emphasize the 43 experts. For a three-part analysis in the journal "The Lancet", they looked at how the industry is boosting the sale of ultra-processed food (UPF) and what impact such products have on our lives.
What is behind the term?
According to the so-called Nova classification, ultra-processed foods are industrially manufactured products made from cheap ingredients such as hydrogenated oils and glucose/fructose syrup as well as additives such as flavorings and colorings, which usually undergo numerous processing steps. They are often ready-to-eat or only need to be reheated, and attractive packaging is also typical. Sugar, fat or salt (or combinations thereof) are common UPF ingredients, typically in higher concentrations than in processed foods, as the researchers explain.
Some critics have found it inappropriate to include foods with potentially high nutritional value such as fortified breakfast cereals and flavored yogurts in this category, along with products such as highly processed meats or sugary drinks. "However, UPFs are rarely consumed in isolation," the researchers point out. It is about the general dietary pattern in which wholesome and minimally processed foods are replaced by processed alternatives.
Are UPFs a global trend?
The increasing proportion of ultra-processed foods in the human diet is being driven by the growing economic and political power of the UPF industry almost everywhere, the team of experts explained. With an annual turnover of around 1.9 trillion US dollars in 2023, the sector is already the most profitable part of the global food industry, and the trend is rising.
Sales have recently risen sharply, particularly in low-income countries. In high-income countries such as the USA or the UK, the proportion of highly processed food in daily food intake is already up to 50 percent. "The increasing consumption of highly processed foods is changing eating habits worldwide and is displacing fresh and minimally processed foods and meals," said Carlos Monteiro from the University of São Paulo (Brazil).
What is the picture in Germany?
"In a market analysis of over 24,000 foods, my working group was able to show that around half of the products on sale in German supermarkets are highly processed," said nutritionist Mathias Fasshauer from Justus Liebig University Giessen, who was not involved in the Lancet series himself.
Germany is one of the countries with the highest per capita sales of highly processed foods, explained health economist Peter von Philipsborn from the University of Bayreuth. "Studies consistently show that less fresh, minimally processed food is consumed in Germany than recommended, while products such as soft drinks, confectionery, salty snacks and processed meat are consumed more frequently than recommended."
Why are the products so successful?
The change in eating habits is being driven by powerful global corporations that are making huge profits from highly processed products, said Monteiro. Through extensive marketing and political lobbying, they were preventing effective measures to promote a healthy diet.
The products are convenient for the user: a frozen pizza is ready in just a few minutes, whereas a homemade pizza from the oven requires dough to be prepared, vegetables to be cut and cheese to be grated. In addition, ready-made products are often very inexpensive due to the cheap ingredients and automated production processes, as the researchers explain.
Many people can no longer afford a healthy diet, experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) point out in a commentary on the "Lancet" articles. "Foods that are part of a healthy diet, such as fruits, vegetables and legumes, are becoming increasingly unaffordable for many, while food products now known as highly processed foods (UPFs) are inexpensive and widely available worldwide."
Why are health experts so critical of the trend?
According to the Lancet authors, dozens of studies show that a diet high in UPFs is associated with overeating, poor nutritional quality (too much sugar and unhealthy fats, too little fiber and protein) and higher exposure to harmful chemicals and additives. This increases the risk of numerous chronic diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and depression.
These consequences also play a major role in Germany, explained von Philipsborn, who was not himself involved in the "Lancet" series. Around a quarter of all adults are affected by obesity. "Severe obesity often leads to diseases such as diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases and osteoarthritis. This contributes to the very high healthcare costs and sickness rates in Germany compared to other countries."
According to the Lancet, the UPF industry prioritizes corporate profit over public health. The global spread of highly processed foods has become one of the most urgent but inadequately addressed threats to human health in the 21st century, warns the children's charity Unicef in a commentary on the specialist articles.
Children are particularly susceptible to highly processed foods and their harmful effects, it also says. At the same time, daycare centres, schools and nearby retail outlets, sports and leisure facilities are often inundated with UPF - also due to sponsorship agreements that normalize the consumption of UPF.
Unicef concludes: "Given the growing evidence linking UPFs and ultra-processed diets to malnutrition and health problems in children, the question is not whether action is needed, but why so many countries have not yet taken meaningful action."
What measures make political sense?
"Just as we took action against the tobacco industry decades ago, we now need a bold, coordinated global response to curb the disproportionate power of UPF corporations and build food systems that prioritize people's health and well-being," said Karen Hofman from the University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa).
According to the authors, measures to reduce production, marketing and consumption such as taxing unhealthy goods, advertising bans and quality standards for school and hospital kitchens are needed, as well as combating high levels of fat, sugar and salt and improving access to healthy food. The latter could be achieved by taxing selected UPFs in order to finance subsidies for fresh food for low-income households.
Equity must be the focus, it said: "Consumption tends to be higher among people in economically difficult situations. Efforts to transition away from UPF-rich diets must not exacerbate gender inequalities in cooking or the food insecurity of populations that rely on low-cost UPF products."
The team of experts sees the biggest obstacle to the implementation of political measures in the fact that the industry is fighting against and blocking regulations via a global network of front organizations, multi-stakeholder initiatives and research partners. This involves direct lobbying as well as the infiltration of government authorities and influencing the public debate, for example by deliberately fueling doubts about scientific findings.
"Food systems have evolved to prioritize the production, marketing and consumption of ultra-processed foods," according to the Lancet. Reversing this trend will be a long-term process. The global response is still in its infancy, similar to the tobacco control movement decades ago.
