Researchers Dig Into Risks Of Ultra-Processed Foods

How packaged products are made could hold answers to why some are more unhealthy

- ANDREA PETERSEN

A new study is helping to answer a pressing nutrition question: Which ultra-processed foods are harming our health and which might not be so bad?

The problem is the way many packaged foods are made, researchers believe. Products such as many frozen pizzas, cereals and chips pack more calories per gram than less-processed foods do. And most ultra-processed foods have combinations of salt, fat, sugar and carbohydrates that aren't generally found in nature, which can make us crave them. Diets high in packaged foods without those traits such as canned peaches or refried beans don't seem to lead people to overeat and gain weight, at least not as much.

Those are the findings so far of a continuing study investigating how ultra-processed food affects our bodies. Scientists presented their interim data at a workshop put on by the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December.

"There might be a way to create the quote, unquote healthy ultra-processed food that's still convenient," said Kevin D. Hall, the principal investigator of the study and a scientist at the NIH, giving an example of a frozen meal with brown rice, beans and a lot of vegetables.

Ultra-processed foods make up about 58% of the calories that U.S. adults and children ages 1 and older consume in a day, according to an analysis of federal data. Foods are generally considered ultra-processed if they contain ingredients that you wouldn't find in a home kitchen, such as high-fructose corn syrup and emulsifiers. Yet many scientists believe not all these foods are equally bad-and some might be reasonably healthy.

Recent studies have linked diets high in ultra-processed foods to increased risks of obesity, Type 2 diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease and depression. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the president-elect's nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, blames chemicals and additives in food for widespread health problems.