United Kingdom: A group of experts has found that one in seven adults and one in eight children are addicted to ultra-processed foods (UPFs). Recent studies revealed that UPFs such as ice cream, fizzy drinks, and ready meals may result in health issues, including an increased risk of cancer, weight gain, and heart disease.
According to reports, global consumption of the products is soaring, and UPFs now make up more than half the average diet in the UK and US. Researchers noted that the way some people consume such foods could “meet the criteria for the diagnosis of substance use disorder.”
“Behaviours that could meet this criteria include intense cravings, symptoms of withdrawal, less control over intake, and continued use despite such consequences as obesity, binge eating disorder, poorer physical and mental health, and a lower quality of life,” the research team observed.
An analysis of 281 studies from 36 different countries, published in the BMJ, found that “ultra-processed food addiction was estimated to occur in 14 percent of adults and 12 percent of children.”
“There is converging and consistent support for the validity and clinical relevance of food addiction. By acknowledging that certain types of processed foods have the properties of addictive substances, we may be able to help improve global health,” Ms. Ashley Gearhardt, the article’s corresponding author and a psychology professor at the University of Michigan in the US, commented.
Experts further noted that more research is urgently needed to understand the potential implications of UPF for global health.
Co-author Ms. Alexandra DiFeliceantonio, assistant professor at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute in the US, remarked that “given how prevalent these foods are—they make up 58 pecent of calories consumed in the United States—there is so much we don’t know.”
“The speed at which these foods deliver carbohydrates and fats to the gut could also play a role in their addictive potential”, the authors shared.
“Ultra-processed foods high in refined carbohydrates and added fats are highly rewarding, appealing, and consumed compulsively and may be addictive, Understanding these foods as addictive could lead to novel approaches in the realm of social justice, clinical care, and policy approaches,” the research team added.
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