The Truth About Ultraprocessed Foods

Melissa Small was struggling. The irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) she’d kept in check by modifying her diet and keeping tabs on her stress was worsening, and her job as a high school teacher in Dallas wasn’t helping. The inflexibility of her classroom schedule made her most pressing symptom — a sudden, urgent need to use the bathroom — incredibly stressful.

“I couldn’t just go to the bathroom whenever I needed to; I had to plan it in advance.” (Not keen on being known for her bowel health, Small is a pseudonym.)

Then, while visiting family, Small noticed her father-in-law reading Ultra-Processed People: The Science Behind Food That Isn’t Food by Chris van Tulleken, PhD. Intrigued, she bought herself a copy. Her aha moment came when she read about studies linking food additives to IBS: “That’s when I started looking at food differently.”

For years, Small and her husband had been careful about their diets. They’d been gluten-free since their son was diagnosed with autism, and they leaned on foods the family could share, like gluten-free frozen pizzas and paleo frozen entrees.

When Small started looking more closely at their ingredient lists, she was surprised. The organic, gluten-free macaroni and cheese and premarinated chicken they liked were full of chemical additives. Even her tea and nutritional supplements had fillers and flavorings.

She decided to ditch these processed foods and simplify her family’s diet. “It was a big learning curve,” she recalls. “But once I got a few staples down, it became easier.”

Two weeks in, Small realized she no longer needed to bolt to the bathroom. She also wasn’t tempted by the weekend fast-food splurges that her husband and son enjoyed, she says. “It just tastes strange to me now.”

The most unexpected change was weight loss. Six months after simplifying her diet, Small had lost nearly 40 pounds. Her meals made with fresh, minimally processed foods satisfy her for hours. When she does get hungry, she eats fruit and nuts.

Ultraprocessed foods (UPFs) make up an estimated 73 percent of the American food supply. As of 2018, UPFs accounted for 57 percent of the average adult’s daily calories; for kids, it was closer to 70 percent.

Ultraprocessed foods (UPFs) make up an estimated 73 percent of the American food supply. As of 2018, UPFs accounted for 57 percent of the average adult’s daily calories; for kids, it was closer to 70 percent.

Studies have found that just a 10 percent increase in ultraprocessed food consumption leads to a 12 percent increased risk of cancer and heart disease, a 15 percent increased risk of type 2 diabetes, a 21 percent increased risk of depressive symptoms, and a 14 percent higher risk of death from all causes.

“Ultraprocessed foods are not made with human health in mind — in fact, human health is disregarded in their creation,” says Stephen Devries, MD, a preventive cardiologist and executive director of the educational nonprofit Gaples Institute. “We are consuming quantities and types of foods in ways that humans have never done before, and we are getting results that we’ve never witnessed before.”

 

Decoding “Ultraprocessed”

Most food is processed before we eat it — yet it’s the degree of processing that matters. Minimally processed foods, like canned tomatoes and frozen peas, are at one end of the spectrum. Further along are artisanal cheeses, plain yogurt, and simple breads — foods that necessarily involve transformation of basic elements like milk and flour to become edible.

At the far opposite end are neon breakfast cereals, plastic-encased frozen entrees, soft drinks, and bags of crunchy snacks. These are essentially food products, or ultraprocessed foods.

Coined in 2009, “ultraprocessed” refers to mass-produced foods built from extracts, like sugar, salt, and fat. Each extract is typically modified through chemical processes, including bleaching, deodorizing, and hydrogenating, before being mixed with preservatives and other additives to give the food color, texture, and flavor. Finally, it’s molded into a food-ish shape before being wrapped in plastic, boxed, and put on a truck to be shipped off and sold.

This might sound like science fiction, but it is the norm in much contemporary food production. In this respect, unfortunately, a regular frozen pizza and a gluten-free frozen pizza aren’t all that different.

“This is pulling foods apart to the cellular or molecular level and recombining them with all the additives to make them taste like whatever food companies want,” says Barry Popkin, PhD, a professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s school of public health. “It’s almost as if they take sawdust, recombine it with emulsifiers and other additives, then add colors and flavors.”

 

Food Science 3.0

Over the past 25 years, Americans have reportedly cut consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages in half. They’ve also begun to eat more whole grains, vegetables, and fruit along with more plant protein.

In spite of that good news, Americans continue to experience metabolic problems, including type 2 diabetes. And as public concerns about trans fats and high-fructose corn syrup have become more pronounced, food companies have begun replacing them with additives such as artificial sweeteners. This suggests the persistence of widespread metabolic issues can’t be blamed on added sugars alone. (See “The Trouble With Artificial Sweeteners” to learn how they may be setting back our weight-loss efforts.)

So researchers in the nutrition field have begun to examine the ­effects of ultraprocessing, says Laura Schmidt, PhD, MSW, MPH, a professor of health policy at the University of California, San Francisco.

Industrial food processing has been around since the early 20th century. It began as a way to produce foods with a long shelf life so they could be shipped around the country. “It was all very reasonable,” says Schmidt.

But by the 1980s, food companies had begun to shift away from routine techniques, like preserving and freezing, to ultraprocessing. This meant combining the cheapest ingredients — often monocrops, like corn, soy, and wheat — with additives for flavor. Significant industrial manipulation is required to make these foods taste like anything at all.

One way to identify a UPF is to consider whether it could be made in a home kitchen, says Filippa Juul, PhD, a nutritional epidemiologist at SUNY Downstate School of Public Health. Many of their ­ingredients, such as emulsifiers, aren’t available to home cooks.

Similarly, many processing techniques used to make UPFs, including hydro­genation and extrusion, require industrial machines.

Over the last 20 years, nutrition science has shifted its attention away from a strict focus on vitamins and minerals to the effect of dietary patterns, like the Mediterranean diet, says Juul. A focus on processing is the next evolutionary step. (Learn why these six foods in the Mediterranean diet are so good for your health — and how to incorporate more of them into your diet.)

Someone eating a Mediterranean diet could still consume many ultraprocessed foods: mass-produced whole-grain breads, plant-based margarines, and artificially sweetened yogurt. In these cases, someone’s food-related health problems may persist even as they do their best to follow the guidance.

“Even eating less meat isn’t necessarily healthier if you’re substituting it with highly processed plant-based meat alternatives,” Juul says. “You have to understand the quality of your food.”

How Ultraprocessed Foods Can Wreak Metabolic Havoc

There are several hypotheses about how UPFs harm the body, though there’s still no consensus about the exact mechanism that causes the damage. Still, the research is moving quickly, says Schmidt. “Finding . . . [that mechanism] is the holy grail of nutrition science right now.” These are some of those theories.

Calorie Density

In 2019, a study correlated UPFs and weight gain for the first time. The randomized controlled trial, conducted by the National Institutes of Health, divided 20 healthy adults into two groups. For two weeks, one group ate only ultraprocessed foods while the other ate foods that were minimally processed. Then the groups switched diets and continued for two more weeks.

To increase the study’s accuracy, participants lived at the research center. Their meals contained an identical number of calories and grams of sugar, fat, sodium, fiber, and macronutrients. At mealtimes, both groups had an hour to eat as much or as little as they chose.

Researchers found that the subjects who were eating the UPFs consumed about 500 calories more per day than those eating minimally processed foods. After two weeks, members of the UPF group had gained an average of about 2 pounds.

By the end, researchers found that the subjects who were eating the UPFs consumed about 500 calories more per day than those eating minimally processed foods. After two weeks, members of the UPF group had gained an average of about 2 pounds.

Speed of Digestion

The body perceives industrially processed foods as essentially prechewed and predigested. That perception produces a host of repercussions along the digestive tract, starting in the mouth. Studies have shown that the longer a food must be chewed before it’s swallowed, the more satisfying it is to eat and the fuller a person feels afterward.

Research has also shown that people who chew their food longer consume fewer calories. In the NIH study, participants eating the ultraprocessed diet swallowed more calories per minute than did their counterparts. The combined eating speed and caloric density is what led to the extra 500 calories a day.

When we eat whole foods, the foods’ cells don’t break down completely, explains Juul. She compares whole ­almonds and almond flour: Whole almonds involve some serious chewing. After you swallow, your body absorbs only about 75 percent of their calories, she says, because the nut’s structure is still partly intact.

Once almonds are turned into almond flour, a higher percentage of their calories is absorbed into the bloodstream. This speed of absorption affects everything from blood-sugar levels to satiety hormones.

Evidence has suggested that highly palatable foods can dampen the body’s satiety signals, which can lead to over­eating. As van Tulleken writes, “The signals that tell you to stop eating haven’t evolved to handle food this soft and ­easily digested.”

(After the gut, the mouth contains the most diverse microbial community in the body. As a result, the oral microbiome has a significant influence on your overall health. Learn more at “Everything You Need to Know About the Oral Microbiome.”)

Missing Nutrients

Studies suggest that UPFs are crowding out the nutrient-dense foods on our plates. In a 2021 meta-analysis, researchers noted a correlation between the increasing number of UPFs in meals and decreasing amounts of dietary fiber, protein, potassium, zinc, niacin, and vitamins A, C, D, E, and B12.

Novel Molecules

On a cellular level, nutrients exist in a certain structure within a food, and synergies exist between different nutrients and non-nutrients, says Juul. This is known as the food matrix, and it’s destroyed by industrial processing.

Our digestive system is designed to slowly and methodically break down a food’s matrix to glean the greatest nourishment for the body — and specifically for the microbiome.

Likewise, our signaling pathways evolved over millions of years to distinguish good molecules from bad. A molecule that is a shade different from one found in food can cause real problems with human chemistry, says Robert ­Rountree, MD, a Boulder, Colo.-based integrative family medicine practitioner. “Xenobiotic molecules gum up the works.”

Inflamed Gut

New evidence suggests that food ­additives, such as emulsifiers, thickeners, and artificial sweeteners, may cause gut inflammation. This can lead to a variety of gastrointestinal issues, including IBS.

Presently, more than 60 types of emulsifiers are used in UPFs, including polysorbate 80, carboxymethylcellulose, and carrageenan. Studies have found that mice exposed to these substances developed gut inflammation after 12 weeks.

There’s also a potential cocktail effect from multiple food additives in a single UPF, as well as in the many combinations that might be eaten in a handful of foods at one sitting.

“All of us are subjects in a food experiment that humans have never encountered before,” says Devries. “As a result, we are seeing a greater spectrum of digestive problems than have ever been observed before.”

The Hyperpalatability Problem

We must eat to survive, and food needs to be appealing for us to eat it. Still, many UPFs are so palatable that it’s nearly impossible to stop consuming them, even when we’re not hungry. That’s a problem.

Tera Fazzino, PhD, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Kansas, became curious about the impulse to keep eating when we’re full. Trained in addiction science, Fazzino noticed “certain foods had a substance-y vibe, but there was no clear definition of what it was about those foods that made them so difficult to resist.”

She began studying the synergy of fat, sodium, and sugar and how combining these could make foods hyperpalatable. She found that these foods were the ones that showcased sweet, salty, and fatty flavors together; they were far more craveable than foods that featured only one of those attributes.

The right combinations of fat and salt can increase consumption of a food by up to 30 percent, according to some research, and foods featuring fat-carbohydrate combinations are better at activating the brain’s reward circuitry than foods offering just fat or just carbohydrates.

Ultraprocessed foods and hyperpalatable foods are not the same, but there are important overlaps. Fazzino points to the popularity of certain crackers. “It’s easy to think that if you are snacking on a cracker, it’s a step above, say, chips, but they can be equally hard to stop eating.”

“UPFs are overconsumed in a way that healthy foods are not because food companies titrate unhealthy ingredients to appeal to common cravings,” he explains. “And blaming people for not having the willpower to control their appetite for these foods is not appropriate.”

And that’s by design, says Devries. “UPFs are overconsumed in a way that healthy foods are not because food companies titrate unhealthy ingredients to appeal to common cravings,” he explains. “And blaming people for not having the willpower to control their appetite for these foods is not appropriate.”

So how do we use this information to make better choices and not just feel freaked out by food?

“I try to eat things that come directly from nature as much as I can,” says Fazzino. But she also acknowledges that our food environment is saturated with ultraprocessed foods, so she tries not to sweat the small stuff.

Mary Purdy, MS, RDN, an integrative and functional dietitian and managing director of the Nutrient Density Alliance, encourages individuals to pause and notice how they feel after they’ve eaten UPFs. “If you were to slow down and really savor it, you might realize it doesn’t taste as good as you thought.”

6 Ways to Cut Back on Ultraprocessed Foods

Perfection is the enemy of the good, especially when you’re trying to cut down on ultraprocessed foods (UPFs), says Nichola Ludlam-Raine, RD, author of How Not to Eat Ultra-Processed: Your 4-Week Plan for Life-Changing Healthier Eating Habits.

UPFs account for almost three-quarters of America’s food supply, meaning the hunt for minimally processed foods can be tricky, especially in social situations. Ludlam-Raine encourages people to be gentle with themselves rather than strive for perfection. These are six of her top tips for cutting back.

 

1) Focus on addition rather than subtraction.

Instead of trying to quit UPFs cold turkey, start by crowding them out. Fill your plate with vegetables, lean proteins, whole grains, and healthy fats.

“This approach shifts the mindset from restriction to abundance,” says Ludlam-Raine. Over time, your palate will adapt to whole foods and your UPF ­cravings will diminish.

 

2) Emphasize protein and produce.

Protein supports satiety, mus­cle repair, and overall health; the fiber in produce regulates blood sugar and supports gut health. Together, they help you stay full longer, provide essential nutrients, and nourish healthy bacteria in your microbiome.

Instead of a handful of chips, pair a sliced apple with cheese or celery sticks with nut butter.

 

3) Buy cute, reusable snack bags and use them liberally.

Food companies know fun, attractive packaging makes UPFs even more appealing. Likewise, attractive reusable containers can re-create the visual and emotional appeal of packaged snacks, which might make you more likely to bring them along and choose them over anything the vending machine has to offer.

 

4) Keep fizzy drinks at room temperature.

Creating a minor inconvenience gives you a moment to make a more deliberate choice. If you keep flavored fizzy drinks, like sodas and seltzers, at room temperature, the time it takes to cool them down (even if it’s just adding ice) introduces a delay that can reduce their appeal. During the wait, you might decide to opt for plain water.

 

5) Make your own dressing.

Avoiding bottled salad dressing is an easy way to reduce your intake of emulsifiers, stabilizers, and flavorings. And homemade salad dressings are easy and quick to make: Put equal parts olive oil and vinegar in a small jar, add a dollop of Dijon mustard and some salt and pepper, cover, and shake. Customize by adding lemon juice, a diced shallot, some grated garlic, or green herbs to taste. (Try one of these easy and healthy salad dressings that you can make at home.)

 

6) Apply the 80/20 rule.

Cutting out UPFs completely can feel restrictive and lead to a sense of failure if you slip up. Aim to make minimally processed foods about 80 percent of your diet. ­Allow some flexibility with UPFs for that other 20 percent. Avoiding a deprivation mindset helps you maintain a healthy relationship with food — and that supports good habits over time.

 

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