Poor nutrition has been impacting global health as well as economies.

Processed foods are a major culprit, often packed with unhealthy fats, added sugars, and excessive salt, while lacking essential dietary fiber and beneficial nutrients. Consuming these foods regularly increases the risk of numerous diseases and contributes to a higher rate of all-cause mortality.

Processed Foods- What Exactly Are These?

Processed foods are raw agricultural products that have been altered in various ways to make them more convenient, durable, palatable, and visually appealing. These modifications can include steps like washing, cutting, cooking, canning, freezing, dehydrating, and packaging. Ingredients are sometimes added to enhance a food product’s flavor and texture, which is often referred to as chemical processing.

Almost all food products undergo some level of processing to meet quality control standards before they reach the supermarket. Therefore, it’s important to understand the different types of processed foods to accurately assess their impact on our health.

NOVA Classification of Processed Foods

The NOVA food classification system categorizes foods into four distinct groups based on their level of processing.

Group 1- Unprocessed or Minimally Processed Foods

These are natural, edible parts of plants and animals, either in their original state or after minimal alterations that don’t significantly change their nutritional content. Unprocessed foods include items straight from nature, such as fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, eggs, milk, and fresh meat.

Minimally processed foods undergo gentle processes primarily for preservation or to make them edible. Examples include dried fruits, roasted coffee beans, pasteurized milk, or frozen vegetables. Their nutritional value remains largely intact.

Group 2- Processed Culinary Ingredients

These ingredients are derived from Group 1 foods through processes like pressing, grinding, milling, or refining. They are not meant to be eaten on their own but are used to prepare meals. Common examples include butter, vegetable oils, sugar, salt, and flours (e.g., whole grain flour).

Group 3- Processed Foods

These foods are made by combining Group 1 or 2 ingredients with added salt, sugar, or fats. They are mostly ready-to-eat and are processed to increase their shelf life or improve palatability. Examples include canned vegetables, canned fish, cheeses, and freshly baked breads.

Group 4- Ultra-Processed Foods (UPFs)

These are industrially manufactured formulations made from ingredients often extracted from foods (like starches, sugars, and fats) and combined with numerous additives (such as artificial colors, flavors, emulsifiers, and preservatives). They undergo multiple processing steps.

These are designed to be highly convenient, palatable, as well as profitable. They often lack the nutritional benefits of unprocessed foods and can contribute to a diet poor in essential nutrients. Examples include soft drinks, packaged snacks (chips, cookies), reconstituted meat products (e.g., chicken nuggets), breakfast cereals, and many ready-to-eat meals. The primary goal of ultra-processing is to create branded, appealing products that can displace less processed options in daily diets.

Are Processed Foods Unhealthy?

Processed foods often emerge as convenient solutions in the fast paced lifestyle that we lead. Some processed foods, particularly those fortified with essential vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, can indeed play a beneficial role in supplementing a person’s daily nutrient intake.

For example, iron and vitamin B12-fortified baby foods can help prevent anemia, vitamin D-enriched milk combats rickets, and iodized salt prevents goiter. These examples highlight the potential for processed foods to address specific nutritional deficiencies.

However, despite these occasional benefits, the vast majority of processed foods pose significant health risks due to their high content of saturated fats, sugar, salt, and excessive calories.

Numerous scientific studies have linked high consumption of processed foods to an increased risk of various health issues, including cardiovascular disorders, metabolic disorders such as obesity and diabetes, coronary heart disease, and cerebrovascular diseases.

Research indicates that ultra-processed foods can negatively impact metabolism and cardiovascular function by disrupting satiety signals and altering the body’s glycemic response. Further, certain substances formed during the ultra-processing of foods are known to trigger the onset and progression of cardiometabolic disorders. For example, acrylamide, a contaminant produced during food heat treatment, and acrolein, a compound formed when heating fat products, can significantly elevate the risk of cardiovascular problems.

Even packaging materials, such as bisphenol A, and additives like glutamate, sulfite, and carrageenan, have been shown to have adverse effects on cardiovascular health.

Another major concern with ultra-processed foods is their tendency to displace the consumption of unprocessed or minimally processed foods. These whole foods are inherently more nutritious, offering higher levels of vitamins, minerals, dietary fibers, and other beneficial compounds that are crucial for overall health.

There is enough evidence detailing the detrimental side effects of ultra-processed foods and that is alarming. Significant correlations have been established between high intake of processed food and an increased risk of irritable bowel syndrome and cancer. Moreover, the consumption of specific ultra-processed foods, including sweetened beverages, processed meats, and red meats, has been associated with higher mortality rates.

According to the SUN prospective cohort study, which involved 19,899 participants aged 20 to 91 years, a daily intake of more than four servings of ultra-processed food was independently linked to a 62% higher risk of all-cause mortality. The study also showed that each additional serving of ultra-processed food increased the all-cause mortality risk by 18%.

Children who consume large amounts of ultra-processed foods are more susceptible to developing dyslipidemia, obesity, and hypertension later in life. Similarly, studies have demonstrated that the percentage of calories a pregnant woman derives from ultra-processed food can predict gestational weight gain and infant body fat.