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Are Some Ultraprocessed Foods Worse Than Others? | A new study may offer the biggest clues yet.
The New York Times ^ | Sept. 5, 2024Updated 11:40 a.m. ET | Alice Callahan

Posted on 09/06/2024 12:34:52 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum

Name a common condition — heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, cancer, dementia, irritable bowel syndrome — and chances are good that following a diet high in ultraprocessed foods has been linked to it.

But the ultraprocessed food category is large and wide-ranging. It makes up an estimated 73 percent of the U.S. food supply, and contains stereotypically “unhealthy” products like sodas, candies and hot dogs as well as seemingly “healthy” ones like whole grain breads, breakfast cereals, flavored yogurts and plant milks. It’s a “hodgepodge of foods,” some of which are likely more harmful than others, said Josiemer Mattei, an associate professor of nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

On Monday, Dr. Mattei and her colleagues published one of the largest and longest studies on ultraprocessed foods and heart health to date. In it, they analyzed the risks of consuming these foods, and teased out the worst offenders.

An Overall Risk of Ultraprocessed Foods

The new study, published in a Lancet journal, included more than 200,000 adults in the United States. They filled out detailed diet questionnaires beginning in the 1980s and early 1990s, and completed them again every two to four years for about 30 years. Most of the participants in the study were white and worked as health professionals. The researchers looked at how the participants’ ultraprocessed food consumption related to their chances of developing cardiovascular disease.

After adjusting for risk factors like smoking, family health history, sleep and exercise, the researchers found that those who consumed the most ultraprocessed foods were 11 percent more likely to develop cardiovascular disease and 16 percent more likely to develop coronary heart disease during the study period, compared with those who consumed the least ultraprocessed foods. The highest consumers also had a slightly, but not significantly,...

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Humor
KEYWORDS: food; processed
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I heard an interesting tidbit the other day; when Americans move to Europe, where they have far more unprocessed foods, they lose weight. When Europeans move to America, where most of the food is processed, they gain weight.
1 posted on 09/06/2024 12:34:52 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

I used to work for a multi national company and the majority were Euros and every one them I saw but a couple were thin.

The other two maybe a tad overweight.


2 posted on 09/06/2024 12:46:40 PM PDT by wally_bert (I cannot be sure for certain, but in my personal opinion I am certain that I am not sure..)
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To: wally_bert

Let’s call that a study. I’d say you’re owed some grant money.


3 posted on 09/06/2024 12:48:35 PM PDT by gundog (It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. )
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

That’s true for me. When I spend a month in Europe I lose a lot of weight without even trying.

It’s happened many times.


4 posted on 09/06/2024 12:58:07 PM PDT by tired&retired (Blessings )
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To: E. Pluribus Unum
seemingly “healthy” ones like whole grain breads, breakfast cereals, flavored yogurts and plant milks

Hold on there. I take issue with this. Since when are whole grain breads and plant milks "seemingly healthy?" They ARE healthy. Sugar bombs like flavored yogurts and breakfast cereals, not so much.

5 posted on 09/06/2024 12:58:18 PM PDT by Lizavetta
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

Yet we have had hot dogs, sausages, soft drinks for over 100 years. Didn’t hear about weight/cancer problems then.


6 posted on 09/06/2024 12:58:30 PM PDT by kaktuskid
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To: kaktuskid

They didn’t have the additives that we have now.


7 posted on 09/06/2024 1:02:27 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum (The worst thing about censorship is █████ ██ ████ ████ ████ █ ███████ ████. FJB.)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

Pretty much says it all.


8 posted on 09/06/2024 1:03:16 PM PDT by Jane Long (The role of the GOP: to write sharply-worded letters as America becomes a communist hell-hole.)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

“Tomato” “Tomahto”

smh


9 posted on 09/06/2024 1:03:33 PM PDT by logi_cal869 (-cynicus the "concern troll" a/o 10/03/2018 /!i!! &@$%&*(@ -)
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To: kaktuskid

Gluttony.

Sodas were 6 and 10 0z in recycled bottles when I was young.


10 posted on 09/06/2024 1:05:22 PM PDT by Chickensoup
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To: kaktuskid

Yet we have had hot dogs, sausages, soft drinks for over 100 years. Didn’t hear about weight/cancer problems then.


🙃

Really?

The grains being processed, today, are nothing like the grains our ancestors (even our grandparents/great-grandparents) ate.

Completely modified ... GMO.

Cured meats, sugary drinks ... all adulterated with chemicals to *enhance* flavor.

NO THANKS! You can have them.


11 posted on 09/06/2024 1:06:46 PM PDT by Jane Long (The role of the GOP: to write sharply-worded letters as America becomes a communist hell-hole.)
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To: logi_cal869

:-)

Call the whole thing off.

No, wait ... better not.

Hopefully, RFK Jr will be involved with the Trump admin to start cleaning up our food supplies.

Everything’s so d@m regulated ... except the ONE thing we consume ... our food ... compared to other countries.


12 posted on 09/06/2024 1:08:39 PM PDT by Jane Long (The role of the GOP: to write sharply-worded letters as America becomes a communist hell-hole.)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum
I can't find the meme, but there was one the other day that stated the best hustle they pulled off was getting us to focus on calories instead of the ingredients.

THAT meme has heightened my shopping eye to an advanced level.

13 posted on 09/06/2024 1:18:08 PM PDT by knarf
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To: Jane Long

I mock the government - surprise, surprise /s - at length in my book, including the so-called ‘food pyramid’.

Few know the truth & history of both it and that agency.

As evidenced by fauci fraud, special interest/corporate $$ poison every corner of our government, yet there are those who both believe the government and what passes for advertisements these days. The vast majority of people out there believe it’s healthy to eat fast food, restaurant food, food truck food & all manner of packaged food.

I have thoughts on solutions, but there’s no silver bullet, except: Let the buyer dictate the market.

Anyone reading this: It ain’t rocket science.

If you want your health back, EAT ZERO PACKAGED / BOTTLED FOODS FOR A YEAR (excepting staples for cooking/baking, but be smart). A rule I recommend is “3 or less” (ingredients). AND NO SEED OILS.

See what happens... (it will be AMAZING)


14 posted on 09/06/2024 1:27:14 PM PDT by logi_cal869 (-cynicus the "concern troll" a/o 10/03/2018 /!i!! &@$%&*(@ -)
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To: logi_cal869
If you want your health back, EAT ZERO PACKAGED / BOTTLED FOODS FOR A YEAR (excepting staples for cooking/baking, but be smart). A rule I recommend is “3 or less” (ingredients). AND NO SEED OILS.

You sound like the couple on Tucker Carlson a week or so ago. That's a good thing.

15 posted on 09/06/2024 2:04:36 PM PDT by The Truth Will Make You Free ( )
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

Yep and they are all the faux meat and insect products.


16 posted on 09/06/2024 2:23:11 PM PDT by RetiredTexasVet (We used to be a Republic, we are now a Fascist Klepto-Thugocracy.)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

When folks move to Israel, they lose weight. The old joke for Jews is that they make aliyah when they figure they are dying, then they move to Israel and live another 20 years. There is some truth to that by personal experience.


17 posted on 09/06/2024 2:35:39 PM PDT by silent majority rising (When it is dark enough, men see the stars. Ralph Waldo Emerson)
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To: The Truth Will Make You Free

The problem is that it’s not panacea, but certainly a step toward a general awakening...

(I wouldn’t have written a book that I could explain in a paragraph for a ‘cure’...)


18 posted on 09/06/2024 3:31:37 PM PDT by logi_cal869 (-cynicus the "concern troll" a/o 10/03/2018 /!i!! &@$%&*(@ -)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

The poor quality of the American diet is commonly attributed to soft drinks, snacks, and ready to eat home meals.


19 posted on 09/06/2024 3:39:11 PM PDT by Rockingham
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To: Lizavetta

“Hold on there. I take issue with this. Since when are whole grain breads and plant milks “seemingly healthy?” They ARE healthy. Sugar bombs like flavored yogurts and breakfast cereals, not so much.”

I don’t know about whole grain breads, but plant milks are anything but healthy. They are entirely fake. They go through multiple processes with all sorts of additives and sweeteners to make them halfway palatable. I wouldn’t touch any of them with a barge pole. Simple whole milk is the best. It has least amount of handling.


20 posted on 09/06/2024 3:41:27 PM PDT by Nipfan (The desire to save humanity is always a false front for the urge to rule it - H L Mencken)
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