These processed foods could lead to early death: study says

Choosing what to eat is a grave decision.

Eating ultra-processed foods can put you at risk for an earlier death, according to a new study. 

The study, published Wednesday in The BMJ journal, analyzed data from over 100,000 health professionals with no history of diseases like cancer, diabetes or cardiovascular issues over a period of 30 years.

The participants were surveyed on their lifestyle every two years from 1986 to 2018 and they were questioned on their dietary habits every four years, CNN explained. 

People who ate a high amount of processed foods, which averaged out to seven servings a day, had a 4% higher risk of death and a 9% increased risk of a neuro-generative death specifically, the study found. 

The group that ate the lowest amount of processed food ate roughly three servings per day. The study authors noted that some processed foods were worse than others and that the correlation between eating processed foods and early death is “moderate.”

“The positive associations were mainly driven by meat/poultry/seafood based ready-to-eat products, sugar and artificially sweetened beverages, dairy-based desserts, and ultra-processed breakfast foods,” Dr. Mingyang Song, associate professor of clinical epidemiology and nutrition at Harvard’s TH Chan School of Public Health, said in the study. 

He explained that some processed foods, like whole grain bread, weren’t necessarily as unhealthy as processed meat, poultry, and seafood and sugar and don’t need to be avoided completely. 

“Cereals, whole grain breads, for example, they are also considered ultra-processed food, but they contain various beneficial nutrients like fiber, vitamins and minerals,” he told CNN. 

However, consumers should still read nutrition labels carefully, since some cereals — although fortified with minerals and vitamins — can still contain high amounts of sugar and be low in fiber. Other ultra-processed breakfast foods can include things like cereal bars, breakfast sausages, packaged breads (where most of the fiber has been removed), or fruit-sweetened yogurts (which can contain certain emulsifiers and other additives).

“I do think people should try to avoid or limit the consumption of certain ultra-processed foods, such as processed meat, sugar-sweetened beverages and also potentially artificially sweetened beverages,” he added. 

Song said that if people eat a healthy diet overall, they shouldn’t be too concerned. 

“Generally, a healthy diet consists of many fresh fruits and vegetables and limits processed foods,” according to Healthline. 

“If people maintain a generally healthy diet, I don’t think they need to be like scared or be freaked out. The overall dietary pattern is still the predominant factor determining the health outcomes,” Song told CNN.

This isn’t the first study to suggest a correlation between eating processed food and detriment to health. Other studies suggest that ultra-processed foods can cause cancer.