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Dai S, Wellens J, Yang N, Li D, Wang J, Wang L, Yuan S, He Y, Song P, Munger R, Kent MP, MacFarlane AJ, Mullie P, Duthie S, Little J, Theodoratou E, Li X. Ultra-processed foods and human health: An umbrella review and updated meta-analyses of observational evidence. Clin Nutr 2024; 43:1386-1394. [PMID: 38688162 DOI: 10.1016/j.clnu.2024.04.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Revised: 03/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS Ultra-processed food (UPF) intake has increased sharply over the last few decades and has been consistently asserted to be implicated in the development of non-communicable diseases. We aimed to evaluate and update the existing observational evidence for associations between ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption and human health. METHODS We searched Medline and Embase from inception to March 2023 to identify and update meta-analyses of observational studies examining the associations between UPF consumption, as defined by the NOVA classification, and a wide spectrum of health outcomes. For each health outcome, we estimated the summary effect size, 95% confidence interval (CI), between-study heterogeneity, evidence of small-study effects, and evidence of excess-significance bias. These metrics were used to evaluate evidence credibility of the identified associations. RESULTS This umbrella review identified 39 meta-analyses on the associations between UPF consumption and health outcomes. We updated all meta-analyses by including 122 individual articles on 49 unique health outcomes. The majority of the included studies divided UPF consumption into quartiles, with the lowest quartile being the reference group. We identified 25 health outcomes associated with UPF consumption. For observational studies, 2 health outcomes, including renal function decline (OR: 1.25; 95% CI: 1.18, 1.33) and wheezing in children and adolescents (OR: 1.42; 95% CI: 1.34, 1.49), showed convincing evidence (Class I); and five outcomes were reported with highly suggestive evidence (Class II), including diabetes mellitus, overweight, obesity, depression, and common mental disorders. CONCLUSIONS High UPF consumption is associated with an increased risk of a variety of chronic diseases and mental health disorders. At present, not a single study reported an association between UPF intake and a beneficial health outcome. These findings suggest that dietary patterns with low consumption of UPFs may render broad public health benefits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuhui Dai
- Department of Big Data in Health Science School of Public Health, Center of Clinical Big Data and Analytics of the Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Judith Wellens
- Translational Gastro-Intestinal Unit, Nuffield Department of Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK; KU Leuven Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism, Translational Research Center for Gastrointestinal Disorders (TARGID), Leuven, Belgium
| | - Nan Yang
- Department of Big Data in Health Science School of Public Health, Center of Clinical Big Data and Analytics of the Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Doudou Li
- School of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Jingjing Wang
- Department of Big Data in Health Science School of Public Health, Center of Clinical Big Data and Analytics of the Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Lijuan Wang
- Department of Big Data in Health Science School of Public Health, Center of Clinical Big Data and Analytics of the Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China; Centre for Global Health, Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Shuai Yuan
- Department of Big Data in Health Science School of Public Health, Center of Clinical Big Data and Analytics of the Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China; Unit of Cardiovascular and Nutritional Epidemiology, Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Yazhou He
- West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Peige Song
- School of Public Health and Women's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Ron Munger
- Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
| | - Monique Potvin Kent
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Patrick Mullie
- International Prevention Research Institute, Lyon, France; Belgian Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Susan Duthie
- School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, UK
| | - Julian Little
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Evropi Theodoratou
- Centre for Global Health, Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; Cancer Research UK Edinburgh Centre, Institute of Genetics and Cancer, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Xue Li
- Department of Big Data in Health Science School of Public Health, Center of Clinical Big Data and Analytics of the Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China; The Key Laboratory of Intelligent Preventive Medicine of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
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Cummings JR, Lipsky LM, Schwedhelm C, Liu A, Nansel TR. Associations of ultra-processed food intake with maternal weight change and cardiometabolic health and infant growth. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act 2022; 19:61. [PMID: 35619114 PMCID: PMC9137185 DOI: 10.1186/s12966-022-01298-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Accepted: 05/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Excessive intake of ultra-processed foods, formulated from substances extracted from foods or derived from food constituents, may be a modifiable behavioral risk factor for adverse maternal and infant health outcomes. Prior work has predominately examined health correlates of maternal ultra-processed food intake in populations with substantially lower ultra-processed food intake compared to the US population. This longitudinal study investigated relations of ultra-processed food intake with maternal weight change and cardiometabolic health and infant growth in a US cohort. METHODS Mothers in the Pregnancy Eating Attributes Study were enrolled at ≤12 weeks gestation and completed multiple 24-Hour Dietary Recalls within six visit windows through one-year postpartum (458 mothers enrolled, 321 retained at one-year postpartum). The NOVA (not an acronym) system categorized food and underlying ingredient codes based on processing level. Maternal anthropometrics were measured throughout pregnancy and postpartum, and infant anthropometrics were measured at birth and ages 2 months, 6 months, and 1 year. Maternal cardiometabolic markers were analyzed from blood samples obtained during the second and third trimesters. RESULTS Holding covariates and total energy intake constant, a 1-SD greater percent energy intake from ultra-processed foods during pregnancy was associated with 31% higher odds of excessive gestational weight gain (p = .045, 95% CI [1.01, 1.70]), 0.68±0.29 mg/L higher c-reactive protein during pregnancy (p = .021, 95% CI [0.10, 1.26]), 6.7±3.4% greater gestational weight gain retained (p = .049, 95% CI [0.03, 13.30]), and 1.09±0.36 kg greater postpartum weight retention (p = .003, 95% CI [0.38, 1.80]). No other significant associations emerged. CONCLUSIONS Ultra-processed food intake during pregnancy may be a modifiable behavioral risk factor for adverse maternal weight outcomes and inflammation. Randomized controlled trials are needed to test whether targeting ultra-processed food intake during pregnancy may support optimal maternal health. TRIAL REGISTRATION Clinicaltrials.gov. Registration ID - NCT02217462 . Date of registration - August 13, 2014.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenna R Cummings
- Social and Behavioral Sciences Branch, Division of Population Health Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 6710B Rockledge Drive, Bethesda, MD, 20817, USA
| | - Leah M Lipsky
- Social and Behavioral Sciences Branch, Division of Population Health Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 6710B Rockledge Drive, Bethesda, MD, 20817, USA
| | - Carolina Schwedhelm
- Molecular Epidemiology Research Group, Max-Delbrueck-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Berlin, Germany
| | - Aiyi Liu
- Biostatistics and Bioinformatics Branch, Division of Population Health Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 6710B Rockledge Drive, Bethesda, MD, 20817, USA
| | - Tonja R Nansel
- Social and Behavioral Sciences Branch, Division of Population Health Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 6710B Rockledge Drive, Bethesda, MD, 20817, USA.
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Dicken SJ, Batterham RL. The Role of Diet Quality in Mediating the Association between Ultra-Processed Food Intake, Obesity and Health-Related Outcomes: A Review of Prospective Cohort Studies. Nutrients 2021; 14:23. [PMID: 35010898 PMCID: PMC8747015 DOI: 10.3390/nu14010023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Revised: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 12/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Prospective cohort studies show that higher intakes of ultra-processed food (UPF) increase the risk of obesity and obesity-related outcomes, including cardiovascular disease, cancer and type 2 diabetes. Whether ultra-processing itself is detrimental, or whether UPFs just have a lower nutritional quality, is debated. Higher UPF intakes are inversely associated with fruit, vegetables, legumes and seafood consumption. Therefore, the association between UPFs and poor health could simply be from excess nutrient intake or from a less healthful dietary pattern. If so, adjustment for dietary quality or pattern should explain or greatly reduce the size of the significant associations between UPFs and health-related outcomes. Here, we provide an overview of the literature and by using a novel approach, review the relative impact of adjusting for diet quality/patterns on the reported associations between UPF intake and health-related outcomes in prospective cohort studies. We find that the majority of the associations between UPFs, obesity and health-related outcomes remain significant and unchanged in magnitude after adjustment for diet quality or pattern. Our findings suggest that the adverse consequences of UPFs are independent of dietary quality or pattern, questioning the utility of reformulation to mitigate against the obesity pandemic and wider negative health outcomes of UPFs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel J. Dicken
- Centre for Obesity Research, Department of Medicine, University College London (UCL), London WC1E 6JF, UK;
| | - Rachel L. Batterham
- Centre for Obesity Research, Department of Medicine, University College London (UCL), London WC1E 6JF, UK;
- Bariatric Centre for Weight Management and Metabolic Surgery, University College London Hospital (UCLH), London NW1 2BU, UK
- National Institute for Health Research, Biomedical Research Centre, University College London Hospital (UCLH), London W1T 7DN, UK
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