Research
Macro partitioning
Ultra-processed foods act as significant vectors for 'risk ingredients' (added sugars, sodium, trans-fats, and cosmetic additives), contributing disproportionately to the intake of these harmful components compared to unprocessed foods.
Check labels for added sugars, sodium, and trans-fats. UPFs often contain high levels of these 'risk ingredients' even if they appear healthy (e.g., flavored yogurts, sauces). Reducing UPF intake naturally reduces the intake of these harmful components.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Caloric sweeteners comprised the dominant share of ingredients from UPFs and nearly the entire share of ingredients from UPBs... Vegetable oils made up a large share of the ingredients supplied exclusively from UPFs... Sodium was supplied from salt or salted ingredients added to UPF... Cosmetic additives increased everywhere, mostly from UPFs.
Why this rating
Based on quantitative analysis of sales data and ingredient volumes from the Euromonitor database.
Source
Ultra‐processed foods and the nutrition transition: Global, regional and national trends, food systems transformations and political economy drivers
Phillip Baker et al. · Obesity Reviews · 2020
narrative_reviewCited 1,110×
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