Mixed
A poly-metabolite score derived from serum and urine metabolomics can accurately predict and discriminate between high (80% energy) and low/zero (0% energy) ultra-processed food (UPF) intake in free-living populations.
Current dietary self-reporting methods for ultra-processed foods are prone to error and misclassification. This research identifies specific blood and urine metabolite patterns that serve as objective biomarkers for UPF intake. For researchers, these scores improve the accuracy of studying UPF's health impacts. For individuals, it underscores that 'ultra-processed' is a biological reality detectable in the body, not just a label on a package, highlighting the metabolic complexity introduced by industrial food processing.
Within the cross-over feeding trial, the poly-metabolite scores discriminated, within individual, between UPF diet phases (P paired t-test<1x10-5).
Why this rating
Strong evidence combining a large observational study (n=718) with a rigorous randomized controlled crossover feeding trial (n=20) validation.
Source
Identification of Poly-Metabolite Scores for Diets High in Ultra-Processed Food in an Observational Study with Validation in a Randomized Controlled Crossover-Feeding Trial
Leila Abar et al. · medRxiv · 2025
DOI 10.1101/2025.02.14.25322270
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