Now an international team of researchers is attacking both companies and politicians in a series of three studies on people's changing dietary patterns.
The message, published in the journal Lancet , is that there are clear links between consumption of ultra-processed foods and an increased risk of a range of diseases – and that consumption of these foods is increasing almost worldwide. The researchers also see that sales are controlled by large global corporations with great power to influence both decision-makers and consumers.
A few companies
In the first study, the researchers reviewed a large body of research in the field and found that consumption of foods, drinks, snacks and sweets that are high in sugar and unhealthy fats but low in nutrition is increasing globally. At the same time, people are eating less food that is minimally or slightly processed, which in itself also has negative health effects.
The second study examines how ultra-processed foods are marketed – not least to children. In it, the researchers call for stricter regulations and make healthier foods cheaper and more accessible, for example through subsidies.
In the third part of the series, the researchers conclude that a handful of companies dominate the food market. These include Nestlé, Pepsico, Unilever and Coca-Cola, all of which have great power over where and how their products are exposed. This can be compared to how tobacco companies have worked with lobbying, according to the researchers.
"This shift in how we eat is being driven by powerful global corporations that make huge profits by prioritizing ultra-processed products. They can afford extensive marketing and political lobbying to stop efforts to promote healthy eating," said Carlos Monteiro, a professor of nutrition and public health at the University of São Paolo in Brazil and one of the study authors, during a digital press conference.
Will want to eat more
The food is designed with a taste and texture that makes us want to eat more, the researchers note, which contributes to increased sales. As an example, they cite that the share of ultra-processed foods in total food purchases has tripled in Spain over the past 30 years.
The researchers believe that ultra-processed foods are also unhealthy because they expose us to chemicals from packaging and additives.
"It's not that every single food that is ultra-processed is dangerous. But when they collectively make up an increasing part of people's diets, it becomes a health threat," said co-author Philip Baker, a researcher in global food systems at the University of Sydney, during the press conference.
The studies contain proposals and calls for, among other things, the introduction of warning labels on packaging, taxes on certain products, and bans on ultra-processed food in public institutions such as schools and hospitals.
Petra Hedbom/TT
Facts: Ultra-processed food
TT
Ultra-processed food usually refers to a classification based on a system called Nova, which divides foods into four categories.
Category 1 is food that has undergone minimal processing, such as freezing, pasteurization or drying. Class 4 is ultra-processed food, which has been highly and industrially processed. It can also be food that contains ingredients that are not used in traditional cooking, such as additives in the form of, for example, coloring or flavoring.
Examples of ultra-processed foods include ice cream, soda, candy and chocolate, hot dogs, French fries and chips. Vegan meat substitutes and protein bars are also included in the group.
Facts: Swedish National Food Administration, Lancet.
In a series of three scientific studies published in the Lancet, 43 researchers from around the world present their collective knowledge about ultra-processed foods and how they affect our health.
Their conclusion is, among other things, that there are strong associations between high consumption of ultra-processed food and increased risk of several diseases, including type 2 diabetes, depression and cardiovascular disease.
The researchers behind the studies work in fields such as medicine, public health, epidemiology, nutrition, biomedicine, physiology, economics and social sciences.
