What Are Ultra-Processed Foods?

Processing foods changes them from their natural state. Ultra-processed foods are made from substances extracted from foods, such as fats, starches, added sugars, and hydrogenated fats. They may also contain additives like artificial colors and flavors or stabilizers.

What Ingredients Are Used in Ultra-Processed Foods?

Ingredients used in UPFs include food substances of no or rare culinary use and classes of additives whose function is to make the final product palatable (tasty) or often hyper-palatable (“cosmetic additives”). Food substances of no or rare culinary use that are used only in manufacturing UPFs include varieties of sugars (fructose, high-fructose corn syrup, ‘fruit juice concentrates’, invert sugar, maltodextrin, dextrose, lactose), modified oils (hydrogenated or interesterified oils), and modified protein sources (hydrolysed proteins, soya protein isolate, gluten, casein, whey protein, and mechanically separated meat). Cosmetic additives used in the manufacture of ultra-processed foods include flavors, flavor enhancers, colors, emulsifiers, emulsifying salts, sweeteners, thickeners, and anti-foaming, bulking, carbonating, foaming, gelling, and glazing agents. These classes of additives disguise undesirable sensory properties created by ingredients, processes, or packaging used in the manufacture of ultra-processed foods to give the final product sensory properties especially attractive to see, taste, smell, and/or touch. In other words, the additives make food that would not be desirable, desirable.

Characteristics of Ultra-Processed Foods

Ultra-processed foods are less filling than whole, or natural, foods. They may also raise your blood sugars higher than minimally processed and whole foods. They are also usually higher in calories and sugar and lower in protein and fiber. UPFs are associated with obesity.  They are not as nutritional or healthful as whole foods. Many UPFs are snack foods that promote mindless eating, replacing the need or desire for a real meal. In addition, they may contain pro-inflammatory ingredients, such as refined sugars (carbohydrates) and unhealthy fats such as corn oil.

Examples of Ultra-Processed Foods

It is not hard to find examples of ultra-processed foods. The easiest way it so look at the ingredients listed for the food product. UPFs’ ingredient lists tend to be fairly long and/or contain some of the telltale ingredients listed above.

Telltale signs that a food is ultra-processed:

• Five or more ingredients.
• Added sugar, salt, oils, fats, stabilizers, and preservatives.
• Additives that imitate the flavor, color, or texture of less processed foods.
• Ingredients not found in nature, such as high fructose corn syrup.

Common examples of ultra-processed foods are:

Eating Ultra-Processed Foods Is Associated with Many Health Issues

Studies have found that those who consumed more ultra-processed foods had higher risks of cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, and cerebrovascular disease.

One review, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) in 2024, looked at 45 studies involving almost 10 million participants. The review authors suggest that eating more ultra-processed foods is linked to a higher risk of dying from any cause and has ties to 32 health conditions, including heart disease, mental health disorders, obesity, and type 2 diabetes.

Several prospective and cross-sectional studies have shown positive associations between UPF consumption and the risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and cancer.