If you've been paying any attention to health and nutrition news, you've undoubtedly heard the term "ultra-processed foods." But what exactly counts as a UPF? Sure, most snack foods, like chips and candy, are ultra-processed foods. But what about flavored yogurt? Or frozen veggie burgers? Or bread?
Health and nutrition reporter Alice Callahan explains that the term originated in Brazil, when scientists began studying the country's rise in obesity. They developed the term and brought it into the nutrition research world.
"People who consume more ultra-processed foods have a greater risk of some of the big chronic diseases that we see in our populations now, like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, a lot of gastrointestinal diseases, some mental health issues like depression and anxiety," Callahan says. "Even some cancers have been linked to ultra-processed foods and even obesity as well."
Nutritional epidemiologist Dr. Carlos Monteiro, who coined the term, also developed a four-tier system to classify food, ranging from the minimally to heavily processed. Group 4, aka ultra-processed foods, are foods that we typically can't make in our own kitchens because they involve ingredients such as high-fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, modified corn starch, and soy isolate (a concentrated protein).
"These are the ultra-processed foods and they make up a huge proportion of our food supply today. Somewhere between 60-70% of the foods that are sold and purchased in the US are ultra-processed," Callahan says.
If you don't want to avoid all ultra-processed foods, Callahan advises that you at least skip soda and other sugary drinks as well as processed meats.