Hundreds of novel ingredients never encountered by human physiology are now found in nearly 60% of the average adult's diet and nearly 70% of children's diets in the United States, according to a recent study. From fizzy drinks to cereals and packaged snacks to processed meat, ultra-processed foods are packed with additives. Oil, fat, sugar, starch and sodium, as well as emulsifiers such as carrageenan, mono- and diglycerides, carboxymethylcellulose, polysorbate and soy lecithin continue to strip food of healthy nutrients while introducing other ingredients that could be detrimental to human health.

The unprecedented consumption of ultra-processed foods in the standard American diet could make these foods the new "silent" killer, as was unrecognized high blood pressure in previous decades

The study authors note that public health organizations are increasingly making use of a classification system that divides foods into four categories -- whole foods, culinary ingredients (items like butter, oil and salt), traditionally processed foods (such as bread and yogurt made with few ingredients), and ultra-processed foods -- foods that are industrially made and use ingredients not normally found in a domestic kitchen.

One plausible mechanism to explain the hazards is that ultra-processed foods contain emulsifiers and other additives that the mammalian gastrointestinal tract mostly does not digest, the authors suggest. These may act as a food source for human microbiota, and as such may be creating a dysbiotic microbiome that can, in the right host [individual], promote disease.

Although more studies are needed to determine whether ultra-processed foods contribute to currently rising rates of non-communicable diseases, the authors say in the meantime, all healthcare professionals should discuss the benefits of increasing consumption of whole foods and reducing consumption of ultra-processed foods.

To read the abstract of the article, published in the American Journal of Medicine, click here