Ultra-processed foods trigger circuits of addiction and compulsive consumption, even in childhood. The studies collected over the years by Michael Moss find further confirmation in a recent study by the Federal University of São Paulo (Brazil).
NOVA, how to distinguish foods based on their level of processing and ‘artificiality’
The University of São Paulo developed an innovative food classification criterion in 2016. (1) To update nutrition education with respect to the everyday choices offered to global consumers today. The NOVA system distinguishes four categories of foods:
1) Unprocessed or minimally processed foods. Water, ‘edible parts of plants (seeds, fruits, leaves, stems, roots)‘, mushrooms and algae. But also simpler animal products, such as eggs and milk, unprocessed meats,
2) Ingredients for home cooking. Oils and fats, vinegar and salt, sugar and other substances used in food preparation and seasoning,
3) processed foods (processed food). From bread to pasta, cheeses, meats and fish in the simplest processes, vegetable preserves,
4 )ultra-processed food (ultra-processed food). Sweets and snacks saturated with fat, added sugars and/or salt, sugary drinks, frankfurters and other products with mechanically separated meat and preservatives other than salt (e.g., nitrites), ready meals and industrial pizzas.
‘Ultra-process foods‘ (UPF) are distinguished by the presence of food additives and processed ingredients that are not used in the home kitchen. That is, the ones ‘that our grandmothers would never recognize as ingredients.’ Such as substances extracted from simple foods (e.g., casein, whey, gluten) and those obtained from further processing (e.g., hydrogenated oils, hydrolyzed proteins, modified starches, invert sugar).
Junk food, on closer inspection, coincides precisely with the category of ultra-processed foods. Where the presence of ingredients unfamiliar to home kitchens (e.g., palm oil) and excesses of fats and saturated fats, added sugars and/or salt lead to completely unbalanced nutritional profiles. And that is precisely why junk food is also identified by the acronym HFSS(High in Fats, Sugar and Sodium).
Ultraprocessed foods and food addiction, the Brazilian study
The ‘Federal University of São Paulo‘ explored the consumption of ultra-processed foods and its association with food addiction(food addiction). (2) The study was conducted on 139 obese and overweight children of both sexes, ages 9-11, attending two public schools in the Brazilian metropolis. Ninety-five percent of the overweight and obese children examined by the study had at least one of the seven symptoms associated with food addiction; 24% had been diagnosed with food addiction. The researchers identified a direct relationship between food addiction and the frequency of consumption of ultra-processed foods and added sugars.
The vicious link between sugar, fat and salt deliberately added to foods that could instead be made with balanced nutritional profiles is thus worth making an artificial ‘palatability’ to which addiction and compulsive consumption are associated. ‘Identifying foods that may be associated with addiction is very important for the proper treatment and prevention of childhood obesity, which continues to be one of the world’s biggest health problems‘, explain the authors of the study.
Food addiction, ‘foodaddiction,’ is an eating disorder that manifests itself in the frequent and uncontrolled consumption of precisely ‘palatable’ foods, such as HFSS (high in fat, sugar, and salt), in quantities that greatly exceed energy requirements. (3) From binge eating to ‘bingeeating,’ overeating leads to a loss of control and a corresponding sense of deprivation, in the deficiency phases of high-calorie foods. Albeit in the awareness of harmfulness to health, resulting in aggravation of mood disorders, susceptibility to stress, low self-esteem. (4)
The ultra-processed foods, with fat and sugar or salt added beyond measure, are the most addictive. As had been found by researchers at the University of Michigan (USA), among others. ‘The current study provides preliminary evidence that not all foods are equally implicated in addiction-like eating behavior, and highly processed foods, which may share some characteristics with drugs of abuse (e.g., high doses, rapid absorption rate) appear to be particularly associated with ‘food addiction‘. (5)
Junk food, the way forward
The way forward for the prevention of even childhood obesity, overweight and related diseasesis clear. Thepublic and localhealth emergency has serious social, clinical and public expenditure implications.
There is an urgent need to introduce summary nutrition information on labels, following the ‘NutriScore‘ model. Taxing junk food because of sugar and/or fat contents (e.g.
Sugar Tax
), banning all forms of advertising of it as well as its sale in vending machines and establishments near schools and sports-recreational areas.
The Ferrero group, the world’s leading candidate in ‘ultra-processed foods,’ has for years declared war on international health policies that should address the ongoing global emergency with the tools described above. And it is sad to note how the vicious Nutella lobby keeps both Italian governments of all colors (and Matteo Salvini’s recent ad is memorable) and the leading agricultural confederation in Europe at its beck and call.
On closer inspection, Coldiretti-the food opinion factory in Italy-has precisely nothing to do, in its associational identity, with the chemical junk food industries. Beyond favor exchanges between individuals at the top of their respective organizations, in that clientelistic logic typical of our country. ‘Ultra-processed foods‘ are associated with a prevalence of neoplasm risk, among other misfortunes. (6) They would do well, the self-styled champions of the Mediterranean diet, to distance themselves and represent their members seriously.
Dario Dongo and Sabrina Bergamini
Notes
(1) See Monteiro CA, Cannon G, Levy RB et al. (2016). ‘NOVA, the star shines bright – Food classification. Public health‘. World Nutrition, Volume 7, Number 1-3, January-March 2016. https://worldnutritionjournal.org/index.php/wn/article/view/5/4
(2) Filgueiras AR, Pires de Almeida VB, Koch Nogueira PC et al. (2019). ‘Exploring the consumption of ultra-processed foods and its association with food addiction in overweight children‘. Appetite. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2018.11.005
(3) Yvonne H.C.Ya, 1Carrie D.Gottlieb, Lindsay C.Krasna, Marc N.Potenza, (2014).‘Chapter 7 – Food Addiction: Evidence, Evaluation, and Treatment‘. Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-407724-9.00007-0
(4) See‘State of Mind, the Journal of Psychological Science‘
https://www.stateofmind.it/2018/10/food-addiction-fletcher-kenny/
https://www.stateofmind.it/2015/03/alimentazione-dipendenze/
(5) Schulte EM, Oats NM, Gearhardt AN. (2015) ‘Which foods may be addictive? The roles of processing, fat content, and glycemic load‘. Plos One. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0117959
(6) Increased consumption of ultra-processed foods (+10%) was indeed associated with an increased risk of premature mortality from cancer (+14%).
See Fiolet Thibault, Srour Bernard, Sellem Laury, Kesse Guyot Emmanuelle, Allès Benjamin, Méjean Caroline et al. (2018). ‘Consumption of ultra-processed foods and cancer risk: results from NutriNet-Santé prospective cohort‘. Bmj https://www.bmj.com/content/360/bmj.k322
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
Journalist. Consumption, rights, nutrition, social, environment. Head of Consumers Help. She collaborated with ResetDOC, Il Riformista, La Nuova Ecologia, IMGPress.
