As we see yet more headlines about the latest edible bogeyman (sorry about that mental image), what did the study actually show? And what does ultra-processed even mean?
Something I think is missing from all of these articles is that there are people who don't have much choice but to eat ultra processed foods. My Mum, for eg, is elderly and unsteady on her feet, so she usually eats some sort of ready meal. Occasionally she'll do herself fish fingers and chips, or sausages and chips. She does have salad and fruit, but the majority of her diet is ultra processed. For her, there's no real choice - she doesn't have the physical capacity to cook a meal from scratch, so it's either these ready meals or nothing. I know which I'd prefer for her.
Something I think is missing from all of these articles is that there are people who don't have much choice but to eat ultra processed foods. My Mum, for eg, is elderly and unsteady on her feet, so she usually eats some sort of ready meal. Occasionally she'll do herself fish fingers and chips, or sausages and chips. She does have salad and fruit, but the majority of her diet is ultra processed. For her, there's no real choice - she doesn't have the physical capacity to cook a meal from scratch, so it's either these ready meals or nothing. I know which I'd prefer for her.