Ultra-Processed Food Consumption Is Associated with Abdominal Obesity: A Prospective Cohort Study in Older Adults

Abstract

Introduction and objectives. Ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption has been associated with increased incidence of cardiovascular disease and its risk factors. The aim of this study was to assess, for the first time in the literature, the prospective association between UPF consumption and the incidence of abdominal obesity (AO) in older adults. Methods. The study sample consists of 652 participants in the Seniors Study on Nutrition and Cardiovascular Risk in Spain: Seniors-ENRICA-1 study, (mean age 67, 44% women). At baseline, standardized anthropometric measurements were collected (including abdominal circumference). After a median follow-up of six years, the abdominal circumference was measured again, and the incidence of abdominal obesity (AO) was calculated, defined as an abdominal perimeter ≥102 cm in men and ≥88 cm in women. At baseline, dietary information was collected using a computerized and validated dietary history. Information was obtained on the usual diet in the previous year. A total number of 880 foods were classified according to their degree of processing following the NOVA classification. Foods or drinks formulated mostly or entirely from substances derived from foods, with little or no presence of the unaltered original food were classified as UPF. For each participant, the percentage of energy from UPF was derived and sex-specific tertiles were calculated. Logistic regression models were built and adjusted for sociodemographic, lifestyle, morbidity, and drug treatment variables. Results. Among those participants without AO at baseline, 177 developed AO during follow-up. The average consumption of UPF was 17% of total energy (7% in the first tertile; 29% in the third tertile). The odds ratio (95% confidence interval) for incident AO risk when compared to the lowest tertile was: 1.55 (0.99–2.44) for the second tertile of UPF consumption and 1.62 (1.04–2.54) for the third tertile; p for linear trend: 0.037. Results remained statistically significant after adjusting for potential dietary confounding factors such as fiber consumption, the intake of very long chain omega-3 fatty acids and adherence to the Mediterranean diet. Conclusions. A higher UPF consumption is positively associated with incident AO in older adults in Spain. These findings extend the current evidence of the detrimental effect of UPF consumption on cardiometabolic health.

Ultra-Processed Food Is Positively Associated With Depressive Symptoms Among United States Adults

“…In this study, the association between UPF and depressive symptoms is more significant among inactive people, which may be mediated by obesity. Previous literature has described a positive association between UPF and obesity (25,47,48).…”

Socioeconomic Characteristics and Trends in the Consumption of Ultra-Processed Foods in Korea from 2010 to 2018

“…Growing evidence has accumulated that the consumption of ultra-processed foods has positive associations with metabolic health [ 7 , 13 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 ] such as obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and diabetes, cardiovascular diseases [ 12 , 14 ], cancer [ 60 , 61 ], and mortality [ 9 , 62 , 63 ]. The adverse impacts of ultra-processed foods on human health have been explained by the poor nutrient profile of these foods [ 3 , 17 ], the low dietary quality [ 3 , 4 , 11 , 33 ] associated with the consumption of these foods, and the addictive eating behaviors induced by these foods, which may lead to overconsumption [ 7 , 64 ].…”

Review: The Consumption of Ultra-Processed Foods and Non-communicable Diseases in Latin America

“…These findings are consistent with the findings of the Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra (SUN) Project, a Spanish prospective study wherein consumption of ultra-processed foods was also found to be associated with an increased risk of overweight and obesity ( 6 ). In another Spanish cohort, the Seniors Study on Nutrition and Cardiovascular Risk in Spain: Seniors-ENRICA-1 cohort (mean age 67.1±5.8 years, 44% female), it was found that consuming UPF increased participants' likelihood of having abdominal obesity, a risk factor for cardio-metabolic dysfunction ( 7 ).…”

“…Evidence from cross-sectional and prospective studies points to a strong association between UPF consumption and overweight/obesity (5)(6)(7), hypertension (8), cardiovascular disease (CVD) (9), type-2 diabetes (10), cancer (11), and all-cause mortality risk (12)(13)(14). UPF deliver a poor nutrient profile (15) and their additives disrupt gut function (16)(17)(18).…”