Here's how these treats became holiday staples
The difference with ultra-processed food is that ingredients are added that are unrecognizable. The final ingredient list contains things you would never find at home.
Our craving of unhealthy food actually has its roots in evolutionary biology, back when we had to hunt for our food and might need to survive for long periods of time between catches.
But there's another element involved. Junk food companies have a vested interest in our continued consumption of these unhealthy foods, even as the evidence about them gets harder to ignore.
In other words, these foods are manipulated to be as convenient and tasty as possible, to generate big profits for the companies that make them.
Nowadays, much of our food has been processed to some extent—unless you've grown it yourself. But not all processing is necessarily bad.
Time and money is spent engineering food that tastes so good it feels almost impossible to stop eating it. Are we being manipulated on a massive scale?
Whether your poison is sweet, salty, or fatty (or a combination of all three), junk food consumption tends to be habit forming.
A rise in blood sugar levels could also be a side effect of eating ultra-processed foods. This in turn could be why, in some studies, their consumption has been linked to increased risks of cancer, obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and depression.
Ultra-processed food is fast and easy to digest, things our digestive system is not set up to handle. When food is digested too quickly, the brain's signal of feeling full has been bypassed.
Ultra-processed foods are highly modified. They usually contain a lot of added salt, sugar, fat, and industrial chemical additives.
Reducing the amount of fast food in your diet, and being mindful about how much ultra-processed food you do consume are some other steps you can take to lower the potential for harm.
Sources: (CNN) (Salon) (Zoe) (National Geographic)
See also: Can red meat cause type 2 diabetes?
It's why we might find it so hard to turn down 'unhealthy' food choices: in some ways, our own biology is working against us.
Ultra-processed foods undergo industrial processes. These can include moulding or hydrogenation, as well as the inclusion of additives such as stabilizers, dyes, emulsifiers, or flavor enhancers.
Adding more minimally-processed food to your diet can help you feel fuller for longer, and prevent cravings for unhealthy alternatives.
When food has been designed to appeal to our sense of palatability, while skipping our normal digestive process so we don't register when we're full, it's all too easy to overeat.
Fruits and vegetables, dried fruits and nuts, whole grain starches (such as oats), fresh meat, eggs, natural yogurt, and teas/coffee/water are healthy alternatives.
It's a double whammy to our digestive system: despite receiving many more calories, the foods being consumed provide even less macronutrients.
Aside from weight gain, some scientists also believe the lack of fiber in most ultra-processed food can lead to a less healthy gut microbiome.
Another problem with food that's been broken down and reassembled again is that it might no longer contain the nutrients we need and crave.
Sadly, many people rely on ultra-processed foods to feed their family, especially where affordability is an issue. These foods tend to be cheaper as well as taking less time to prepare.
But problems arise because these are the same reasons why it's very difficult for some people to stop eating once they begin.
Some of these manufacturing processes actually "predigest" the food's ingredients. Due to this predigestion, the body's own signals of fullness are hacked.
In general, processing means food has been treated in some way to alter its natural state, to improve the taste or give it a longer life. Canning, fermenting, and freezing are all types of processing.
Crops such as wheat, potatoes, and corn are broken down into oils, protein isolates, starchy flours, and fats. These substances are called "slurries" by food manufacturers.
In industrial food production processes, those slurries are heated, pounded, and shaped according to the manufacturer's wishes. Artificial colors, flavors, and emulsifiers have already been added too, so the slurries resemble something tasty when they're finished processing.
Sodas, breakfast cereals, noodles, microwave meals, candy, hot dogs, store-bought bread, packaged snacks, and energy/granola bars are common ultra-processed foods to look out for.
By checking food labels, bringing a packed lunch to work, and cooking at home as much as possible, you can reduce your consumption of processed foods.
As a result, we're living in an "eat more" environment, manufactured by the food industry. By activating the pleasure centers of the brain and hacking hormones, the experience is enjoyable.
There is something so appealing about that first donut, yet, after you've eaten it, you might find yourself craving another, then another... and before you know it you've consumed more calories than what's allotted for a day! Ultra-processed foods can combine sugar, salt, and fat in a way that makes them so hard to put down, but are there other factors at play? And is the food industry using body and brain hacks to trick us into consuming more and more of these unhealthy foods in excess?
Read through this gallery to find out more.
You're not alone! Many of us indulge in ultra-processed foods that don't leave us feeling very satisfied. Even after eating, the cravings continue.
How the food industry tricks you into eating more and more ultra-processed foods
Why it's so difficult to put down that bag of chips!
FOOD Unhealthy habits
There is something so appealing about that first donut, yet, after you've eaten it, you might find yourself craving another, then another... and before you know it you've consumed more calories than what's allotted for a day! Ultra-processed foods can combine sugar, salt, and fat in a way that makes them so hard to put down, but are there other factors at play? And is the food industry using body and brain hacks to trick us into consuming more and more of these unhealthy foods in excess?
Read through this gallery to find out more.