ESC Report: Ultra‑Processed Foods Raise Heart Risk
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- European Society of Cardiology issued a consensus statement warning that high intake of ultra‑processed foods is a major cardiovascular risk factor.
- Professor Luigina Guasti said ultra‑processed foods have largely replaced traditional diets and are linked to obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease, yet this risk is not yet in patient dietary advice.
- Research in the report shows adults with the highest ultra‑processed food consumption have up to 19% higher risk of heart disease, 13% higher risk of atrial fibrillation, and 65% higher risk of cardiovascular death versus low consumers.
- European Heart Journal published the consensus, which aggregates all current studies on ultra‑processed foods and cardiovascular outcomes.
- National dietary guidelines across Europe still focus on nutrients rather than food processing, even though ultra‑processed foods provide 61% of calories in the Netherlands and 54% in the United Kingdom.
- Doctors are urged to ask patients about ultra‑processed food intake and advise reduction alongside exercise, smoking cessation, alcohol moderation, and nutrition counseling.
- Researchers note that most evidence is observational and call for long‑term intervention trials to test whether cutting ultra‑processed foods improves heart health.
Why it matters: Patients with or at risk for cardiovascular disease will receive stronger dietary counseling, while clinicians are urged to address ultra‑processed food intake alongside traditional lifestyle advice, potentially prompting food manufacturers to reformulate products to meet new health expectations and could influence public health policy.
