Curious Cook: Silent killers

The increase in food insecurity will cause the rise of industrial cheap fast foods. — FOODIE FACTOR/Pexels

In one of the most blindingly obvious research papers ever written, an American study proclaimed that Ultra-Processed Foods (UPFs) are “silent killers”. The paper stated that novel ingredients never before encountered by human physiology until only a few decades ago are hazardous to human health, and noted that around 60% of US adult diets, and almost 70% of US children’s daily diets contain such novel ingredients.

In terms of calories, an average of 80% of the daily calories are derived from eating UPFs in parts of northern America. Novel ingredients often found in UPFs include seed-based oils, artificial sweeteners, processed starches, and food texture/preservative compounds such as maltodextrin, carrageenan, mono- and di-glycerides, carboxymethylcellulose, polysorbate, propionates, lecithin, nitrites, sulphites, etc.