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Cited by 484Consumer Attitudes and Food LabelingNutritional Studies and DietObesity, Physical Activity, Diet

Ultra-processed food intake and obesity: what really matters for health-processing or nutrient content?

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Poti, Jennifer M., Braga, Bianca, Qin, Bo·2017·Current Obesity Reports
DOI 10.1007/s13679-017-0285-4PMC PMC5787353
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Abstract

Purpose of review The aim of this narrative review was to summarize and critique recent evidence evaluating the association between ultra-processed food intake and obesity.Recent findings Four of five studies found that higher purchases or consumption of ultra-processed food was associated with overweight/obesity. Additional studies reported relationships between ultra-processed food intake and higher fasting glucose, metabolic syndrome, increases in total and LDL cholesterol, and risk of hypertension. It remains unclear whether associations can be attributed to processing itself or the nutrient content of ultra-processed foods. Only three of nine studies used a prospective design, and the potential for residual confounding was high. Recent research provides fairly consistent support for the association of ultra-processed food intake with obesity and related cardiometabolic outcomes. There is a clear need for further studies, particularly those using longitudinal designs and with sufficient control for confounding, to potentially confirm these findings in different populations and to determine whether ultra-processed food consumption is associated with obesity independent of nutrient content.

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  • Many potential negative effects of ultra-processed foods have been hypothesized to relate to high sugar, fat, and sodium and low protein and fiber.

    “Many of the potential negative effects of ultra-processed foods have been hypothesized to relate to their elevated sugar, fat, and sodium content while being low in protein, and fiber (Poti et al., 2017).”

    From Ultra-Processed Diets Cause Excess Calorie Intake and Weight Gain: An Inpatient Randomized Controlled Trial of Ad Libitum Food Intake (2019) · cites this paper as Poti et al., 2017

    In “Hypothesized mechanisms through nutrient content” (page unavailable), the review links potential adverse effects to high fat and refined-carbohydrate content and describes ultra-processed foods as high in added sugar and sodium. It also reports lower fiber content, but does not identify low protein as a characteristic or hypothesized mechanism. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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Authors
Poti, J. M., Braga, B., & Qin, B.
Affiliations
  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
  • Rutgers Cancer Institute (US)
Corresponding author
Poti, Jennifer M.
ORCID
Venue
Current Obesity Reports
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2017-10-25
Volume
6
Issue
4
Pages
420-431
ISSN
2162-4968 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1007/s13679-017-0285-4
PMC
PMC5787353
OpenAlex
W2765151660
Cited by
484
References
89
Citations by year
2026: 33 · 2025: 60 · 2024: 88 · 2023: 55 · 2022: 68 · 2021: 87 · 2020: 66 · 2019: 23 · 2018: 4
FWCI
4.09
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.springer.com/tdm (unspecified)
Locations
  • Current Obesity Reports (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Institutes of Health (R01DK098072, DK56350)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Consumer Attitudes and Food Labeling
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Nutritional Studies and Diet
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
Keywords
ultra-processed foods, obesity, overweight, cardiometabolic risk, metabolic syndrome, fasting blood glucose, cholesterol, hypertension, food processing, nutrient content, residual confounding, dietary intake
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Child, Child, Preschool, Eating, Energy Metabolism, Feeding Behavior, Female, Food Handling, Humans, Hypertension, Male, Middle Aged, Nutritional Status, Nutritive Value, Obesity, Risk Factors, Time Factors, Weight Gain, Prevalence, Metabolic Syndrome, Glucose Metabolism Disorders, Dyslipidemias, Young Adult, Fast Foods, Pediatric Obesity, Recommended Dietary Allowances

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