Health
Ultra-processed foods comĀmonly availĀable in food retailĀers in most counĀtries share some of the addicĀtive charĀacĀterĀisĀtics of tobacco, new research sugĀgests.
An opinĀion and debate artiĀcle pubĀlished by the Society for the Study of Addiction invesĀtiĀgated if and how conĀsumĀing ultra-processed food might lead to a life-threatĀenĀing addicĀtion.
Previous research has shown that freĀquent, high-volĀume conĀsumpĀtion of ultra-processed food has been linked with an increase in heart attacks, strokes and preĀmaĀture death.
See Also:Health NewsThe increasĀingly apparĀent negĀaĀtive impacts of ultra-processed food on health prompted sevĀeral authorĀiĀties and researchers to recĀomĀmend that comĀpaĀnies indiĀcate whether a prodĀuct is ultra-processed on its labels.
Now, researchers are invesĀtiĀgatĀing whether an addicĀtive-eatĀing pheĀnoĀtype may exist, parĀticĀuĀlarly involvĀing foods with refined carĀboĀhyĀdrates and added fats (HPFs).
āThe lack of sciĀenĀtifĀiĀcally grounded criĀteĀria to evalĀuĀate the addicĀtive nature of HPFs has hinĀdered the resĀoĀluĀtion of this debate,ā researchers wrote.
They said eviĀdence of an existĀing pheĀnoĀtype exists that reflects the āāhallĀmarks of addicĀtionā in some conĀsumers, such as loss of conĀtrol over intake, intense cravĀings, inabilĀity to cut down and conĀtinĀued use despite negĀaĀtive conĀseĀquences.
Additionally, excesĀsive food intake has been linked with sympĀtoms of other addicĀtive disĀorĀders, includĀing low qualĀity of life or adverse reacĀtions to weight-loss treatĀments.
The studyās authors also acknowlĀedged that other researchers tend to believe that food addicĀtion does not depend on the type of food but on the act of eatĀing, makĀing it imposĀsiĀble to clasĀsify speĀcific food as addicĀtive.
āHPFs are evoĀluĀtionĀarĀily novel prodĀucts made posĀsiĀble through modĀern food techĀnolĀogy that proĀvide refined and rapidly delivĀered priĀmary reinĀforcers, specifĀiĀcally caloĀries, in the form of refined carĀboĀhyĀdrates and added fats,ā researchers wrote.
āThe debate that remains conĀcerns whether a refined and optiĀmized delivĀery sysĀtem of caloĀries can proĀduce comĀparĀaĀtive effects to a refined and optiĀmized delivĀery sysĀtem of addicĀtive drugs,ā they added.
In 1988, the U.S. Surgeon General issued a report idenĀtiĀfyĀing tobacco prodĀucts as addicĀtive based on sciĀenĀtific criĀteĀria, includĀing their abilĀity to cause highly conĀtrolled or comĀpulĀsive use, psyĀchoacĀtive or mood-alterĀing effects and abilĀity to reinĀforce behavĀior.
The study explained how HPFs are āācomĀplex subĀstances that are psyĀchoacĀtive, highly reinĀforcĀing, strongly craved and conĀsumed comĀpulĀsively,ā simĀiĀlar to tobacco prodĀucts.
āThe foods that peoĀple report being most likely to conĀsume in an addicĀtive manĀner are all HPFs that deliver both refined carĀboĀhyĀdrates and added fats,ā the researchers wrote, citĀing chocoĀlate, ice cream, French fries and pizza as relĀeĀvant examĀples.
See Also:Study Links Cooking Methods and HealthHPF foods high in refined carĀboĀhyĀdrates withĀout high levĀels of fat, such as breakĀfast cereal, gummy candy and soft drinks, are also assoĀciĀated with an addicĀtive-eatĀing pheĀnoĀtype.
These HPF foods deliver high doses of refined carĀboĀhyĀdrates and fats, which the researchers described as āāunnatĀuralā because they depend on āāsigĀnifĀiĀcant changes to the food matrix durĀing proĀcessĀing that removes ingreĀdiĀents that would slow down the eatĀing rate and absorpĀtion (e.g., water and fiber).ā
Given their nutriĀent denĀsity and quick bioavailĀabilĀity, HPFs actiĀvate the bodyās natĀural reward sysĀtem through the gut-brain axis.
Researchers said the exact dose of HPFs required to trigĀger an addicĀtion is curĀrently unknown but added the same is true of nicoĀtine.
āThis is an imporĀtant area of future research that may aid in the reforĀmuĀlaĀtion of HPFs to reduce addicĀtive potenĀtial,ā they wrote.
According to the sciĀenĀtists, another area of research that should be explored is the role played by the many food addiĀtives that modĀify the taste, smell, texĀture or mouth-feel of food.
The addiĀtives might not trigĀger addicĀtive behavĀior by themĀselves. Still, the researchers believe that they may conĀtribute to the addicĀtive-eatĀing pheĀnoĀtype when conĀsumed with refined carĀboĀhyĀdrates and added fats, simĀiĀlar to what hapĀpens with the addiĀtives in tobacco prodĀucts.
āScientific advances have now idenĀtiĀfied the abilĀity of tobacco prodĀucts to trigĀger strong urges or cravĀings as another imporĀtant indiĀcaĀtor of addicĀtive potenĀtial. Here, we proĀpose that theseā¦ criĀteĀria proĀvide sciĀenĀtifĀiĀcally valid benchĀmarks that can be used to evalĀuĀate the addicĀtiveĀness of HPFs,ā the researchers wrote.
They conĀcluded that HPFs could meet the criĀteĀria to be conĀsidĀered addicĀtive subĀstances if the stanĀdard set for tobacco prodĀucts is conĀsidĀered.
āThe addicĀtive potenĀtial of HPFs may be a key facĀtor conĀtributĀing to the high pubĀlic health costs assoĀciĀated with a food enviĀronĀment domĀiĀnated by cheap, accesĀsiĀble and heavĀily marĀketed HPFs,ā the sciĀenĀtists wrote.
Finally, they emphaĀsized how preĀviĀous research has shown that āāpoor diets domĀiĀnated by HPFs are conĀtributĀing to preĀventable deaths to a comĀpaĀraĀble degree as tobacco prodĀucts.ā
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