Chemical exposure from ultra-#ProcessedFoods may contribute to health issues
Shannon Kelleher, May 16, 2025
"Toxic synthetic chemicals that migrate into ultra-processed foods from packaging, processing equipment and other sources may explain why these foods are so bad for our health, according to a new review article.
"In addition to the foods’ poor nutritional value, these chemicals represent an 'underappreciated and understudied' explanation for the link between ultra-processed foods and health problems such as obesity and other chronic diseases, the authors conclude in the article, published Friday in the journal Nature Medicine.
" 'The more (ultra-)processed a foodstuff, the greater its burden of synthetic chemicals generally is,; the authors wrote.
"Ultra-processed foods such as #candies, #HotDogs and #PackagedSoups are industrially made and contain many added ingredients not found in home kitchens, such as #stabilizers and added colors and flavors.
"Thousands of harmful substances including #bisphenols (such as #BPA), #phthalates, #microplastics (tiny plastic particles) and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (#PFAS) can leach into industrially produced foods during production, as well as from containers in which the foods are stored and while heating them up before they are eaten, according to the article. Emerging research suggests that even the 'normal and intended use' of plastic materials that come into contact with foods along their journey to our plates can contaminate these products, the authors wrote.
"Research increasingly shows that some of the same synthetic chemicals found in ultra-processed foods, as well as drinking water and other sources, are prevalent in our bodies. About 98% of the US population has PFAS in their blood, while microplastics and even smaller plastic particles (nanoplastics) accumulate in 'just about every portion of your body…no organ is spared, really,' Dr. Sanjay Rajagopalan, director of the Cardiovascular Research Institute at Case Western Reserve University, said during a May 15 webinar hosted by the group Beyond Plastics. Plastic particles have been found in everything from the placenta to the brain, lungs and heart, he said.
"In a 2024 study, Rajagopalan and colleagues found a link between microplastics in the arteries and risks for heart attacks and strokes.
" 'The particles looked quite nasty,' he said. 'They were jagged particles with sharp edges, very similar to cholesterol.' "
Read more:
https://www.thenewlede.org/2025/05/chemical-exposure-from-ultra-processed-foods-may-contribute-to-health-issues/
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