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Ultra-Processed Foods and Mental Health: The Emerging Evidence
Observer Research Foundation reported:
Mental health is increasingly recognised as a major component of population health, yet its relationship with food environments remains comparatively underexplored. In 2023, an estimated 1.2 billion people were living with a mental disorder, with anxiety and depressive disorders being the most common conditions.
The latest World Health Organization (WHO) estimates indicate that mental disorders accounted for 157 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) in 2021, equivalent to 5.2 percent of global DALYs; depressive and anxiety disorders alone contributed 56.7 million and 42.8 million, respectively.
At the same time, dietary exposure to ultra-processed foods (UPFs) has expanded substantially across many populations. This convergence is drawing growing scientific attention to the relationship between highly processed diets and mental health.
Vegetables Are Now Half as Nutritious Than 60 Years Ago. Experts Have Worked Out Why
Wheat, apples and carrots are half as nutritious as they were in the 1960s, a new study has suggested. Due to declining soil quality the nutrients in fruit and vegetables have also drastically declined.
The study, by researchers at Deep Science Ventures (DSV), found twice the number of fruit and vegetables need to be eaten today to get the same level of minerals such as potassium, magnesium or copper than 60 years ago. Researchers found food such as cereals and bread, as well as carrots, apples and peas had lost 20 to 50 per cent of several key nutrients.
But reduced nutrients in crops combined with the rise of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, could push around 5 million UK working-age adults below safe levels of essential vitamins and minerals, experts warn.
Nutritionally Similar Meals Might Not Affect Your Body the Same Way
A recent study in the journal Nature Metabolism found that UPFs trigger different metabolic responses compared to non-UPFs of comparable calorie and macronutrient value, and are also associated with differential brain responses to food. The findings suggest that food processing may influence metabolism and brain activity through mechanisms beyond nutritional composition alone.
According to the Nova classification, UPFs are defined as “industrially manufactured products that undergo multiple physical and chemical transformations and typically contain added industrial ingredients, specifically additives not commonly used in home cooking.”
Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are making up an increasing share of consumed calories, accounting for more than half of calories consumed in the United States. However, a higher UPF intake is linked to cardiometabolic disease and cancer risk, though this does not mean the relationship is causal.
USDA Notes More H5N1 Avian Flu on Poultry Farms
According to the latest update from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), there were six new detections of H5N1 avian flu this past week, including major outbreaks at two large facilities in Indiana and Minnesota.
Minnesota remains the epicenter of H5N1 activity, with 34,400 birds affected at a Stearns County commercial turkey farm. The state has noted eight affected commercial flocks, three affected backyard flocks, and a total of 343,050 birds affected in the past 30 days.
In Indiana, a Jay County commercial duck meat facility with 24,300 birds was affected.
In the past 30 days, 550,000 birds in 12 commercial flocks and nine backyard flocks have been hit with H5N1. In other news, APHIS also noted a new H5N1 detection in a dairy cattle herd in Texas. In the past 30 days there have been three avian flu detections in cattle, all in Texas.
