What We Get Wrong About Ultra-Processed Foods

September 20, 2024 | Source: The Washington Post | by Tamar Haspel

Ultra-processed foods are all the rage! Over the past several years, they’ve dethroned carbohydrates as Dietary Enemy No. 1 and are taking the blame for obesity and disease.

And you know what? They deserve that blame, mostly. This is as close to being right as conventional wisdom about diets has ever gotten.

But here’s the thing. Although the conclusion is right, the arguments are mostly wrong. And talking about the wrong things plays right into the hands of the food industry.

So let’s go through what’s wrong, and see if we can’t shift it over to the strong arguments, the right arguments, the arguments that don’t give the food industry a Get Out of Responsibility Free card.

The wrong arguments are wrong on two fronts: wrong on the evidence that UPFs are bad, and wrong on the reason they’re bad.

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