Mediterranean diet

The implications of industrial food production on health have long been neglected. For years, research focused on calories and nutrients. The 2009 NOVA framework, which groups foods according to nature and the extent of processes used to make them, shed light on food processing. According to the US NIH, through a multifaceted mechanism beyond ingredients, high consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPF) is associated with higher risk of diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular events, cancer and IBS. The US and the UK, where most calories consumed come from UPF, are particularly at risk. Inversly, high adherence to the mediterranean diet has been associated with low consumption of UPF.

Source: The BMJ, October 2023