Study links specific ultra processed foods to bowel cancer risk

An international study in a cohort of nearly half a million United States adults found no overall association between total ultra-processed food intake and bowel cancer risk, Mirage News reported. However, analysis of specific food groups showed that certain processed foods carry higher risks while others are linked to a lower incidence of the disease. AOL.com also reported that ultra-processed food intake as a whole may not be linked to colorectal cancer. [1][2]

According to Mirage News, the consumption of ultra-processed meat was linked to a higher risk of bowel cancer. Conversely, intake of nutrients such as whole grains, fibre, dairy, and calcium from ultra-processed sources, including wholemeal bread and flavoured yoghurt, was associated with a lower risk. The research also analyzed the effects of replacing 10 per cent of ultra-processed food intake with equivalent alternatives. [1]

As FTMQ Health reported earlier, ultra-processed foods account for more than 50 per cent of total energy intake among adults in the United States. Previous evidence from a prospective study published in PLOS Medicine similarly demonstrated that overall ultra-processed food intake was not linked to colorectal cancer incidence, pointing instead to specific nutritional components. [8]