Yet another study links ultra-processed foods (UPFs) like packaged snacks, sugary drinks, mass-produced bread, fruit yogurt, some breakfast cereals and meat alternatives to accelerated biological aging.
Biological age — the age of our cells and tissues — is influenced by genetics and lifestyle habits such as diet and exercise.
The middle-aged and elderly Italian study participants who got more than 14% of their daily calories from UPFs seemed to be biologically older than their chronological age, which is the number of years they’ve been alive.
UPFs have long earned a poor reputation for being filled with calories, sugar, fat and salt.
The results follow a recent University of California, San Francisco study that found that added sugar accelerates biological aging, even if it’s part of an otherwise healthy diet.
No more aging like good wine.
Another study finds that ultra-processed foods (UPFs) such as mass-produced bread, packaged snacks, sugary drinks, fruit yogurt, certain breakfast cereals, and meat substitutes accelerate biological aging.
Genetics and lifestyle choices like food and exercise have an impact on biological age, or the age of our cells and tissues.
The Italian study participants who consumed over 14 percent of their daily calories from UPFs were middle-aged and older, and they appeared to be biologically older than their chronological age, or the number of years they have been alive.
Because UPFs are high in calories, sugar, fat, and salt, they have a bad reputation.
“[UPFs] undergo intense industrial processing that actually alters their food matrix, with the consequent loss of nutrients and fiber, in addition to being nutritionally inadequate and rich in sugars, salt, and saturated or trans fats,” said Marialaura Bonaccio, a nutritional epidemiologist and co-author of the study.
In reference to the equilibrium of bacteria, viruses, and fungi in our digestive system, Bonaccio continued, “This can have important consequences for a series of physiological functions, including [sugar] metabolism and the composition and functionality of the gut microbiota.”. Additionally, [UPFs] are frequently packaged in plastic, which makes them carriers of harmful substances. “”.
In order to determine the biological age of the 22,500 study participants, Bonaccio’s team instructed them to complete a food questionnaire and had their blood tested for 36 biomarkers.
The results were released in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition this week.
Even when added sugar is a part of a healthy diet, it speeds up biological aging, according to a recent study from the University of California, San Francisco.
Chronic inflammation, which has been linked to obesity, heart disease, diabetes, liver disease, and several types of cancer, is caused by high blood sugar levels damaging cells.
