The Hidden Cost of Ultra-Processed Foods
Ultra-processed foods (often called UPFs) make up more than half of the calories consumed in many modern diets. They’re cheap, convenient, engineered to taste good, and increasingly linked to poor health outcomes. If you’re wondering how we got here and what we can do about it, keep reading.
What Are Ultra-Processed Foods?
Ultra-processed foods are products that have undergone extensive processing from their original ingredients. They often contain:
Added sugars
Refined starches (white bread, sugary cereals, chips, cookies, crackers, and pizza)
Industrial seed oils (including canola, corn, safflower, and sunflower oil)
Artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives (often difficult to pronounce)
Emulsifiers and stabilizers you wouldn’t find in a home kitchen (some of the more popular include lecithin, polysorbate 80, carageenan, guar gum, and gelatin)
Some examples of ultra-processed foods include packaged snacks, fast food, sweetened yogurts, frozen meals, and many “health” bars. These foods are designed for shelf life, speed, and profit, not nourishment.
Why UPFs Are a Problem
Ultra-processed foods affect the body in ways that go beyond calories:
They disrupt metabolism by overwhelming the liver with sugar and refined carbs.
They drive overeating by bypassing natural satiety signals.
They promote inflammation, insulin resistance, and fatty liver disease.
They crowd out real food, leaving people undernourished but overfed.
The result? Rising rates of obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and even depression, all of which are often appearing earlier in life than ever before.
A Brief History: What Went Wrong?
The problem didn’t start with bad intentions. In the mid-20th century, food scarcity and convenience were major concerns. Governments encouraged cheap calories and long shelf life. Fat was incorrectly blamed for heart disease, and sugar quietly took center stage.
Food companies learned that processed foods were more profitable than real ones. Over time, marketing replaced nutrition, and “food-like products” replaced food.
By the time health consequences became obvious, UPFs were everywhere — schools, hospitals, gas stations, and even wellness aisles.
Dr. Robert Lustig and the Push for Change
Pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig has been one of the most vocal critics of ultra-processed foods. His research and advocacy focus on how added sugar and food processing damage metabolic health, especially in children.
Through his work, books like Metabolical, and initiatives such as Eat REAL, Dr. Lustig argues that:
The problem isn’t personal willpower, it’s a broken food system.
Processing matters as much as nutrients.
Real food must be affordable, accessible, and protected by policy.
His ongoing research into UPFs emphasizes that food quality, fiber, and metabolic impact matter more than calorie counting alone.
Simple Shifts: Better Grab-and-Go Options
You don’t need perfection, just better defaults. Here are realistic swaps for everyday convenience foods:
Instead of:
Granola bars → Handful of nuts + fruit
Sweetened yogurt → Plain yogurt with berries
Chips or crackers → Cheese sticks, olives, or roasted pumpkin seeds
Sugary drinks → Sparkling water with citrus
Breakfast pastries → Hard-boiled eggs or overnight oats
Protein bars → Leftover chicken, hummus + veggies, peanut butter and celery
What to Look for on Labels
Short ingredient lists
Ingredients you recognize
No added sugars (or very little)
Naturally present fiber
The Bottom Line
Ultra-processed foods didn’t take over overnight, and we won’t undo their impact overnight either. But every small shift toward real food sends a signal: to your body, to the market, and to the future of our food system.
Convenience doesn’t have to mean compromised health. Real food can still be fast, it just needs to be chosen.
