A new study from the University of California has shown that regular consumption of ultra-processed foods significantly increases the risk of prediabetes, hyperglycemia and insulin resistance among young people. This is reported by The Independent.
For four years, scientists monitored 80 participants aged 17 to 22. The results of the study surprised even experts: increasing the proportion of ultra-processed foods in the daily diet by just 10% increases the risk of prediabetes by 64%, and the likelihood of early hyperglycemia by 56%. The risk of developing insulin resistance, a condition that precedes type 2 diabetes, also increases.
Ultra-processed foods include fast food, sugary sodas, chips, cookies, sausages, instant noodles, pizza, and frozen convenience foods. They are high in sugar, salt, trans fats, flavor enhancers, and have almost no nutritional value.
The situation in the UK is particularly worrying: half of adults' diets and two-thirds of teenagers' diets consist of ultra-processed foods. More than 20% of Britons already have prediabetes or type 2 diabetes.
Scientists emphasize that prediabetes is a condition that can be stopped and reversed. The most effective way is to change your eating habits: reduce the proportion of processed foods and increase the amount of natural, minimally processed foods - vegetables, fruits, whole grains, fish and legumes.
