Ultra-processed foods promote obesity, experts say – 03/01/2024 – Balance

Instant noodles, stuffed biscuits, hamburgers and other frozen products are some of the examples of ultra-processed foods easily found in Brazilian homes and which worry obesity experts in the country.

A reference study on the subject, the World Obesity Atlas showed that, by 2035, half of Brazilian children and young people aged between 5 and 19 will be obese. The data is 20% higher compared to the same survey made available last year.

The survey also showed that 78% of deaths due to obesity occurred in poorer countries — which increasingly lead the rankings of early deaths due to complications from diseases such as cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, both also triggered by excess weight.

Last year, a survey by USP’s Faculty of Public Health had already shown that the growth in consumption of this type of food, between 2008 and 2018, was greater in the poorest population and with a low level of education.

According to experts, a greater supply of ultra-processed foods may be one of the factors that has increasingly triggered cases of children with obesity, especially in developing countries, as has been happening in Brazil.

President of Abeso (Brazilian Association for the Study of Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome) and SBEM (Brazilian Society of Endocrinology and Metabolism), Bruno Halpern says that this is due to the ease of access to this type of product, which is normally cheaper. Furthermore, for a time, greater availability of this type of food even helped combat hunger.

“[A fome] It was a much more serious problem in the past, but on the other hand it ended up significantly increasing obesity rates in the world”, adds Halpern.

Precisely because it is more affordable, this type of food is more consumed in developing countries, comments Halpern. “Obesity has other causes and is also present in the high-income population, but the growth in recent years has a lot to do with this epidemiological change in which obesity was a health problem for the highest social class.”

In other Brics countries, for example, the study also predicts an increase in chronic diseases among children and adolescents. By 2035, China and South Africa are expected to have, respectively, 72% and 71% of their population aged between 5 and 19 years with obesity

The expert warns that access to healthier foods is restricted to families with better conditions and, to overcome the problem, a suggestion would be to tax ultra-processed foods, as well as signage —already existing— and reduce the marketing of these products to children. .

“The possibility of reducing calories and sugar in some foods should be discussed, if not, taxing them with higher taxes”, he says.

From access to healthier food to some of the medications used to treat obesity, such as semaglutide and tirzepatide, financial status is always a determining factor for the patient, according to Halpern. “There is no point in having medicines only for the richest part of the population.”

Nutritionist and president of Abran (Brazilian Association of Nutrology), Durval Ribas Filho also says that the prevalence of overweight and obesity is visibly greater among less favored classes.

“If we look at the less favored cases, this is where there is more overweight and obesity because these people, unfortunately, do not eat fruits and vegetables, but rather foods with high energy density that are fatty and contain a lot of sugar”, says Ribas Filho .

In addition to the preference for ultra-processed foods, which are cheaper and easier to find, the nutritionist also warns of an increasing sedentary lifestyle among the younger generations. “Children play less and are more exposed to technology, consequently they have a lower energy expenditure.”

Available treatments

Professionals who treat obesity usually work with five types of resources to combat the disease. They work like a pyramid and often need to be worked together.

The first, and most traditional, is nutritional re-education. The second consists of dedicating a frequency to physical activities. The third involves behavioral therapies, such as psychiatric treatment and psychological support. Just in case the first three don’t work, the doctor moves on to the fourth type of treatment, which involves medications.

“It is important to say that the medicine for obesity is not harmful and needs to be used frequently, because just like hypertension and diabetes, obesity is also a chronic disease”, says Ribas Filho.

For him, obesity is not always understood as a disease, facilitating the stigma behind treatment.

Only as a last resort will the professional suggest bariatric surgery. “It is the most effective method, especially in more severe cases, such as morbid obesity”, informs Ribas Filho. He warns, however, that it is common for the patient to gain a little weight around 10 years after the procedure, but it will hardly be the same as before.