Weight Gain Risks: The Ultraprocessed Food Connection

Dietary intake was evaluated using Nova24h recalls, a self-administered 24-hour recall tool that classifies foods and ingredients into four categories.

Exposure to ultraprocessed foods was measured as a percentage of contribution to total energy intake, on the basis of two recalls at 6 and 12 months.

Participants reported their weights every 6 months. Clinically relevant weight gain was defined as a ≥ 5% increase from baseline weight, and the risk for weight gain was assessed according to quintiles of exposure to the ultraprocessed dietary pattern.

Overall, 10,092 incident cases of ≥ 5% weight gain and 4865 incident cases of ≥ 10% weight gain were documented.

TAKEAWAY:

• Each 10% increase in ultraprocessed food contribution was associated with a 5% increased risk for ≥ 5% weight gain (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 1.05; 95% CI, 1.04-1.07) and an 8% increased risk for ≥ 10% weight gain (aHR, 1.08; 95% CI, 1.06-1.10).
• Compared with participants in the lowest quintile of exposure to the ultraprocessed dietary pattern, those in the highest quintile had an increased risk for ≥ 5% weight gain (aHR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.15-1.31) and for ≥ 10% weight gain (aHR, 1.35; 95% CI, 1.23-1.48).
• Stronger associations between the highest adherence to the ultraprocessed dietary pattern and ≥ 5% weight gain were observed among participants without overweight at baseline (aHR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.15-1.36) than among those with overweight at baseline (aHR, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.05-1.29).
• The association with an increased risk for ≥ 5% weight gain was also stronger among participants with heart disease (aHR, 1.66; 95% CI, 1.24-2.24) and among those without depression (aHR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.16-1.37), and the association with an increased risk for 10% or greater weight gain was stronger among participants younger than 40 years (aHR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.26-1.61).

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/weight-gain-risks-ultraprocessed-food-connection-2026a100012n