How Ultra-Processed Foods Undermine Heart Health and Longevity

Key takeaways:

• People who eat the most ultra-processed foods have a higher risk of heart problems and earlier death compared with those who eat the least.

• UPFs are strongly linked to weight gain, blood sugar problems, high blood pressure, and unhealthy blood lipids—key drivers of cardiovascular risk.

• Experts now recommend that clinicians ask specifically about UPF intake and encourage patients to replace them with whole or minimally processed foods.

What ultra-processed foods are doing to the heart

UPFs are industrial products built from refined ingredients, additives, flavorings, and emulsifiers that often bear little resemblance to the original food. They tend to be high in added sugars, salt, and unhealthy fats, and low in intact fiber and micronutrients. According to this expert panel, people in the highest UPF consumption categories had up to:

• 19% higher risk of developing heart problems

• 13% higher risk of irregular heart rhythm

• 65% higher risk of dying from cardiovascular causes

UPFs are also associated with worsening weight gain, insulin changes, higher blood pressure, and the accumulation of harmful fats in the bloodstream—each a major risk factor on its own.

Why researchers are so concerned about UPFs

The authors argue that UPFs may harm cardiovascular health through several overlapping mechanisms:

• Promoting overeating due to hyperpalatability and low satiety

• Driving weight gain and metabolic disruption

• Delivering excess sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats

• Exposing the body to additives, processing contaminants, and altered food structures that may trigger inflammation, alter the gut microbiome, and interfere with normal metabolic regulation

They emphasize that even products with “good” nutrient labels can be problematic if they are heavily processed—meaning that prevention strategies should look beyond macros and focus on processing itself.

The report notes that UPFs now make up a large share of daily calories in many European countries—for example, more than half of total energy intake in places like the Netherlands and the UK, and a smaller but still substantial fraction in Southern European countries that retain more traditional eating patterns. As UPF intake rises, so does concern that these products are displacing whole and minimally processed foods that traditionally supported cardiovascular health.

What this means for longevity

Scientists say that eating a lot of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) may significantly raise the risk of heart-related problems and earlier death. A new consensus report in the European Heart Journal pulls together data from multiple large studies and concludes that high UPF intake is consistently associated with worse cardiovascular health, prompting experts to urge doctors to talk about UPFs as a distinct risk factor—not just talk about calories, sugar, or fat.

References: 

1. Luigina Guasti, Marialaura Bonaccio, Ana Abreu, Riccardo Asteggiano, Maira Bes-Rastrollo, Ruxandra Christodorescu, Giovanni de Gaetano, Marc Ferrini, Pedro Marques-Vidal, Atul Pathak, Dimitri Richter, Sukshma Sharma, Catarina Sousa Guerreiro, Bernard Srour, Saverio Stranges, Mathilde Touvier, Branislav Vohnout, Massimo Piepoli, Licia Iacoviello. Ultra-processed foods, lifestyle management, and cardiovascular. European Heart Journal, 2026; DOI: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehag226