Bangkok: Concerns about the consumption of highly processed foods, or UPF, have been a constant focus in the nutrition community. The World Health Organization's (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), in collaboration with world-class research institutions, has studied the health effects of eating UPF foods consistently. They have found that it increases the risk of a variety of diseases, from obesity, cardiovascular disease, cancer, to neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease.
According to Thai News Agency, a 2021 study by IARC scientists and researchers from Imperial College London and the University of So Paulo found that consuming highly processed foods, or UPF, increases the risk of obesity. The researchers studied dietary data on European populations and their risk of cancer and other chronic diseases from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) database, which followed the behavior of 350,000 people between 1992 and 2000. They compared the groups who ate the most and least UPF foods to explore changes in body weight over a five-year period.
Research has found that among people with normal weight, consuming a high UPF diet increased the risk of being overweight or obese by 15% over a 5-year period. Among those with higher body weight than normal, consuming a high UPF diet increased the risk of being overweight or obese by 16% over 5 years. The research team therefore recommends that public health agencies campaign for people to avoid UPF foods for effective obesity prevention and weight control.
A 2023 study by IARC scientists and researchers from the University of Vienna found that consuming highly processed foods, or UPF, increases the risk of cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The researchers, referring to the EPIC database, compared the UPF dietary intake of approximately 270,000 Europeans to study the risk of multimorbidity associated with a UPF diet. The study found that, over approximately 11 years of follow-up, 4,461 participants had a combination of cancer and cardiovascular disease-related metabolic syndrome (CDS).
A 2025 study by IARC scientists and a team of researchers studied the relationship between consumption of highly processed foods, or UPF, and the risk of several diseases. The researchers referenced the EPIC database, comparing the UPF dietary intake of approximately 430,000 Europeans. The study found that over a 16-year follow-up period, approximately 40,000 people died. Higher UPF intake was associated with a higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease, stroke, coronary heart disease, gastrointestinal disease, and Parkinson's disease. The research team concluded that campaigns to reduce the consumption of UPF foods and shift to eating foods that are minimally processed have a clear positive impact on public health.