Associations between degree of food processing and all-cause and cause-specific mortality: a multicentre prospective cohort analysis in 9 European countries

Scientists from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and partner institutions have found that consumption of ultra-processed food was positively associated with all-cause mortality, as well as mortality from circulatory diseases, cerebrovascular disease, ischaemic heart disease, digestive diseases, and – an outcome that had not previously been assessed – Parkinson disease. Crucially, the associations persisted even independent of alcohol consumption.

The findings are the results of the largest study conducted to date on the associations between consumption of processed and ultra-processed food and all-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality, published in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe. The study included causes of death that had not been studied in past assessments, such as Parkinson disease and Alzheimer disease.

The researchers examined data from almost 430 000 participants across 9 European countries who were followed up for an average of almost 16 years. The aim of the study was to investigate the association between food consumption by degree of industrial processing and mortality, including cause-specific mortality due to cancer, circulatory diseases (including cerebrovascular disease and ischaemic heart disease), digestive diseases, Parkinson disease, Alzheimer disease, and suicide, independently of education level and lifestyle behaviours, including alcohol intake.

The researchers further showed that substituting 10% of the total daily food intake in grams of processed and ultra-processed foods with an equal amount of unprocessed or minimally processed foods was associated with a lower risk of all-cause and cause-specific mortality. Foods were classified according to the Nova system, which groups foods into four categories: unprocessed or minimally processed foods, processed culinary ingredients, processed foods, and ultra-processed foods.

The results support growing evidence that promoting the consumption of unprocessed or minimally processed foods while discouraging highly processed foods in dietary recommendations may be beneficial for health.

González-Gil EM, Matta M, Morales Berstein F, Cairat M, Nicolas G, Blanco J, et al.
Associations between degree of food processing and all-cause and cause-specific mortality: a multicentre prospective cohort analysis in 9 European countries
Lancet Reg Health Eur. Published online 8 January 2025;
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lanepe.2024.101208

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