Ultra-Processed Foods Alter Metabolic and Brain Responses Despite Matched Nutrients

Ultra-Processed Foods Alter Metabolic and Brain Responses Despite Matched Nutrients

Calories and macronutrients may not tell the full story of how the body responds to food. A randomized crossover study published in Nature Metabolism suggests that the degree of food processing can influence post-meal metabolism and neural responses even when foods are closely matched for their conventional nutritional characteristics. Researchers at Virginia Tech compared ultra-processed and non-ultra-processed meals in healthy adults, asking w…

Ultra-Processed Foods Prolong Post-Meal Spikes in Blood Sugar and Insulin

Findings Surprised Researchers DiFeliceantonio says she was initially “surprised” that ultra-processed foods didn’t have a big impact on blood sugar, but did impact insulin. “I called up the lab and said, ‘Is there something wrong with this data?’” she says. “The people in the lab didn’t know the conditions [of the study]. They just had […]

Ultraprocessed Foods Alter Insulin and Brain Reward Responses

Ultraprocessed foods trigger higher insulin spikes and alter brain reward circuits despite matching whole foods on nutrients.