IMDEA Food

Eating more ultra-processed foods is linked to a higher risk of health problems, according to an umbrella review of 45 previous meta-analyses, involving almost 10 million people in total. The research, published in The BMJ, finds direct associations between exposure to ultra-processed foods and 32 health parameters. The strongest evidence links this exposure to cardiometabolic health problems, mental disorders and overall mortality.

A US research team has identified several genes that may be associated with a strict vegetarian diet. Some of these genes have "important roles in lipid metabolism and brain function", according to the paper, which suggests that these differences could explain the ability to subsist on a vegetarian diet in those who carry these genes. The study, published in the journal PLoS ONE, used data from the UK Biobank to compare a group of more than 5,000 vegetarians with a group of more than 320,000 non-vegetarians.

A new scientific statement from the American Heart Association published in the journal Circulation analyzes how several diets (including Mediterranean, Paleo, and ketogenic) fit into the guidelines for a heart-healthy diet. The ketogenic and 'paleo' diets were not classified as heart-healthy.

Research published in Science concludes that mice that feed at night - the active phase of their daily circadian cycle - burn more calories, mitigating the development of obesity.

Caloric restriction (substantially reducing food intake in a controlled way) prolongs longevity in many animal species. A new result in mice, published in Science, finds that this effect is greater if the animals only eat during the body's natural active phase.