Re:Ultra-processed foods may contribute to cognitive decline
by bagels on Monday March 06, 2023 @01:24PM
(#35045249)
If there's a scientific study behind it, it's pretty important to define the term. Otherwise the results are pretty meaningless.
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaneurology/article-abstr...
Of course, the scourge of paywalls prevents me from actually checking what definition the paper used.
Re:Ultra-processed foods may contribute to cognitive decline
by acuozzo on Monday March 06, 2023 @04:07PM
(#35047602)
> that are low in nutrients and high in calories
What exactly does this mean? The potential energy in food measured by calories is in its macronutrients. No macronutrients, no calories.
Is it some kind of reference to micronutrients, phytochemicals, and the like which are reduced by processing activities like blanching?
I don't think we need to parcel out the exact moment in processing where something becomes "ultra processed" since it's just a euphemism. It's like overly scrutinizing an analogy for contradiction instead of considering the point it's trying to make.
An obvious mechanism would be nutrient displacement as people fill up on calories without nutrients.
If you look at the nutrients that are good for our brain like foods that promote BDNF, those are the foods these people aren't eating. Look up any of the mechanisms where diet can improve cognitive function, cardiovascular health, brain health, and then consider that someone who displaces these foods with hyperpalatable trash will not get these benefits.