Global Health Under Threat: Urgent Warnings Issued Over Ultra-Processed Food Surge
A major series of papers in The Lancet, involving 43 international experts, reveals a global health crisis where the rapid increase in ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption is displacing fresh foods and linked to a surge in chronic health problems, impacting nearly every major organ system. Scientists are urgently calling for bold, coordinated policy action to counter significant corporate influence and shift food systems towards healthier options, as UPFs now constitute over 50% of the average diet in countries like the UK and US.