Ultra-processed foods can be addictive

Soy burgers, nuggets and falu sausages – Swedes eat the most ultra-processed food of all EU countries.
Now a new compilation of studies shows that food can be addictive.
– All researchers are touchingly in agreement that there is an addiction-like behavior, says nutritional physiologist Kristina Andersson in Nyhetsmorgon.

A new compilation of studies shows that one in 14% of adults and 12% of children may be addicted to ultra-processed food. Or as nutritional physiologist Kristina Andersson calls it: an addiction-like behavior.

– You can’t resist the food, a real, real “craving”. We are used to the concept of sugar addiction, but there are no diagnoses of food addiction at all. Having said that, all researchers agree that there is an addiction-like behavior.

The concept of ultra-processed food is relatively new and there is no scientific definition. But just as the name gossips about, it is about food that has been processed “a lot”. It is food that is made industrially and may contain added sugar, fat and salt.

The sugar, the fat and the salt

What is linked to addiction is precisely the combination of the three tastes: sugar, fat and salt.

– It’s low in fiber and very energy-dense, so we get a lot of calories per bite. We know that’s not how we should eat, says Kristina Andersson and continues:

– It is partly genetic, but it is also important to remember that repetition leads to desire.

“The most important thing is that the children eat”

TV4 Nyheterna has previously reported on schools that offer meatballs and macaroni every day in the dining hall, so that picky children also get something to eat. But even though the food is ultra-processed, it’s nothing to worry about, says Kristina Andersson.

– Everything is about the whole. It is more important that the children eat. Then I think it is possible to work with pure raw materials so that it is both cost-effective and tasty!