Want to know more about the level of processing in the foods you eat? In fact, an app for that purpose may be on the way. Researchers Research on ultra-processed foodsand created a visual tool to help classify foods based on their degree of processing, which accounts for up to 58% of calories consumed in the United States and can lead to a range of negative health effects, as well as assessing the rewarding and reinforcing properties of foods.
How are foods grouped?
This study VTC Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Published in Appetite magazine, the photobook features a variety of carefully selected images of healthy options from less processed foods and less healthy options from more processed foods. The images are compared based on 26 characteristics, including macronutrients, sodium, added sugars, fiber, calories, price, and other characteristics such as color and portion size.
The study is based on the NOVA classification system, which divides foods into four categories according to their level of processing, but as the researchers explain, this classification is not without its flaws.
“The main criticism of the NOVA scale is that it is difficult to use or that different people categorize foods differently,” says corresponding author Alexandra DiFeliciantonio, an assistant professor at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. “We found that people with nutrition education generally agree on the food categorizations, providing data that suggests the criticisms may not be valid.”
What they did
The foods were divided into four groups.
- Unprocessed or minimally processed foods, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, and plain yogurt
- Processed foods such as certain spices, salt, cooking oils, and butter
- Processed foods such as cheese, canned vegetables, and fresh bread
- Ultra-processed foods include soft drinks, processed meats, most packaged breads, and foods that are industrially processed with additives rarely found in home pantries.
After the food groups were created, photos were selected that best represented minimally or ultra-processed foods. The foods were prepared in a lab and photographed by a professional photographer to control for consistency. Information such as price, weight, and nutritional information was then collected from each image.
Once the development phase was complete, study participants were asked to rate the images for a range of qualities, ultimately generating a set of 28 images matching the 26 attributes. 67 nutrition experts were then recruited to objectively measure classification, during which they were also asked to classify the foods themselves.
“This set of food photos allows us to infer that the differences between the food photos are due to the degree of processing of the food and not due to all the other factors that we know potentially have an effect,” said Zach Huettelin, lead author of the study and a doctoral graduate student in Translational Biology, Medicine and Health based at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute.
Why is this important?
Ultra-processed foods have been linked to obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers. These types of foods account for more than half of the calories consumed in Canada, the UK, and the US. What’s more, these types of foods are: A global threat to public health.
“Very little experimental research has been done on ultra-processed foods, and research is hampered by a lack of better tools to measure and evaluate their impacts,” said DiFeliciantonio, who is also associate director of the Center for Health Behavior Research at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. “The more tools we can give you, the more we can learn.”
Photos and related data are Virginia Tech Data Repository The photos, from the Virginia Tech Library, have allowed scientists to test various hypotheses in behavioral economics and neuroimaging research. They are now being used in functional MRI studies to reveal associated brain activity.
