Ultra-processed foods are unhealthy and may lead to chronic issues more common in rural populations

A common misconception about rural living is that residents have more access to farm-fresh food, but that idea is more of a myth. Rural residents often lack income and access to healthy, fresh food, which means their diets can evolve into a mishmash of cheaper and more ultra-processed food that may contribute to chronic health problems. Alice Callahan of The New York Times reports, "Scientists have found associations between UPFs and a range of health conditions, including heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, obesity, gastrointestinal diseases and depression, as well as earlier death." Many of these conditions are more common in rural populations. 

While rural populations aren't alone in eating ultra-processed food, they do tend to be more obese than their urban counterparts, and UPFs can contribute to obesity, which can lead to Type 2 diabetes and other health issues. "UPFs can be easy to overeat — maybe because they contain hard-to-resist combinations of carbohydrates, sugars, fats and salt, are high-calorie and easy to chew," Callahan explains. "It's also possible that resulting blood sugar spikes may damage arteries or ramp up inflammation, or that certain food additives or chemicals may interfere with hormones, cause a 'leaky' intestine or disrupt the gut microbiome."

A direct link between obesity and UPFs hasn't been established, but researchers are exploring the relationship. Dr. Kevin Hall, a nutrition and metabolism researcher at the National Institutes of Health, told Callahan, "There are many 'strong opinions' about why ultra-processed foods are unhealthy. But there's actually not a lot of rigorous science on what those mechanisms are."

Some countries have "explicitly recommended avoiding or limiting UPFs or 'highly processed foods,'" Callahan reports. "The U.S. dietary guidelines contain no such advice, but an advisory committee is currently looking into the evidence on how UPFs may affect weight gain, which could influence the 2025 guidelines. . . . It's difficult to know what to do about UPFs in the United States, where so much food is already ultra-processed, and people with lower incomes can be especially dependent on them, Dr. Hall said."