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| 4) Social Issues | 71

Do you like ice cream, chips, and burgers? These kinds of food provide us the best taste, but harm our body
the most. We call these double-edged swords UPF(ultra-processed foods). In recent years, ultra-processed
foods have become a staple in many diets around the world. These foods, which often contain additives,
preservatives, and artificial flavors, are convenient and appealing. However, their impact on health is a
growing concern. Let’s check up on them and protect our health.

What is Ultra-Processed Food?

Ultra-processed foods are industrial formulations made mostly or entirely from substances derived from
foods, such as sugars, fats, and starches. For instance, there will be sugary drinks, packaged snacks,
ready-to-eat meals, and other greasy foods.

We can divide the food into three groups. First is the minimally processed foods, which are just natural
ingredients like vegetables, wheat, and milk. Next is processed food, which has at least one step of
processing that transforms its original form. And the final one, ultra-processed food has gone into diverse
manufacturing that can use extra sugar, fat or coloring. It has gained more attention recently but many
people don’t know about how it can threaten our lives.

How does it threaten our health?
Ultra-processed foods are full of saturated fat so they can cause
serious obesity and lead us to metabolic problems. They also
disturb our bloodstream system and develop diabetes. However
the biggest problem is about heart health. According to the latest
study of the UPFs, researchers suggest that people who have
diets high in UDFs were 24 percent more likely to have heart
disease like angina. Moreover, people who ate UPFs the most had
a higher risk of early death. UPF is addictive and lures people to
bad eating habits that can cause serious diseases.

For healthy eating habits

To intake healthier food, it is important to keep a balanced diet. For this, we need to restrain ourselves from
trying to eat ultra-processed food more and more. Don’t be addicted to sugar and fats that can cause a
serious illness. The joy for a second can be a trap of unsanitary food.

Sim GyuMin (2-4)
oncevelvet@naver.com