(MENAFN- The Arabian Post)

A new U. S. study reveals that middle-aged adults-particularly women born between 1965 and 1980-are disproportionately likely to meet clinical criteria for addiction to ultra-processed foods. The findings, drawn from a nationally representative sample of older Americans, suggest deep-rooted behavioural and health implications for this cohort and warn of greater risks for younger generations.

The study, published in Addiction, applied the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 to more than 2,000 adults aged 50 to 80, and found that 21 per cent of Gen X women qualified as addicted to ultra-processed foods, compared with just 10 per cent of men of the same age bracket. Among respondents aged 65 to 80, only 12 per cent of women and 4 per cent of men met the threshold.

Researchers posit that aggressive marketing in the 1980s of products labelled“low-fat” or aimed at weight control may have inadvertently reinforced addictive eating patterns in women. During that era, diet-branded snack foods, microwave meals and carbohydrate-heavy alternatives gained popularity under the promise of assisting weight management-yet many contained high levels of sugar, saturated fat or additives designed to intensify flavour and palatability.

Women who perceived themselves as overweight were found to be more than 11 times as likely to display addictive behaviours toward ultra-processed foods than those who judged their weight to be“about right.” In men, the odds ratio climbed to about 19 for those perceiving themselves as overweight. Beyond weight perceptions, mental and physical health status also correlated strongly. Women reporting fair or poor mental health were nearly three times as likely to meet addiction criteria; analogous men exhibited roughly a fourfold increase. Individuals experiencing social isolation were over three times more likely to fall into the food addiction category.

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Analysts caution that the addiction label in this context does not imply classic drug dependency, but reflects behavioural patterns-persistent craving, repeated failed attempts to cut down, withdrawal-like symptoms, and avoidance of social occasions to prevent overeating. Yet the implications are consequential: ultra-processed food addiction showed associations with self-reported poor health, higher body weight, and reduced psychosocial well-being.

Although these results derive from cross-sectional data, they align with a growing body of evidence linking ultra-processed food consumption to adverse health outcomes. A large umbrella review earlier this year found associations between ultra-processed diets and increased risks of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, certain cancers, and mental health disorders. Another controlled feeding trial conducted over three-week exposure periods demonstrated that diets high in ultra-processed foods triggered weight gain and metabolic disruptions independent of total calorie intake.

Yet the mechanisms underlying addictive behaviour toward processed foods remain under investigation. Some experts point to how hyperpalatable combinations of sugar, fat and salt interact with brain reward systems. Others highlight the role of food additives, chemical contaminants from packaging, and ultra-processing techniques that may interfere with satiety signalling. Critics caution that more longitudinal and mechanistic research is needed to separate causation from correlation.

Public health authorities now face a conundrum: the ubiquity of ultra-processed products in modern diets-comprising often more than half of total caloric intake in industrialised nations-means that behavioural intervention alone may not be enough. Regulation proposals under discussion include stricter labelling rules, warning labels similar to those on tobacco, marketing restrictions especially for children, and taxation on heavily processed items. Some nutrition advocates argue for strengthening access to minimally processed food options in underserved areas.

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