Ultra-processed food intake and all-cause and cause-specific mortality in individuals with cardiovascular disease: the Moli-sani Study

• Published in: European heart journal 2022-01, Vol.43 (3), p.213-224
• Main Authors: Bonaccio, Marialaura, Costanzo, Simona, Di Castelnuovo, Augusto, Persichillo, Mariarosaria, Magnacca, Sara, De Curtis, Amalia, Cerletti, Chiara, Donati, Maria Benedetta, de Gaetano, Giovanni, Iacoviello, Licia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Cardiovascular Diseases; Cause of Death; Diet; Eating; Fast Foods - adverse effects; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged
• ISSN: 0195-668X; 1522-9645
• DOI: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehab783

Abstract Aims To evaluate the association of ultra-processed food (UPF) intake and mortality among individuals with history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and analyse some biological pathways possibly relating UPF intake to death. Methods and results Longitudinal analysis on 1171 men and women (mean age: 67 ± 10 years) with history of CVD, recruited in the Moli-sani Study (2005–10, Italy) and followed for 10.6 years (median). Food intake was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire. UPF was defined using the NOVA classification according to degree of processing and categorized as quartiles of the ratio (%) between UPF (g/day) and total food consumed (g/day). The mediating effects of 18 inflammatory, metabolic, cardiovascular, and renal biomarkers were evaluated using a logistic regression model within a counterfactual framework. In multivariable-adjusted Cox analyses, higher intake of UPF (Q4, ≥11.3% of total food), as opposed to the lowest (Q1, UPF