Ultraprocessed Food Dangers: How Fake Food Fuels Inflammation, Weight Gain & Aging

Ultraprocessed food dangers are finally getting attention—but most people still don’t realize just how everywhere this stuff is. We’re not just talking about soda and snack cakes. It’s frozen meals, baby cereal, lurking in your condiments, “natural” oat milk,  and yes—even plant-based anything. If you do one thing for your health, let it be this: stop eating fake food. It’s everywhere, and it’s wrecking you from the inside out.

A recent CNN article spotlighted what researchers have been trying to say (and the food industry has been trying to bury): common food additives—like emulsifiers, artificial sweeteners, and preservatives—are wreaking havoc on our guts, our metabolism, and our long-term health. We’re talking higher risks of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and systemic inflammation. 

The Study That Should’ve Made Bigger Headlines

A controlled study at a major research facility tracked 20 healthy adults over four weeks. Each participant lived on-site and rotated between two diets: one made up of ultra-processed foods, and another built around whole, minimally processed meals.

The ultra-processed menu included things like canned beef ravioli, chicken salad made with canned chicken, tater tots, and hot dogs. On the flip side? Meals like baked cod, plain baked potatoes, and broccoli—simple, real food.

Both diets were matched in calories, protein, fat, carbs, sugar, fiber, and salt. And participants could eat as much or as little as they wanted. That’s the kicker.

The result? The group on the ultra-processed diet ate, on average, 500 more calories per day—without realizing it. They gained weight and body fat, putting on roughly two pounds in just two weeks. Same nutrients, same people, wildly different outcomes. That’s the hidden danger of modern convenience food: it hijacks your hunger cues while pretending to be “just as healthy.”

Here’s how prevalent this faux food is: Nearly every aisle in the grocery store is a processed crap. The end caps? Full of whatever has the highest markup this week—usually snack food in costume. The frozen meal section? Absolutely the worst! The checkout lane? Forget it. It now looks like the front counter at a gas station.  And don’t get me started on Home Depot’s checkout lane. Since when did power tools and king-size candy bars go together?

The GRAS Loophole: Generally Recognized as Sketchy

Most of these additives were approved decades ago under the FDA’s GRAS loophole—“Generally Recognized As Safe.” Translation: “We haven’t looked too closely, and we’d rather not.” Many have never been re-evaluated in the context of daily consumption by stressed-out, underslept, sedentary adults who wash it down with energy drinks and call it lunch.

Meanwhile, the science on food and longevity keeps marching forward. We now know that diet influences everything from mitochondrial health to brain volume. That afternoon slump? The puffiness around your eyes? The joint pain you chalk up to “getting older”? All potentially inflammation, often diet-driven. And a huge chunk of that is coming from hyper-palatable, heavily modified food-like substances that never belonged in a human body in the first place.

So now what?

Don’t panic. But do start reading labels like your health depends on it—because it does. (Use the Yuka app) Stick to foods with ingredients your grandma would recognize. Cook more at home. Shop the perimeter of the store—where the real food lives. And know that no food item needs 27 ingredients unless it’s trying to preserve itself until the next ice age.

Bottom line:

If you care about aging well, you need to care about what’s on your fork. Processed food isn’t just empty—it’s fueling the inflammation that drives every major disease tied to aging. Every bite is either fighting aging—or fueling it.

Need help ditching the additives without losing your mind?

I work with women 40+ who want to train smart, eat real food, and stay strong for the long haul. Reach out—let’s make it simple.