Fu Jialei, Tan Li-Juan, Shin Sangah
Vanke School of Public Health, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
Department of Food and Nutrition, Chung-Ang University, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea.
Mol Nutr Food Res. 2025 Jul;69(13):e70099. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.70099. Epub 2025 May 9.
The association between ultra-processed foods (UPFs) consumption and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) remains unclear; therefore, we investigated the association between UPF consumption and the risk of NAFLD among Korean adults. This cohort study included 44 642 Korean adults aged 40-69 years, utilizing data from the Health Examinees database. UPF were categorized according to the NOVA classification system based on the degree of processing. A multivariable Cox proportional hazards model assessed the association between UPF consumption and NAFLD risk. Over a 4.2-year follow-up period, 1562 (3.5%) participants developed NAFLD. After adjusting for potential confounders, higher UPF consumption was associated with a 35% (6%, 71%) and 48% (19%, 86%) increased risk of NAFLD in men and women, respectively. Similar results were observed in both continuous and sensitivity analyses. Among the diverse UPF subtypes, ramen consumption showed the strongest adverse association with NAFLD risk in both men and women (hazard ratio = 2.05 [1.59, 2.65] in men; 1.80 [1.48, 2.19] in women). Our findings suggest that higher UPF consumption is linked to an increased risk of NAFLD. Further comprehensive investigations in a broader spectrum of populations are warranted to corroborate and fortify these results.
超加工食品（UPF）的消费与非酒精性脂肪性肝病（NAFLD）之间的关联尚不清楚；因此，我们调查了韩国成年人中UPF消费与NAFLD风险之间的关联。这项队列研究纳入了44642名年龄在40 - 69岁的韩国成年人，利用了健康检查者数据库中的数据。UPF根据基于加工程度的NOVA分类系统进行分类。多变量Cox比例风险模型评估了UPF消费与NAFLD风险之间的关联。在4.2年的随访期内，1562名（3.5%）参与者患上了NAFLD。在调整潜在混杂因素后，较高的UPF消费与男性患NAFLD风险增加35%（6%，71%）和女性增加48%（19%，86%）相关。在连续分析和敏感性分析中均观察到类似结果。在不同的UPF亚型中，拉面消费在男性和女性中与NAFLD风险均呈现出最强的不良关联（男性风险比 = 2.05 [1.59, 2.65]；女性为1.80 [1.48, 2.19]）。我们的研究结果表明，较高的UPF消费与NAFLD风险增加有关。有必要在更广泛的人群中进行进一步的综合调查，以证实和强化这些结果。
