Dos Santos Gabriela Rocha, Rosa Priscila Bárbara Zanini, Martins Nina Nayara Ferreira, Mendes Larissa Loures, do Carmo Ariene Silva, Schaan Beatriz D, Cureau Felipe Vogt
Faculty of Medicine, Graduate Program in Health Sciences: Cardiology and Cardiovascular Sciences, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Faculty of Medicine, Graduate Program in Epidemiology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Br J Nutr. 2025 Jun 14;133(11):1395-1403. doi: 10.1017/S0007114525103553. Epub 2025 Jun 3.
Modern Western diets, characterised by a substantial proportion of kilocalories derived from ultra-processed foods (UPF), have been associated with systemic inflammation. This study examines the association between UPF consumption and inflammation, assessed through alterations in C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations, among Brazilian adolescents. This is a cross-sectional study involving a sub-sample of 6316 adolescents aged 12-17 years, participants in the Study of Cardiovascular Risk in Adolescents (ERICA), from seven capitals in Brazil. Dietary intake was assessed using a 24-hour recall, and foods were categorised based on their degree of processing according to the NOVA classification. UPF consumption was then divided into quartiles. For CRP evaluation, blood samples were collected after a 12-hour fasting period and categorised as > 3 mg/l, indicating low-grade inflammation. Poisson regression models with robust variance were employed to assess the association between UPF consumption and high CRP concentrations. High UPF consumption (highest quartile, ≥ 44·9 % kcal/d) was slightly associated with a higher prevalence of CRP after adjusting for potential confounders (prevalence ratio = 1·039; 95 % CI: 1·006, 1·073), compared with those in the lowest quartile of UPF consumption. However, when evaluating different groups of UPF separately (such as sugary beverages, processed meats and sweets), the previous association was no longer observed. These findings suggest a modest association between overall UPF consumption and early indicators of unhealthy low-grade inflammation in adolescents. Further experimental and cohort studies are necessary to clarify the role of UPF in inflammatory processes.
现代西方饮食的特点是大量热量来自超加工食品（UPF），这种饮食与全身炎症有关。本研究调查了巴西青少年中UPF摄入量与炎症之间的关联，通过C反应蛋白（CRP）浓度的变化来评估炎症。这是一项横断面研究，涉及来自巴西七个首府的6316名12至17岁青少年的子样本，这些青少年参与了青少年心血管风险研究（ERICA）。使用24小时回忆法评估饮食摄入量，并根据NOVA分类法根据食品的加工程度对其进行分类。然后将UPF摄入量分为四分位数。为了评估CRP，在禁食12小时后采集血样，并将其分类为>3mg/l，表明存在低度炎症。采用具有稳健方差的泊松回归模型来评估UPF摄入量与高CRP浓度之间的关联。与UPF摄入量最低四分位数的人群相比，在调整潜在混杂因素后，高UPF摄入量（最高四分位数，≥44·9%千卡/天）与较高的CRP患病率略有相关（患病率比=1·039；95%置信区间：1·006，1·073）。然而，当分别评估不同组的UPF（如含糖饮料、加工肉类和甜食）时，先前的关联不再明显。这些发现表明，青少年总体UPF摄入量与不健康低度炎症的早期指标之间存在适度关联。需要进一步的实验和队列研究来阐明UPF在炎症过程中的作用。
