Junk food is the ‘new tobacco’, experts warn

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Ultra processed foods – which also include burgers, sausages, sweets and ice creams – are the “new tobacco”, say public health experts as they are high in salt, sugar and saturated fats.

More than half the calories the average person in Britain eats come from such fare – increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, depression and death.

But most people are in the dark about the dangers so stronger messages are needed to warn people, say experts in the US.

Writing in BMJ Global Health,Trish Cotter said: “The cocktail of additives, flavours, emulsifiers and colours, make products potentially addictive, which in turn leads to poor dietary patterns.”

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