Most U.S. Adults Lack Awareness of Processed Foods
By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, July 16, 2025 -- Most U.S. adults cannot identify processed foods correctly, according to a study published online July 8 in JAMA Network Open.
Neal D. Barnard, M.D., from George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C., and colleagues assessed public understanding of processed foods and their association with health. The analysis included 2,174 survey participants aged 18 to 92 years.
The researchers found that while no single processed food was identified by a respondent majority, 28 percent of respondents cited meat products (e.g., lunch meat, hot dogs, and hamburgers), 14 percent cited shelf-stable foods (e.g., canned, packaged, frozen), and 13 percent cited foods with artificial additives. Compared with older respondents (aged 60 to 92 years), half as many young respondents (aged 18 to 27 years) cited meat products (36 versus 18 percent). More than one-third of respondents (39 percent) reported that all processed foods were unhealthy versus 40 percent who did not believe all processed foods were unhealthy.
"Responses were highly subjective and largely unrelated to prior epidemiological research findings on the health effects of processed foods," the authors write. "The vague term processed foods should be replaced by more specific terms describing foods’ known health effects."
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted July 2025
Read this next
U.S. Children Became Increasingly Unhealthy in Recent Decades
WEDNESDAY, July 16, 2025 -- The health of U.S. children worsened across a wide range of health indicator domains during the past 17 years, according to a study published online...
Anticholinergics Tied to Physical Performance Decline in Older Adults
WEDNESDAY, July 16, 2025 -- Anticholinergics are associated with physical performance decline in older adults, according to a study published online July 10 in JAMA Network...
Nocturnal Hypertension Control Improved With Bedtime Antihypertensive Dosing
WEDNESDAY, July 16, 2025 -- Bedtime dosing with antihypertensive medication yields better nocturnal blood pressure control and improved circadian rhythm, according to a study...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.