Older adults who ate fewer ultra-processed foods (UPFs) reduced their calorie intake, lost weight, improved insulin sensitivity and lowered inflammation, according to an October study published in Clinical Nutrition.
“Counting nutrients is not enough,” said Moul Dey, professor of health and nutritional sciences at South Dakota State University and senior author and principal investigator of the study. “The degree of processing changes how the body handles those same nutrients. Diet quality depends not only on nutrients but also on the ingredients and the level of processing, considered together.”
Researchers screened 43 community-dwelling adults 65 years of age and older between Nov. 17, 2022, and Aug. 10, 2023. Participants received all three meals and snacks on a seven-day menu cycle; this was repeated within each respective diet arm for eight weeks. Meals were prepared based on a diet of approximately 2000 kcal calories and packaged for pick-up by participants twice weekly, with dine-in options once per week.
Minimally processed pork (MPP) and lentils (MPL) were the representative animal- and plant-based primary proteins in the dietary plans and were compared to a high-UPF habitual baseline (BSL) diet. Each participant consumed both proteins over the course of the study.
Results showed that MPP and MPL equally supported weight loss and participants experienced a 10% loss of total body fat and 13% loss in belly fat during both diet phases. This also came with a 23% improvement in insulin sensitivity, and daily calorie intake decreased by roughly 400 calories per day.
Authors suggest that the diets are a practical strategy to support healthy aging through diet and is a low-risk approach that does not require restriction or elimination of certain food groups. By replacing UPFs with minimally processed foods, older adults can improve metabolic efficiency and body composition.