Replacing just 10% of ultra-processed foods with whole foods linked to drop in bowel cancer rate

Replacing 10% of your intake of ultra-processed foods with minimally processed foods is linked with 2% lower incidence of bowel cancer, according to our new analysis of data from more than 460,000 US adults.

However, we also found no association between total ultra-processed food intake and bowel cancer incidence.

That said, intake of wholegrains, fibre, dairy, and calcium from ultra-processed food sources was associated with lower bowel cancer incidence.

Eating ultra-processed meats was associated with higher bowel cancer incidence.

Ultra-processed foods includes things such as store-bought biscuits, instant noodles, sugary drinks, processed meats and chips.

Overall, our findings suggest the label “ultra-processed” alone doesn’t tell the full story about bowel cancer risk.

What’s in the food seems to matter.

Choosing wholegrains and limiting processed meat aligns with current evidence-based guidance.

Researchers and policymakers should avoid treating all ultra-processed foods as one group as this may mask differences linked to disease risk.

QIMR Berghofer.

A complex picture Higher intakes of wholegrains, fibre, dairy, and calcium and lower intakes of processed and red meat have been associated with lower bowel cancer risk .

Importantly, these food groups and nutrients are in lots of foods, from minimally processed to ultra-processed (as defined by the Nova classification system ).

Prior studies evaluating the association between ultra-processed food intake and bowel cancer risk have been inconsistent.

Some have found that higher intake is associated with higher bowel cancer incidence, while others have found no association .