Eye-opening study into ultra-processed foods and your risk of heart problemsMichelle Basch | *****@*****.tld March 28, 2026, 5:39 AM A report from the American College of Cardiology found people who eat more than nine servings of ultra-processed food a day are an average of 67% more likely to have a heart attack or stroke, or die from heart disease than people who eat one serving a day. The study also found that with each daily serving, the risk of such an event goes up by more than 5%. Among Black Americans, each additional serving leads to an increase in risk of more than 6%. Dr. Michele Arthurs, a lifestyle medicine physician with Kaiser Permanente, told WTOP that if you’re not sure what you’re eating is ultra-processed, just look at the label. “You can see a long list of ingredients, many of which you may not be able to pronounce because they are additives or chemicals that are used for food preservation to increase shelf life,” she said. These kinds of foods also tend to be loaded with sugar, salt and saturated fat. “Our body, essentially, has to fight with them in order to kind of process them and get them through our system. And this leads to inflammation in the body,” Arthurs said. She recognized that many people may find it tough to stop eating ultra-processed foods altogether. Instead, she recommends limiting how much you eat. “It doesn’t mean you can’t have that ballpark hot dog,” Arthurs said, adding that cutting it in half and sharing it with someone was also an option. Other strategies Arthurs recommends to reduce the consumption of ultra-processed foods include: Eat a healthy meal before you head to an event, like a baseball game, where you know you’ll be exposed to a lot of ultra-processed foods. If you like sugary drinks, try alternating with ones that have little or no sugar. If you love snacking on chips, bring along an orange too, and eat the fruit before diving into the bag of chips. The findings, based on data from more than 6,800 U.S. adults, is being presented at the ACC’s Annual Scientific Session on March 28-30 in New Orleans. They’re also published in the journal JACC Advances. Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here. © 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area. ARTICLE SOURCE: https://wtop.com/health-fitness/2026/03/eye-opening-study-into-ultra-processed-foods-and-your-risk-of-heart-problems/
Today is February 1st and marks the first day of "National Fasting February" - and yes, this is a thing. Google it!
For this months challenge, we are going to support each other in our efforts to practice various forms of fasting throughout the month. The type of fasting you wish to do is entirely up to you. We are going to encourage INTERMITTENT FASTING, that is to put it simply, skipping a meal so that you are only eating 2 meals a day instead of the traditional 3 meals a day. The goal is to enjoy these meals within an 8 hour "feasting window" and then no food in the remaining 16 hours "fasting window" (in which 8 of those hours you should be sleeping).
An example is waking up at 7am, but waiting until 11am-noon for your first meal, and then having dinner at 6-7pm for your 2nd meal. Other people prefer to eat a breakfast, then a mid-day lunch, and skip dinner.
If you want to throw in a 24, 48, or 72 hour fast just to show off by all mean do so, lol.
Just like before, we encourage you to check in daily, and share what you have eaten, perhaps a weigh-in if you're willing, and enjoy in some small talk. Every Reply in this topic will count as an entry for this month's prize drawing. Attending Monday night zoom also counts as a bonus entry. Back-to-back posts count as 1 entry as a counter to spamming.
Let's keep our resolutions going strong!
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