A leading public health doctor has warned that consistently eating the wrong kinds of food may harm long-term health in ways comparable to smoking cigarettes.
The dangers of smoking are well established, ranging from visible effects like stained fingers and gum problems to far more serious outcomes such as heart disease, lung cancer, and COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease).
But as smoking rates have fallen dramatically — with fewer than one in 10 Americans now smoking compared with around half the population in the 1960s — attention has increasingly shifted to another widespread health threat: diets built around heavily manufactured products.
Dr Chris Van Tulleken, an associate professor at University College London and prominent wellbeing campaigner, says our eating habits are being reshaped by what he calls ‘a pandemic of diet-related disease’, which he argues is contributing to premature deaths worldwide.
His concern centres on ultra processed foods (UPFs), which are increasingly common and, according to a growing body of research, may be linked to higher rates of life-limiting conditions such as type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer.
Appearing on the Diary of a CEO podcast, the public health expert said UPFs have now ‘overtaken tobacco as the leading cause of early death on planet Earth’, arguing that many of these products contain ingredients and additives that can be harmful when eaten frequently.
Several studies align with this view. A 2024 meta analysis concluded: “High UPF consumption is associated with an increased risk of a variety of chronic diseases and mental health disorders.
“At present, not a single study reported an association between UPF intake and a beneficial health outcome. These findings suggest that dietary patterns with low consumption of UPFs may render broad public health benefits.”
In broad terms, UPFs are items made with industrial processes and enhanced using additives such as preservatives, colourings, and other chemical ingredients that most people would not typically have in a home kitchen.
They also tend to be engineered for repeat consumption — often high in calories and formulated with combinations of sugar, fat, and salt that help extend shelf life while making them especially moreish.
Many of the most commonly cited examples are everyday staples: some breakfast cereals, fizzy drinks, crisps, certain canned products, cured meats, and ready-to-heat frozen meals are frequently included in lists of major offenders.
During the podcast discussion, Dr Van Tulleken argued these products should be thought of less as food and more as ‘industrially processed edible substances’, pointing to their alleged links with colorectal cancer rates, obesity, and cardiovascular problems.
He said: “There is a decade of evidence now that is extremely clear that it is ultra-processed food that is responsible, not just for pandemic weight gain and obesity, but also for a long list of other health problems, including early death.”
He also explained that his view was shaped by personal experience, after noticing changes in his own health and recognising a pattern in what he was eating. He added: “I’m always on the brink of weight gain and I recognised in myself that I lived with an addiction to ultra-processed foods.”
Because of that, he suggested a different public approach could help, arguing that ‘treating [UPFs] as an addictive substance may be really useful for some people,’ similar to how smoking has been tackled.
For those finding it difficult to cut down, he recommended taking a close look at ingredient lists and, in his words, to ‘wallow in it.’
The doctor explained: “You’ll realise all the food has the same flavour profile. It’s equally salty and sugary and sweet. It’s all acidic. And you will gradually become disgusted.”