Experts warn ultra-processed foods increase risk of cardiovascular disease

We know they're bad for us and now we know just how bad ultra-processed foods can be for our health. After two studies found they can cause harm similar to smoking and significantly raise the risk of heart disease and stroke. But their appeal, packed with sugar, fat and additives, can be hard to counter. Companies have basically designed and engineered these foods to be very, very addictive, hyper-palatable to people. Being told that you're actually eating industrially produced edible substances can be quite confronting. But to start understanding that they are essentially that, they are essentially industrially produced edible substances. The evidence against ultra-processed foods, or UPFs, is mounting. Scientists in Australia found that those who ate the most UPF were 39% more likely to develop high blood pressure. And in China, researchers say, they were nearly 25% more likely to suffer from a heart attack, stroke or angina. But this kind of food makes up more than half of the British diet. And it's not just the obvious junk food that's the problem. Here we have some food that you might think is healthy. There's breakfast cereal with added vitamins. There's low-fat yogurt, protein bars. But when you look at the ingredient list for all of them, they all contain additives, things that you would not find in a home kitchen. And that, experts say, is a key giveaway that they are ultra-processed. And with such an abundance of it, there is a worry this could cause a wave of ill health. We really are looking now at the next public health disaster. The diseases that are linked with poor diet, things like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancers, all are extremely expensive conditions to treat. They take a long time to develop, and they are really crippling our health services. For that reason, experts urge a change in diets. But with UPF's prevalence and affordability, that might be easier said than done. Milena Veselinovic, Sky News.