At least 1 in 5 Gen X women show signs of addiction to junk food — and it’s a harbinger of worst to come
Study makes link between ‘80s diet culture and alarming eating trend
- A new US study has found that one in five Generation X women and one in 10 Gen X men exhibit signs of addiction to ultraprocessed foods.
- Researchers warn that this trend could lead to even higher rates of addiction in younger generations, who consume more ultraprocessed foods than Gen X did in their youth.
- The study suggests that aggressive marketing of 'diet' foods to women in the 1980s, which contained engineered nutrients, may have contributed to these addictive eating patterns.
- Ultraprocessed foods, often cheaper and more accessible, now constitute over half of the US diet and are linked to rising obesity, heart disease, cancer, and premature death.
- The research highlights the urgent need to identify critical periods in life when consuming these foods might be particularly risky, suggesting early intervention could reduce long-term addiction.