Scientists look at what puts the 'junk' into junk foods

Conclusion This small study tentatively suggests that processed foods high in PAMPs act to trigger an immune response in people that ultimately may raise the risks of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease later in life. At present these conclusions are very shaky. The study was small (just 24 healthy men took part) and short term (11 days), so gives us only the first loose threads of evidence about what's going on, rather than a more solid, clear picture. For example, the study didn't measure new cases of diabetes or cardiovascular disease, or any disease. The link to disease rests on the assumption that the raised levels of inflammation seen in those given a high-PAMP diet will be big enough to cause disease in the future. This could be right or wrong, and needs testing to see if it holds true. The first part of the study was also not controlled for other foods, which probably biased the results. The second part was much more controlled, and found very little immune impact after a high-PAMP meal – at least over 24 hours. More changes happened in the low-PAMP scenario. The weight change might also be a red herring. It's not surprising that men who ate lots of junk food before the study lost a bit of weight after a week following advice to eat healthier (less than 1% of their body weights overall). But we certainly can't pin this weight change on the PAMPs, there were far too many other variables involved. The results of this study are intriguing and represent point...
Source: NHS News Feed - Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Food/diet Heart/lungs Source Type: news