Junk food blues

How much ultra-processed food do you eat? While processed foods have been changed from their natural state, perhaps with added salt or sugar, ultra-processed foods go a step further.

They’re created from compounds extracted from other foods, like starches, sugars and fats, as well as stabilisers, artificial colours and flavourings. This includes most fizzy drinks, crisps, frozen meals, breakfast cereals and supermarket-bought white bread.

If the answer is lots, then you might want to cut down. People who eat more ultra-processed foods are more anxious or depressed than those who eat the least, experiencing significantly more ‘mentally unhealthy days’, according to American researchers.

Check your cupboards: if a product contains a long list of ingredients that you don’t recognise, it’s probably ultra-processed and not good brain food.