Unhealthy, ultra-processed food: most of us keep eating and buying it, despite knowing that it is not good for us. For some products, the urge to eat is so strong that once the bag is open, it will be empty in a short time. For me, this is the case with chips. Once the bag is open, the sad realization that I’ve eaten everything follows quickly. But what makes this ultra-processed food so irresistible?
Before we find out what makes ultra-processed food so addictive, it is important to have a general idea of what ultra-processed food is. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have a clear definition, but broadly speaking, ultra-processed food is industrially made food derived from natural ingredients or synthetic materials. These kinds of food typically contain a lot of calories but lack nutrients. They are also optimized to cost as little as possible while being as addictive as possible. This way, we keep eating them.
It turns out that there are many mechanisms that force us to keep eating. Most of these mechanisms are based on our ‘primal brain.’ It developed when we were still hunters and gatherers, at a time when food was not certain for days or weeks. So, our brain is rewarded when we eat, preferably food that contains a lot of calories. This way, we have an incentive to keep eating and bulking up for the days when food is scarce. The problem with this mechanism that once kept us alive is that we still have the incentive to eat more than we necessarily need, even though food is no longer scarce (for most parts of the world, that is). Unfortunately, this ‘primal brain’ has proven to give a strong impulse to eat and find calorie-rich food. This impulse is often stronger than our rational part of the brain can resist, especially when we are less fit, fatigued, or tired.
Big companies have played well on this mechanism by optimizing their products not by making them qualitatively better, but by minimizing the cost while optimizing the taste and the urge to eat them. This is mainly done by the three pillars of flavor: salt, sugar, and fat. Each component has its own characteristics that make them so beloved by both manufacturers and our ‘primal brain.’
Sugar, for example, is a component that our brain loves. We cannot stop eating when sugar is involved. Research even shows that the more we eat of it, the more we want to have it. This means that our craving for a certain product increases if the amount of sugar increases. There is, however, an optimal point. If this point is exceeded, our appetite for the product will decrease. This point is called the bliss point. The bliss point differs per person and is generally higher for children. The bliss point is well-researched, as exceeding this point negatively affects the sales of the product.
Fat, on the other hand, does not have a bliss point. This means that manufacturers can increase the fat content of their product without worrying about drops in sales caused by our aversion to the amount of fat. The opposite is true. Our ‘primal brain’ is fond of fat and rewards it well. This is partly due to the number of calories fat has, roughly double that of sugar. Fat also delays the signal to the body that we have had enough of it. This way, we can eat more than necessary, which is a big advantage for the manufacturers.
However, the manufacturers must be careful not to make it obvious that their products contain a lot of fat, since we will eat less of it when we know it contains a lot of fat-especially if we can see the fat. This is because fat has, in most cases, a negative connotation. Hence, companies hide the fat, and they have become quite good at doing this.
Next, the last component of the three pillars of flavor: salt. Of all the flavors, our brain is the most addicted to salt. The reaction of our brain is more intense than that of sugar and fat. The strange thing about salt is that babies do not like it. It turns out that our desire for salt in food is taught by eating it. We get used to salt in our food and eventually even like it.
Besides the addictive aspect, salt helps disguise the other two elements of the pillars of flavor. This way, manufacturers can hide the taste of additives in their products or correct certain flaws in the process. This helps make the product more delicious and addictive, which has a positive effect on sales.
Luckily, there are some ways to guard yourself against these optimized products. One way is to do your grocery shopping when you are not hungry. This way, the rational part of your brain has a chance to counteract the urge of your ‘primal brain’, all the more so now that you know more about the secrets of these products. However, most of us cannot rely solely on willpower, since the urge for ultra-processed food is too strong. The real and best way to protect ourselves in the long run is to change the way society looks at these kinds of products, either by implementing protective regulations or by educating young people more about ultra-processed food and nutrition in general.
In short, manufacturers of ultra-processed food make their products as addictive as possible while minimizing production costs. This is mainly done by using the three pillars of flavor, where each pillar has its own advantages. This way, we keep craving food that is unhealthy, which is the reason why I cannot stop eating chips from the 50-cent shop. There are ways to protect ourselves—so perhaps I can go to the 50-cent shop when I am not hungry. However, the best way to protect ourselves is to change society’s perspective on ultra-processed food and educate young people more about nutrition.
For those interested in this topic, this article is based on a chapter in the book De Mens is een Plofkip by Teun van de Keuken. Sadly, the food industry has more tricks up its sleeve to make us buy unhealthy food, which he explains quite well in under 100 pages.