Thousands of people could avoid dying of heart disease by reducing ultra-processed foods (UPFs), experts have said, as a modelling study suggests junk food may be driving up to a third of cases.

专家表示，通过减少超加工食品的摄入，数千人本可避免死于心脏病。一项建模研究表明，垃圾食品可能导致了多达三分之一的心脏病病例。

Millions of people increasingly consume UPFs such as ready meals, breakfast cereals, protein bars, fizzy drinks and fast food.

数以百万计的人越来越多地食用超加工食品，如即食餐、早餐麦片、蛋白棒、碳酸饮料和快餐。

In the UK and US, more than half the average diet now consists of UPFs. For some, especially people who are younger, or from disadvantaged areas, a diet comprising as much as 80% UPFs is typical.

在英国和美国，人们日常饮食中超过一半现在由超加工食品构成。 对某些人群而言，尤其是年轻人或来自贫困地区的人，其饮食中高达80%为超加工食品的情况十分普遍。

Previous research has linked UPFs to serious harm in every major organ system of the human body.

此前的研究已已将超加工食品与人体每一个主要器官系统的严重损害联系起来。

Now a study suggests that between 23% and 37% of heart disease cases, and between 23% and 38% of heart disease deaths, could be attributable to UPF consumption.

现在，一项研究表明，23%至37%的心脏病病例以及23%至38%的心脏病死亡病例可能归因于超加工食品的消费。

The findings were published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine and presented at the annual International Congress on Obesity, hosted by the World Obesity Federation in Mexico.

该研究结果发表于《美国预防医学杂志》，并在世界肥胖联合会于墨西哥主办的年度国际肥胖大会上进行了展示。

The study, led by Virginie Hamel and Jean-Claude Moubarac from the Center for Public Health Research at Montreal University, focused on Canada. It estimated that thousands of deaths could be prevented across the country if the population cut its consumption of UPFs.

这项由蒙特利尔大学公共卫生研究中心的维尔日妮·阿梅尔和让-克洛德·穆巴拉克牵头的研究聚焦于加拿大。 研究估计，如果该国人口减少超加工食品的消费，全国范围内可预防数千例死亡病例。

But while actual estimates may vary slightly, the researchers said similar results could be expected in other high-income countries.

不过，尽管实际估算数值可能略有差异，但研究人员表示，在其他高收入国家预计也能得到类似结果。

UPFs may account for "a substantial and potentially preventable" contributor to heart disease, the researchers said. "These findings reinforce the need for clinical and public health interventions aimed at reducing UPF intake as a key component of cardiovascular disease prevention."

研究人员称，超加工食品可能是导致心脏病的一个“重大且潜在可预防的”因素。 “这些发现强化了开展临床和公共卫生干预措施的必要性，这些措施旨在将减少超加工食品摄入作为心血管疾病预防的关键组成部分。”

They said that UPFs dominated the food environment in Canada, making excessive consumption a widespread and largely involuntary phenomenon.

他们表示，超加工食品主导了加拿大的食品环境，使得过量消费成为一种普遍且很大程度上非自愿的现象。

"While public education and individual counselling remain important components of health promotion, their impact is limited without broader environmental and policy support. To drive meaningful change in dietary patterns, comprehensive structural measures are essential.

“虽然公众教育和个体咨询仍然是健康促进的重要组成部分，但若缺乏更广泛的环境和政策支持，其影响是有限的。 要推动饮食模式发生有意义的改变，全面的结构性措施至关重要。”

"These include regulations on food taxes, front-of-package labelling, marketing restrictions and reformulation targets aimed at improving food quality."

“这些措施包括对食品税收进行监管、实施包装正面标签制度、限制营销，以及制定旨在改善食品质量的配方改良目标。”

However, some experts not involved with the study said there were several limitations to the results, and further research was required to prove UPFs increase the risk of heart disease.

然而，一些未参与该研究的专家表示，该结果存在若干局限性，需要进一步研究来证明超加工食品会增加心脏病风险。

Prof Kevin McConway, an emeritus professor of applied statistics at the Open University, said: "This is an interesting attempt at modelling potential health effects of UPF consumption in one country (Canada) – but I really wouldn't want to put much trust in the detailed estimates it presents."

开放大学应用统计学荣休教授凯文·麦康威教授表示：“这是对超加工食品消费在一个国家（加拿大）潜在健康影响进行建模的一次有趣尝试——但我确实不太愿意相信它所呈现出的详细估算数据。”