Warning: This article contains discussion of cancer which some readers may find distressing.
A lot of the foods in our diets belong to a group which has been identified as increasing the risk of developing bowel cancer.
These are known as ultra-processed foods (UPFS) and include staples of the supermarket shop like mass-produced bread, breakfast cereals, ham, sausages and crisps.
NHS doctor Chris van Tulleken, author of the book Ultra Processed People, appeared on the Diary of a CEO podcast to say these kinds of foods have 'overtaken tobacco as the leading cause of early death on planet Earth'.
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In essence they're a bigger hazard to the health of humanity than smoking, and studies have connected them to a rise in poor health including cases of bowel cancer.
A study from China found that a high rate of consumption for ultra-processed foods was 'significantly associated' with a higher risk of colorectal cancer, and that the UK had a lot of these foods as part of our diets.
They found that for kids UPFS were responsible for 65.4 percent of energy intake, rising to 67.8 in adolescents and dropping to 54.3 for adult diets.
So people are eating a lot of these things all throughout their lives and numerous studies have linked this food with a higher rate of bowel cancer.
Cancer Research UK warns we're not at the point where we can say ultra-processed foods directly cause cancer, only that several studies have made a connection between them and higher risks of cancer.
They also noted that it's hard to prove direct links between food and cancer because people eat a lot of things, so pinning the blame on one kind of food in particular is difficult to do when the people being studied have had plenty of other things in their diet.
Still, they have their opponents as Dr Tulleken reckons these foods shouldn't even be called food at all, but 'industrially processed edible substances' just to hammer home how artificial this form of sustenance is.
He said: "There is a decade of evidence now that is extremely clear that it is ultra-processed food that is responsible, not just for pandemic weight gain and obesity, but also for a long list of other health problems, including early death."
The doctor suggested treating these foods like they were an addictive substance might do the trick and his advice to people wanting to change their diets was to read the ingredients list and be 'disgusted' by all the things in it.
According to Cancer Research UK the rising rates of bowel cancer in young people is a 'global phenomenon' as a study of 50 countries found that in 27 of them rates were increasing.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week.
Topics: Cancer, Bowel cancer, Health, Food And Drink
Joe Harker