Could depleted soil be a culprit in obesity?

[Woodznutz]

Could the fact that much of our foods are grown on depleted soils, thus lacking needed nutrients, that causes people to overeat? Does the body need more than calories to be 'satiated' at mealtime? Whereas in the past we could eat a 2000 calorie meal and obtain all the nutrients we need, now we need 3500 calories to get the same nutrition? Food for thought, doncha think?

Dirt Poor: Have Fruits and Vegetables Become Less Nutritious?

Because of soil depletion, crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today

www.scientificamerican.com

 

[Hafar1014]

Our food has too much sugar and artificial ingredients. I go to Scotland every year and I eat normally and lose 6 pounds in 12 days. Maybe its the haggis. The food is all natural local grown

 

[Dekster]

Could the fact that much of our foods are grown on depleted soils, thus lacking needed nutrients, that causes people to overeat? Does the body need more than calories to be 'satiated' at mealtime? Whereas in the past we could eat a 2000 calorie meal and obtain all the nutrients we need, now we need 3500 calories to get the same nutrition? Food for thought, doncha think?

Dirt Poor: Have Fruits and Vegetables Become Less Nutritious?

Because of soil depletion, crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today

www.scientificamerican.com

The article seems to suggest that it is more because the varieties they grow now grow too fast to absorb as much over any given period of time more so than soil depletion.

 

[Darkwind]

Dr. Ken D. Berry is a physician known for advocating a low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diet, often criticizing highly refined, or ultra-processed, foods. He and other proponents of this dietary approach frequently cite studies demonstrating the harmful health effects of ultra-processed foods (UPFs). [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]


The scientific literature contains a large and growing body of evidence, including meta-analyses and randomized controlled trials, supporting the links between UPFs and various adverse health outcomes. [6]
Key studies and evidence linking UPFs to adverse health outcomes
National Institutes of Health (NIH) randomized controlled trial (2019)

• Study: The first randomized, controlled clinical trial to compare the effects of an ultra-processed diet versus an unprocessed diet. Participants were housed in a metabolic ward and given one of the two diets for two weeks.
• Findings: The group consuming ultra-processed foods ate an average of 508 extra calories per day and gained an average of two pounds. In contrast, the group on the unprocessed diet lost an average of two pounds.
• Conclusion: This trial provided strong evidence that the nature of ultra-processed foods directly drives overeating and weight gain, independent of their fat, sugar, and salt content. [1, 7, 8, 9]

The BMJ umbrella review of meta-analyses (2024)

• Study: An umbrella review is a systematic review of other meta-analyses. This review examined 45 pooled analyses involving nearly 10 million participants, synthesizing the evidence on UPFs and health outcomes.
• Findings: The review found "convincing" or "highly suggestive" evidence for a link between higher UPF consumption and 32 negative health outcomes, including:
  • Cardiometabolic: Increased risk of cardiovascular disease-related mortality (50% higher), heart disease-related mortality, and type 2 diabetes.
  • Mental health: Higher risk of anxiety (48%) and depression.
  • Mortality: Higher risk of all-cause mortality. [6, 10, 11]

Systematic reviews on cardiometabolic health

• Study: A systematic review and meta-analysis published in Advances in Nutrition (2024) analyzed prospective cohort studies on UPF consumption and cardiometabolic risk factors.
• Findings: It found a consistent positive association between high UPF intake and increased risk of diabetes, hypertension, hypertriglyceridemia, low HDL cholesterol, and obesity. [12, 13]

Studies on gut health

• Study: Research highlights how additives commonly found in UPFs can disrupt the gut microbiome and weaken the intestinal barrier.
• Findings: A 2022 randomized, controlled study published in Gastroenterology found that a common emulsifier altered intestinal microbiota and increased stomach discomfort in participants. [14]

How refined foods harm the body
Beyond the high content of sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats, studies point to other mechanisms by which UPFs harm human health:

• Overeating: The soft texture and hyper-palatable combination of ingredients in UPFs affect satiety signals and reward systems, encouraging people to eat more.
• Rapid absorption: Refined carbohydrates and sugars are quickly absorbed into the bloodstream, causing a high glycemic load, which leads to sharp spikes in blood glucose and insulin and can worsen insulin resistance.
• Damage to gut health: The manufacturing process and common additives can lead to a lack of fiber, which starves beneficial gut microbes and can cause inflammation and a weakened intestinal lining. [5, 13, 14]

Scientific limitations
While the evidence is robust, it's important to note some scientific limitations:

• Observational bias: Many studies are observational, meaning they can show an association, not a direct causal link. People who consume more UPFs may also have other unhealthy lifestyle factors.
• Confounding factors: Some studies fail to fully account for confounding variables. For instance, a 2019 review argued that some meta-analyses might have attributed risks to refined grains that actually belonged to other components of a Western diet, such as red and processed meat.
• Varied definitions: The methodology used to define and assess UPF consumption can differ across studies, potentially influencing the strength of the reported associations. [6, 12, 15, 16, 17]

AI responses may include mistakes.
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4] Ultra-processed foods and human health: from epidemiological evidence to mechanistic insights - PubMed
[5] The role of ultra-processed food in obesity - PubMed
[6] Ultra-processed food exposure and adverse health outcomes: umbrella review of epidemiological meta-analyses
[7] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-new-theory-of-obesity/
[8] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2019/05/16/723693839/its-not-just-salt-sugar-fat-study-finds-ultra-processed-foods-drive-weight-gain
[9] https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/05/25/1178163270/ultra-processed-foods-health-risk-weight-gain
[10] Ultra-processed food exposure and adverse health outcomes: umbrella review of epidemiological meta-analyses
[11] https://globalnews.ca/news/10479231/ultra-processed-food-early-death-study/
[12] Ultra-Processed Foods and Human Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies - PMC
[13] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2161831323013820
[14] Ultra-processed food: Five things to know
[15] https://www.npr.org/sections/health...k-food-disease-cancer-anxiety-depression-diet
[16] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6520038/
[17] https://research.ucdavis.edu/ask-the-experts-ultra-processed-foods-and-how-do-they-impact-our-health/

 

[Cassandro]

Most Americans don't eat any vegetables (unless you include pizza sauce).

 

[Muhammed]

Could the fact that much of our foods are grown on depleted soils, thus lacking needed nutrients, that causes people to overeat? Does the body need more than calories to be 'satiated' at mealtime? Whereas in the past we could eat a 2000 calorie meal and obtain all the nutrients we need, now we need 3500 calories to get the same nutrition? Food for thought, doncha think?

Dirt Poor: Have Fruits and Vegetables Become Less Nutritious?

Because of soil depletion, crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today

www.scientificamerican.com

Lower vitamin and mineral is a problem.

However, I think that by far the biggest factor in the rise of obesity and cardiovascular disease is that America has become a nation of soy boys. Soy is not food, it is fodder. And it's an endocrine disruptor.

If you regularly eat fast food french fries, you're a soy boy because they are deep fried in soybean oil. Same thing with Chicken McNuggets or Mcfish and their equivalents at almost any restaurant chain. And even if you buy frozen fries and chicken nuggets at the grocery store and put them in your air-fryer they have still been pre-cooked in soybean oil.

Grocery store bread is the same way. Almost any pre-packaged bread product on the grocery store shelves contains soy.

In the last 50 years, soy has gone from being practically nonexistent in the American diet to being the #1 source of calories consumed in America.

That is a massive dietary change that tracks perfectly with obesity. The more soy America consumes, the fatter America gets.

 

[Mikeoxenormous]

Could the fact that much of our foods are grown on depleted soils, thus lacking needed nutrients, that causes people to overeat? Does the body need more than calories to be 'satiated' at mealtime? Whereas in the past we could eat a 2000 calorie meal and obtain all the nutrients we need, now we need 3500 calories to get the same nutrition? Food for thought, doncha think?

Dirt Poor: Have Fruits and Vegetables Become Less Nutritious?

Because of soil depletion, crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today

www.scientificamerican.com

My lifestyle choice was to eat water carbohydrates, and proteins, gave up starchy foods and lost 55 pounds. It inst the soil that is making people fat, it is their poor choices that make them fat.

 

[Papageorgio]

Could the fact that much of our foods are grown on depleted soils, thus lacking needed nutrients, that causes people to overeat? Does the body need more than calories to be 'satiated' at mealtime? Whereas in the past we could eat a 2000 calorie meal and obtain all the nutrients we need, now we need 3500 calories to get the same nutrition? Food for thought, doncha think?

Dirt Poor: Have Fruits and Vegetables Become Less Nutritious?

Because of soil depletion, crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today

www.scientificamerican.com

Our foods are over processed, over salted, over sweetened, and we are a society that sits on our asses everyday and are very inactive compared to 60’s and 70’s.

We need to get the crap out of our foods that Euro nations and even China bans. We just process the crap out of foods.

 

[jotathought]

My lifestyle choice was to eat water carbohydrates, and proteins, gave up starchy foods and lost 55 pounds. It inst the soil that is making people fat, it is their poor choices that make them fat.

I'm aligned with this mentality. If you burn more than you consume, you'll lose weight, and figuring out how you create and sustain that deficit while keeping nutrition, health, and muscle mass in check.

When you're constantly have low daily movement, frequently snacking, relying on fast foods, underestimating food portions or feeling like you have to reward yourself because you 'exercised' .. you're not going to lose weight.

 

[odanny]

 

[1srelluc]

Our food has too much sugar and artificial ingredients. I go to Scotland every year and I eat normally and lose 6 pounds in 12 days. Maybe its the haggis. The food is all natural local grown

Did you grow hair on your chest?

1:37 in.

 

[yidnar]

Could the fact that much of our foods are grown on depleted soils, thus lacking needed nutrients, that causes people to overeat? Does the body need more than calories to be 'satiated' at mealtime? Whereas in the past we could eat a 2000 calorie meal and obtain all the nutrients we need, now we need 3500 calories to get the same nutrition? Food for thought, doncha think?

Dirt Poor: Have Fruits and Vegetables Become Less Nutritious?

Because of soil depletion, crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today

www.scientificamerican.com

here are bigger culprits ..

There is a correlation between microwave ownership and weight gain, though the microwave itself is not the direct cause; rather, it's linked to lifestyle and dietary habits that contribute to weight gain. Studies have shown that areas with higher microwave ownership often have higher obesity rates, possibly because microwaves facilitate the consumption of convenience meals, increase the frequency of snacking, or allow for more frequent consumption of otherwise cold leftovers.

 

[Woodznutz]

The article seems to suggest that it is more because the varieties they grow now grow too fast to absorb as much over any given period of time more so than soil depletion.

I think both are true.

 

[Darkwind]

 

[initforme]

American food corporations.

 

[Woodznutz]

View attachment 1173307

Is that a "Far Side" cartoon?