Ultra-Processed Foods and Your Heart

How much of your daily diet comes from ultra-processed foods? A new scientific statement from the American College of Cardiology (ACC) gives us good reason to pay attention. At OlivinoLife, our commitment to heart health is inspired by the Mediterranean diet. That makes the ACC message especially relevant.

Three Things to Know:

• Limit sugary drinks, processed meats and foods high in refined starches, added sugars, sodium or unhealthy fats.
• Build everyday meals around vegetables, beans, whole grains, fruit and nuts.
• Not all ultra-processed foods are alike—nutritional quality matters, too.

What Heart Experts Recommend

The ACC is a leading professional organization dedicated to cardiovascular care. Its 2026 scientific statement [1] brings together evidence from clinical trials, long-term population studies and research on how nutrition affects the body. It offers an expert assessment of the evidence to help guide the prevention and management of cardiovascular disease.

On a personal note, one of the authors of the statement, Dr. Penny Kris-Etherton, was my master’s thesis advisor at The Pennsylvania State University—a connection that made this review especially meaningful to me.

The Statement’s central message:

“Collectively, current evidence supports dietary patterns centered  on minimally processed plant foods while limiting ultra-processed  foods, particularly those high in refined starches, added sugars,  sodium, or unhealthy fats, and emphasizing healthy sources of  fats and proteins to reduce cardiovascular risk and improve population health.” [1]

What Makes a Food Ultra-Processed?

The first step is to distinguish ordinary processing—such as freezing vegetables or canning beans—from ultra-processing. Researchers commonly use a system called NOVA to make that distinction [2]. Developed by researchers at the University of São Paulo, NOVA classifies foods according to the extent and purpose of their processing:

• Unprocessed or minimally processed foods: fruits, vegetables, eggs, grains and plain frozen produce.
• Processed culinary ingredients: oils, sugar and salt used in cooking.
• Processed foods: foods made by adding ingredients such as salt or sugar to basic foods, including many canned vegetables, cheeses and traditionally made breads.
• Ultra-processed foods: industrial formulations often containing food-derived substances and ingredients or additives rarely used in home cooking.
• Familiar examples include sugary soft drinks, many packaged chips and cookies, candy, instant noodles, hot dogs and some ready-to-heat meals.

A Package Alone Doesn’t Tell the Story

Plain frozen vegetables and canned beans with simple ingredients can make healthy eating easier. Packaged breads, cereals and yogurts vary, so their ingredients matter.

The ACC statement also emphasizes that ultra-processed foods are a diverse category. Certain whole-grain breads, yogurts and breakfast cereals have been associated with lower risks of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. How a food is processed matters, but so does its nutritional quality—another reason to consider the particular product [1].

Ingredient lists can offer clues, including protein isolates and additives used to create flavor, color or texture. NOVA describes how foods are made; it does not tell us everything about a product’s nutritional value or health effects.

Where to Start

Here are a few practical ways to put this advice into action:

• Replace a sugary drink with water or an unsweetened option.
• Choose fruit, nuts or plain yogurt more often than packaged sweets.
• Add beans, vegetables or whole grains to a familiar meal.
• Compare packaged foods for added sugars, sodium and saturated fat.

Convenience and good nutrition can go together. A bag of frozen vegetables or a can of beans may be exactly what makes a healthier dinner possible. The goal is an everyday eating pattern that supports your heart—and that you can sustain.

To your good health!

____________________

References

[1] Hu FB, et al. “Food and Health: Nutrition for Prevention and Management of Cardiovascular Disease: 2026 ACC Scientific Statement.” Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Published online September 30, 2026.

[2] Monteiro CA, et al. “Ultra-processed foods: what they are and how to identify them.” Public Health Nutrition. 2019;22(5):936–941.

__________________

About the Author

Clare Hasler-Lewis, Ph.D., MBA, is CEO and Co-Founder of OlivinoLife, Inc., a nutrition scientist, entrepreneur and recognized authority on functional foods and health. Known as the “First Lady of Functional Foods,” she previously served as Founding Executive Director of the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science at UC Davis and the Functional Foods for Health Program at the University of Illinois. She has more than 30 years of experience translating nutrition science into practical health and commercial applications. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of CogniBiome Therapeutics and previously served on the Board of Directors of Chiquita Brands International.