Ultraprocessed Foods Linked to Increased Risk of Developing Lupus, reveals research

The researchers included data from the Nurses' Health Study I (NHSI) and Nurses' Health Study II (NHSII), two large prospective cohort studies in the U.S. with more than 121,000 female registered nurses enlisted. Participants were between 20 and 50 years of age at enrollment in 1976 (NHSI) and 1989 (NHSII) and had completed comprehensive dietary questionnaires every four years using a validated semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire (SQFFQ). The dietary questionnaire focused on consumption of ultraprocessed foods, which were reported by number of servings/day, grams, or milliliters consumed.

The SLE diagnoses of participants were confirmed by rheumatologists. Tertiles of cumulative average UPF intake will be determined based on the average UPF intake, ranked from highest to lowest. Time-varying Cox regression models will be used to estimate hazard ratios with 95% confidence intervals for the development of SLE adjusting for important covariates that include age, race, BMI, menopausal status, and other lifestyle factors. In addition, risk stratification by BMI and further examination of SLE subtypes-also in the context of the presence and absence of dsDNA antibodies-was performed.

• This study included 99,000 female participants recruited to NHSI and 106,000 females in NHSII. The mean age of participants in this study using NHSI was 50 years, while, with NHSII, it was 36 years. More than 90% of participants self-reported as White.

• The highest tertile of UPF intake was significantly associated with an increased risk of SLE, 56% higher among those in the lowest tertile (p= 0.03).

• The association was stronger with the anti-dsDNA positive SLE cases (p = 0.01). suggesting that higher UPF intake is associated with more severe disease.

• Among UPF categories, artificially sweetened and sugar-sweetened beverages were most strongly associated with a higher risk of SLE.

• The associations did not alter after adjustment for many confounders, including BMI, smoking, alcohol consumption, and menopausal status

The results of this study provide novel evidence that increases in UPF intake lead to an increased risk of developing SLE. Since UPFs account for more than 50% of the total calories American adults consume on a daily basis, it is relevant to educate consumers about the health risks associated with such foods. Limiting UPF exposure would reduce the incidence of lupus; however, reduction in overall health risk is also possible.

Reference:

Rossato S, Oakes EG, Barbhaiya M et al. Ultraprocessed Food Intake and Risk of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Among Women Observed in the Nurses' Health Study Cohorts. Arthritis care & research, June 2024. 10.1002/acr.25395.