Consumption of foods according to their degree of processing in patients with established atherosclerosis disease

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to analyze the consumption of foods according to their degree of processing in patients with established atherosclerosis disease. A cross-sectional study was performed with 74 patients of the BALANCE Program trial, a randomized, multicenter and national clinical trial occurring in Brazil. Body weight, height, waist circumference, blood pressure, lipid profile and fasting glucose were collected. Food intake was assessed with 24-h dietary recall. Consumption of nutrients was analyzed in quartiles of consumption of ultra-processed foods and their differences were obtained by one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s post hoc test. Half of consumed calories came from natural or minimally processed foods (50.9%), followed by ultra-processed food products (35.1%). The largest contribution in calories came from meats, cereals/roots/tubers, breads, and sweets. No significant difference was found in quartiles of consumption of ultra-processed foods. In this sample, consumption of processed/ultra-processed food was almost the same as natural/minimally processed foods. Preferential consumption of unprocessed/minimally processed foods should be more widely advocated by health professionals.