Eating Ultra-Processed Foods Daily Could Raise Your Heart Attack Risk by 67%

Ultra-Processed Foods Pose a Serious Threat to Heart Health

Reaching for chips, frozen dinners, sugary beverages, or packaged snacks throughout the day may be doing far more damage to your heart than previously understood. Groundbreaking research presented at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session (ACC.26) reveals that people who regularly consume high amounts of ultra-processed foods face a staggeringly higher risk of life-threatening cardiovascular events.

What the Research Found

The study examined data from 6,814 adults between the ages of 45 and 84, none of whom had a prior history of heart disease. All participants were enrolled in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), one of the most racially diverse cardiovascular research programs in the United States.

Using detailed dietary questionnaires and the NOVA food classification system — a widely recognized framework that categorizes foods from minimally processed to ultra-processed — researchers tracked daily consumption patterns and followed participants for the development of major cardiac events.

The findings were striking. Participants averaging 9.3 servings of ultra-processed foods per day faced a 67% greater risk of dying from coronary heart disease or stroke, or suffering a non-fatal heart attack, stroke, or resuscitated cardiac arrest, compared to those consuming just 1.1 servings daily.

Risk Increases With Every Serving

Perhaps more alarming is the dose-response relationship identified in the data. For every additional daily serving of ultra-processed food consumed, the risk of a major cardiac event climbed by more than 5%. This pattern held true even at moderate intake levels, suggesting there is no truly "safe" threshold for heavy reliance on these products.

The Risk Goes Beyond Calories

One of the most significant aspects of this study is what it ruled out. Researchers carefully controlled for total caloric intake, overall diet quality, and established cardiovascular risk factors including diabetes, high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, and obesity.

Even after accounting for all of these variables, the elevated cardiac risk associated with ultra-processed food consumption remained essentially unchanged.

"Regardless of the amount of calories you consumed per day, regardless of the overall quality of your diet, and after controlling for common risk factors like diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity, the risk associated with higher ultra-processed food intake was still about the same," said Dr. Amier Haidar, a cardiology fellow at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and the study's lead author.

This suggests that the manufacturing process itself — not just the nutritional content — may independently drive cardiovascular harm, possibly through additives, emulsifiers, or other processing-related compounds.

Racial Disparities in Risk

The study also uncovered notable differences across racial groups. While each additional daily serving of ultra-processed food was associated with a 5.1% increase in cardiac risk overall, that figure rose to 6.1% among Black Americans, compared to just 3.2% among non-Black participants.

Researchers point to systemic factors — including targeted food marketing practices and reduced access to fresh, minimally processed foods in certain communities — as likely contributors to these disparities in both consumption habits and health outcomes.

What Counts as Ultra-Processed?

Under the NOVA classification system, ultra-processed foods include a broad range of everyday convenience items:

• Chips and crackers
• Frozen meals and ready-to-eat dinners
• Sugary drinks and flavored beverages
• Processed meats
• Packaged breakfast cereals and commercial breads
• Candy and mass-produced snack foods

These products are distinguished from minimally processed foods — such as fresh vegetables, plain oats, nuts, and beans — by the degree of industrial processing and the presence of added ingredients like preservatives, artificial flavors, and refined sugars.

Understanding the Biological Mechanisms

While the study did not directly investigate the biological pathways involved, existing research offers important clues. Ultra-processed foods are typically dense in added sugars, unhealthy fats, and sodium, all of which can disrupt normal metabolic function. Over time, regular consumption may promote:

• Chronic inflammation
• Visceral fat accumulation
• Disruption of hunger-regulating hormones
• Elevated blood pressure and cholesterol levels

These effects collectively create an environment that is highly conducive to cardiovascular disease development.

How to Protect Your Heart Through Smarter Food Choices

Dr. Haidar recommends becoming more intentional about reading nutrition labels, paying close attention to added sugar, sodium, saturated fat, and refined carbohydrate content. Shifting toward minimally processed whole foods — including fresh or frozen produce, legumes, nuts, and plain grains — can meaningfully reduce cardiovascular risk over time.

Supporting this effort, the American College of Cardiology published a 2025 Concise Clinical Guidance report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC), endorsing a standardized front-of-package labeling system designed to make healthier food choices more visible and accessible to all consumers.

"Ultra-processed foods are associated with an increased risk for heart disease, and while many of these products may seem like convenient on-the-go meal or snack options, our findings suggest they should be consumed in moderation," Dr. Haidar emphasized.

The full study was published simultaneously in JACC Advances.

Key Takeaways

• Consuming 9+ daily servings of ultra-processed foods is linked to a 67% higher risk of heart attack, stroke, or cardiac death
• Risk increases by more than 5% per additional serving each day
• The association holds even after controlling for calories, diet quality, and pre-existing conditions
• Black Americans face a disproportionately higher increase in risk per serving
• Shifting toward whole, minimally processed foods remains one of the most effective dietary strategies for heart health