At least 1 in 5 Gen X women have signs of an addiction to junk food — an alarming finding that researchers warn could signal an even worse future for the health of American youth, who’ve eaten even more over the course of their lives.
Generation X – who were born between 1965 and 1980 – are the first generation to grow up around ultraprocessed food from rainbow-colored cereals to frozen pizzas, and mysterious packaged meats.
Nowadays, these products high in salt, sugar, and fat, make up more than half of the U.S. diet , according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They’re also 73 percent of the country’s food supply, according to Northeastern University.
But an ultraprocessed diet has taken a toll on American health, leading to rates of obesity rising and people eating hundreds more calories than normal and leaving Americans at an increased risk of heart disease, lung cancer, disrupted reproductive function and premature death. Researchers are still working to understand the full impacts.
Today, more than 40 percent of American adults are considered to be obese and rates have more than tripled over the last 60 years, with the average American putting on 15 or more pounds since the late 1990s, according to federal health data.
A new study into Gen X adults has given some insight. US researchers have found that one in five American women of this age group has signs of addiction to junk food — with ominous implications for younger people.
“Children and adolescents today consume even higher proportions of calories from ultra-processed foods than today’s middle-aged adults did in their youth,” Dr. Ashley Gearhardt, a professor of psychology at Michigan Medicine, explained in a statement. “If current trends continue, future generations may show even higher rates of ultra-processed food addiction later in life.”
More than 2,000 Gen Xers took part in the study where they were asked about cravings, withdrawal symptoms, and attempts to cut down on the food.
To determine if participants were addicted to ultraprocessed foods, the researchers used a scale similar to diagnosing substance use disorders.
Along with 20 percent of Gen X women, the study also discovered that 10 percent of Gen X men are addicted to ultraprocessed foods. Unlike when it comes to substance abuse, more women were showing signs of addiction than men when it came to junk food.
The same numbers are not seen in older generations, known as Baby Boomers. For those between the ages of 65 and 80 years old, just 12 percent of women and four percent of men showed signs of addiction.
But, unlike the Baby Boomers, Gen X adults were in a key developmental phase difference when the nation’s food environment shifted, Lucy Loch, a graduate student at the school’s psychology department, said.
The research team suggested that the addictive tendencies may be due to the aggressive marketing of “diet” food to women in the 1980s, including low-fat cookies, low-sugar soda and microwaveable meals. These foods were heavily promoted as solutions for weight loss but their engineered nutrients may have reinforced addictive eating patterns.
And all U.S. women are gaining weight at nearly twice the rate of men, according to prior research from Brigham Young University.
“These products are sold as health foods — which can be especially problematic for those trying to reduce the number of calories they consume,” Gearhardt said. “This especially affects women, because of the societal pressure around weight.”
Ultraprocessed foods — many of which are cheaper and more accessible than fruits, vegetables and other whole foods — have also been shown to lead to overeating, according to a recent University of Helsinki study. Last year, Gearhardt told the National Institutes of Health that ingredients in these foods, such as sugar and added fats, activate the brain similarly to nicotine and alcohol.
The new research also found that people with an addiction to these foods were far more likely to report being overweight or in poor mental or physical health.
The research team said their study raises urgent questions about whether there are windows of time during the course of one’s life when eating the foods could be especially risky and lead to addiction.
“Just as with other substances, intervening early may be essential to reducing long-term addiction risk across the lifespan,” she said.
