Men who eat more ultra-processed foods, including soft drinks, packaged snacks, cereals and processed meats, gained a clearer picture of their prostate cancer risk from a new study of more than 17,000 U.S. adults. After accounting for age, race and ethnicity, smoking and poverty status, those who consumed the most ultra-processed products carried roughly 24% to 31% higher odds of developing prostate cancer than men who ate the least.
How the study measured ultra-processed food intake
The research, published in The American Journal of Medicine and led by Florida Atlantic University’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, drew on two decades of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data collected between 2003 and 2023 from 17,024 men ages 18 and older.
Researchers estimated each participant’s diet using two 24-hour dietary recalls, then calculated the share of daily calories that came from ultra-processed foods. Items were classified using the NOVA system, the validated framework that groups foods by the extent and purpose of industrial processing.
Participants were sorted into four intake groups, ranging from men who got less than about 20% of their calories from ultra-processed foods to those who got more than 44%.
What the prostate cancer numbers showed
Compared with men in the lowest intake group, those in the three higher intake groups had a 29% greater risk of prostate cancer. Men in the two highest consumption groups together had a 30% greater risk. After adjustment for age, race and ethnicity, smoking and poverty status, the risk ranged from 24% to 31% across higher-intake groups.
Men in the single highest intake group showed a possible 34% increase in prostate cancer risk, though that figure did not reach statistical significance, which the researchers attributed to the smaller number of prostate cancer cases within that group.
Why ultra-processed foods may matter for cancer
Ultra-processed foods already supply close to 60% of the calories consumed by U.S. adults and roughly 70% of those consumed by children. The category covers industrially produced soft drinks, packaged cereals, snacks and processed meats, typically built from refined fats, oils, sugars, starches, salts and other additives designed for flavor, texture and shelf life.
Scientists have proposed several biological pathways through which these foods could raise cancer risk, including metabolic disruption, increased inflammation, oxidative stress and changes in the gut microbiome. Earlier research has linked higher ultra-processed food consumption to overweight and obesity, metabolic disease, inflammatory markers, cardiovascular disease including heart attacks and strokes, and premature death.
They argue that the industry’s aims can clash with what populations actually need to eat, and that cutting ultra-processed food consumption takes more than personal willpower.
Prostate cancer’s scale in the U.S. and worldwide
Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in American men and the second leading cause of cancer death among men, after lung cancer. The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 333,000 U.S. men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2026 and that more than 36,000 will die from the disease.
Globally, the burden is larger still. The International Agency for Research on Cancer recorded nearly 1.5 million new prostate cancer diagnoses worldwide in 2022, with close to 400,000 deaths that year.
What researchers say patients and providers should do
Cutting back on ultra-processed foods is hard because they’re cheap, heavily marketed, and stocked in nearly every store, while fresher alternatives often cost more or take longer to prepare.
Healthcare providers were urged to recognize these access barriers, encourage patients toward evidence-based healthy lifestyle practices, and help them cut back on ultra-processed foods as part of routine care. The authors call for large-scale observational studies and randomized trials to test the relationship more rigorously.
The study was conducted at Florida Atlantic University’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine. Co-authors included FAU medical students, a doctoral student at the University of Oxford, and faculty in FAU’s Department of Population Health.
FAQ
What did the ultra-processed food and prostate cancer study find?
Men who consumed the most ultra-processed foods had 24% to 31% higher risks of prostate cancer than men who consumed the least, after adjusting for age, race and ethnicity, smoking and poverty status. The study analyzed NHANES data from 17,024 U.S. men ages 18 and older between 2003 and 2023.
Which foods count as ultra-processed in this research?
The study used the NOVA classification system and counted soft drinks, packaged cereals, snacks and processed meats as ultra-processed foods. These products are typically made with refined fats, oils, sugars, starches, salts and additives designed for flavor, texture and shelf life.
How common is prostate cancer in the United States?
Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among U.S. men and the second leading cause of cancer death in men after lung cancer. The American Cancer Society projects more than 333,000 new U.S. diagnoses and more than 36,000 deaths in 2026.
