Foods with a high level of processing such as ice cream, chicken nuggets and breakfast cereals are among those being termed "ultra-processed" with high consumption linked to early death, scientists say.
The term "ultra-processed" foods is being used as a way of grouping food by how much industrial processing that has been undertaken, reports the BBC.
French and Spanish researchers have studied the diets of thousands of people and found that those who ate greater amounts of ultra-processed food were likely to die earlier and have worse heart health than those who ate less processed food.
Other foods considered to be highly processed are meal-replacement shakes, chocolate, instant soups, cake, processed meat and mass-produced bread.
The increased consumption of ultra-processed foods over less processed foods, "may drive a substantial burden of cardiovascular diseases in the next decades," said Dr Mathilde Touvier, of the University of Paris.
A Mediterranean-style diet is considered the best way forward when choosing a pattern of eating, suggests Victoria Taylor, Senior Dietician at the British Heart Foundation.
"This, along with exercising regularly and not smoking, has been shown to be beneficial for lowering risk of heart and circulatory disease," she says.
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