Ultra-Processed Food and Nutrition Policy: What We're Getting Wrong | Dr. David Ludwig | The Metabolic Link Ep. 85
The Metabolic Link
Why NOVA's 'Ultra-Processed' Is Problematic
David Ludwig explains NOVA, its categories, and why imprecision risks misguiding policy and research.
The term “ultra-processed food” appeared nearly 100 times in the White House’s Make America Healthy Again report. But questions remain about whether the concept is precise enough to guide effective policy.
Dr. David Ludwig—Harvard endocrinologist, obesity researcher, and author of Always Hungry—joins Dr. Dominic D'Agostino to dismantle the ultra-processed food framework from the inside out. Ludwig reveals why the NOVA classification system lumps protein bars with soda, why the FDA admitted they can't define what they're trying to regulate, and why the famous studies showing ultra-processed foods cause overeating may be fundamentally flawed.
This conversation cuts through the noise to identify what actually matters: the mechanistic difference between processing carbohydrates, fats, and proteins—and why that distinction should reshape nutrition policy.
Questions answered in this episode:
- Can ultra-processed foods be "fixed" through reformulation?
- What's the most overrated "healthy" food in supermarkets?
- Should omega-3 levels be part of standard blood work?
- Are GLP-1 drugs a metabolic reset or a lifelong crutch?
- If you could pass one food policy law, what would it be?
- Why did the low-fat diet era make obesity worse?
Dr. Ludwig argues that "ultra-processed food" is a compelling marketing term without mechanistic grounding—and that precise, actionable targets like highly processed carbohydrates and demonstrably harmful additives would do far more to improve public health.
Where to find more of Dr. Ludwig's work online:
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