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Clinical Research

Impact of ultra-processed foods on short-term appetite regulation: Does body mass index make a difference?

International Journal of Obesity volume 50, pages 450–458 (2026)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objective

Limited studies have examined the effects of meals containing processed foods or ultra-processed foods (UPF) on appetite regulation and results were inconsistent and difficult to generalize. Therefore, the study aimed to evaluate the potential efficacy of two different breakfasts containing processed foods or UPF on postprandial appetite regulation in adults with different body mass index (BMI).

Methods

Twenty-eight participants (eighteen with normal BMI (BMI: 18.50–24.99 kg/m2), ten with high BMI (BMI > 25.0 kg/m2) were included in the study. General demographic information form, food consumption records, and Screening Questionnaire of Highly Processed Food Consumption (sQ-HPF) were applied and anthropometric measurements (body weight, height, waist circumference, waist/hip ratio and waist/height ratio) were taken. Participants made two visits, 2 weeks apart, and were offered two different breakfasts: Processed Breakfast and UPF Breakfast. Blood samples were collected before starting the meal (0 min) and 30, 60, 90, and 120 min after taking the first bite, and serum glucose, insulin, amylin, GLP-1, and GIP levels were analyzed using ELISA/colorimetric methods. Also, participants were administrated a visual analogue scale (VAS) to subjectively assess appetite regulation at the same times.

Results

Daily energy, macro and micronutrients consumption were similar across BMI groups for both breakfast in prior the experiment and throughout the rest of the experimental day (p > 0.05). The total area under the curve (tAUC) for hunger sensation and insulin were higher after the UPF Breakfast compared to the Processed Breakfast (p = 0.009, p = 0.016, respectively). Other data were no different both between breakfast types and different BMI groups.

Conclusion

Overall, while short-term appetite hormone responses to UPF Breakfast and Processed Breakfasts were similar, higher insulin levels and subjective feelings of hunger, following UPF Breakfast independent of BMI status. These findings suggest that the degree of food processing, rather than BMI, may influence specific aspects of postprandial appetite regulation.

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Fig. 1: Study design.
Fig. 2: Time-dependent changes in appetite-related biochemical variables.
Fig. 3: Time-dependent variations in visual analogue scale scores.

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Data availability

Data will be made available by the authors upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

We thank all volunteers who agreed to participate in the study.

Funding

This work supported by Ondokuz Mayis University Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit with project number BAP01-2024-5085.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Science, Ondokuz Mayıs University, Samsun, Turkey

    Menşure Nur Çelik

  2. Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Science, Ataturk University, Erzurum, Turkey

    Elif Ulug

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  1. Menşure Nur Çelik
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Contributions

Menşure Nur Çelik; Conceptualization, Formal Analysis, Funding Acquisition, Investigation, Methodology, Project Administration, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review and Editing. Elif Ulug; Conceptualization, Formal Analysis, Data Curation, Methodology, Visualization, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review and Editing. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Menşure Nur Çelik.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethics approval

Ethics committee approval suitable for the Declaration of Helsinki was received from Ondokuz Mayıs University Clinical Research Ethics Committee (Reference Number: B.30.2.ODM.0.20.08/663, Decision no: 2023/444, Date: 13 December 2023).

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Çelik, M.N., Ulug, E. Impact of ultra-processed foods on short-term appetite regulation: Does body mass index make a difference?. Int J Obes 50, 450–458 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-025-01961-9

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