Ultra processed foods are said to make up about 35% of Irish people's diets, lower than America's 50% but higher than other countries.
Ultra-processed food has become a huge part of our diets from packaged bread and breakfast cereals to ready-made meals, snacks and soft drinks.
Major new analysis of more than 8.8 million people has found that higher consumption of these foods is associated with increased risks of a range of health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, cancer and premature death.
While the food companies do already put what's in their products on the labels, there are arguments that warnings for ultra processed foods should be made more clear on the packaging.
Speaking on The Pat Kenny Show, Professor Luke O'Neill emphasised how countries with more explicit labelling have seen a reduction in ultra processed foods being consumed.
He explained: "If it's explicit, then you might go, 'Oh, I'll have less of that' or 'I'll try something a bit different'.
"Chile is one that was one of the first countries to clearly label food at this level of processed. They have a kind of a traffic light system, if you know what I mean.
"It'll be like a little red flag or whatever, and then, you know [that] this is ultra processed. And lo and behold, consumption went down because the consumer is now informed.
"And in the UK, they did a pilot on this and really clearly labelled the food as obvious. And yet again, consumption went down. So there's the kind of pressure now on the food companies to make it much clearer as to what's in the food."
Another country trialling new labeling is France who introduced a "Nutri-Score" on the front of the packaging. A score of one is extremely nutritious and a five has no nutrition at all.
But what should we care about ultra processed foods?
Well, this new study has indicated that there's a 24% increased risk of heart attacks if your diet is rich in ultra processed foods and there's a 27% increased risk of depression and anxiety.
The research also indicated a link between dementia and high levels of ultra processed foods in people's diets.
"We think these ultra processed foods are causing inflammation [in the brain] that can make dementia come on more quickly,' Professor O'Neill added.
"They reckon in Ireland it's about a third of our diets, so we're way behind what's happening in the States, where it's way over 50%. But we are way ahead of some other countries [like] China, for example, [where] it's only 10%."
Main image: Ready meals for sale on fridge shelves, Waitrose supermarket UK. Image: Kumar Sriskandan / Alamy Stock Photo
