Big Tobacco Shaped U.S. Ultra-Processed Diet With 1 Addiction Playbook
Updated
Updated · The Washington Post · Jun 9
Big Tobacco Shaped U.S. Ultra-Processed Diet With 1 Addiction Playbook
3 articles · Updated · The Washington Post · Jun 9
Summary
New research says cigarette companies did more than sell tobacco—they helped shape America’s ultra-processed food diet by applying tactics built to drive repeated consumption.
That playbook centered on designing foods to feel hard to stop eating, helping explain persistent cravings for products such as chips, sodas and cookies despite well-known health risks.
The report argues the issue is structural as much as personal choice: addictive product design by major corporations influenced what Americans came to eat on a mass scale.