A health expert has warned dieters about the worst food when it comes to losing weight, which can even reduce your lifespan by over a decade.
Professor Tim Spector, a specialist in gut health, spoke to diet guru Michael Mosley on his BBC Sounds podcast about how he feels all ultra-processed foods should be avoided.
Bristol Live reports the doctor said all the foods under the ultra-processed bracket should come with a health warning, like cigarettes and alcohol.
Interestingly enough, foods like kids' yoghurts, smoothies and supermarket-bought sandwiches all come under the ultra-processed umbrella.
In the UK we consume the highest number of processed foods in Europe, as Tim claimed it's no coincidence that we also have the highest rates of diabetes and childhood obesity across the globe.
These diabetes and obesity rates cost the UK £58 billion a year in healthcare.
It's not the fat, salt and sugar that causes the issues, it's the fact they only contain extracts of natural foods and this is not good for our gut health.
Processed food also increases the appetite, and is sure to make people feel "rotten", according to Professor Spector.
Tim said: "We encourage it, it being cheap, it being everywhere including our schools. If you buy a sandwich or smoothie, it's going to be ultra-processed."
Eating processed foods can also kill you ten or 15 years earlier due to its health risks, as Tim points out these foods should come with a warning that "it's cheap and people should eat it at their peril".
He added: "It will make you over-eat by 500 calories, you won't feel full when you eat it you will want to eat more, you will feel slightly sick and your mood will go down, by all means eat it, it's exactly what we have on cigarette packets."
During the podcast, Michael Mosley noted that one of the best things you could eat is beetroot. Tim agreed, and said they were a good example of "food as medicine".
He added: "It actually reduces blood pressure. In proper randomised controlled trials, this is actually a lot more effective and a lot more pleasant than getting rid of salt."
The doctor admitted he didn't enjoy beetroot as a youngster, but now enjoys the taste.
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