A small but rigorous new study found that eating ultra-processed foods caused otherwise healthy men to quickly gain body fat and led to reductions in their sex hormones. The men also seemed to have accumulated higher levels of a chemical found in plastics and food packaging.

Many previous studies have found that ultra-processed foods are linked to higher rates of obesity , heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and other chronic health conditions. But the new study, published on Thursday in Cell Metabolism, is striking because it suggests that ultra-processed foods can have detrimental effects not only on metabolic health but on reproductive health as well.

The study found that when it comes to weight gain, all calories are not created equal. When men in the study were assigned to eat a diet

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