We would like to thank Beverley O'Hara for the contribution to this article.

The 2025 Joe Wicks documentary on “killer protein bars” highlights how even well-intentioned attempts to raise awareness about food can sometimes oversimplify complex public health issues. The show’s premise – to develop and market a supposedly “dangerous,” additive-laden “ultra-processed” food to prompt government action – aims to spark debate about the modern food system.

But framing foods as inherently “dangerous” risks distorting the science and adding to public confusion about nutrition.

Stoking fear around ultra-processed foods (UPFs) often provokes psychological resistance, leading people to ignore health messages altogether or, paradoxically, to double down on the behaviour being criticised. The “proc

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