Ultra-processed foods such as potato crisps and sweets significantly increase mortality rates in lobster cockroaches (Nauphoeta cinerea), according to a study published in the journal Scientific Reports. The controlled laboratory experiment, led by scientist Oscar de Gasparin and reported by BGNES, offers new insight into how human-made food products affect non-human species.
Laboratory Study Reveals Deadly Toll of Potato Crisps and Sweets on Cockroaches
Eleven-Year Colony Split Across Three Distinct Diets
The research team maintained a laboratory breeding colony of cockroaches for 11 years before dividing 127 individuals into three distinct dietary groups housed across nine separate containers.
According to BGNES, the first group received an entirely unprocessed diet of apples and potatoes, which had been the colony’s standard diet. The second group received exclusively ultra-processed products, specifically apple-flavoured Sour Punch Straws and Lay’s potato crisps, which fall under Group 4 of the international NOVA classification system. The third group received equal amounts of both food types.
Forty-Seven Percent Mortality Among Ultra-Processed Group
Researchers provided food in abundance and replaced it once a week over a two-month testing period, though they did not monitor individual consumption rates. Results showed that among cockroaches fed solely ultra-processed foods, mortality reached 47 percent. In contrast, mortality stood at 20 percent in the unprocessed food group and 23 percent in the mixed-diet group. Statistical analysis confirmed that only the ultra-processed diet produced a significant negative effect on survival rates.
Unprocessed Food Buffer and Unresolved Biological Variables
The findings indicate that even partial access to unprocessed food may mitigate the harmful effects of ultra-processed products, as researchers found no substantial difference in survival between the unprocessed and mixed-diet groups. Because individual food consumption was not tracked, the study’s authors noted they cannot pinpoint the exact mechanism driving the increased mortality. Unresolved variables include whether the harm stems from food processing methods, specific additives, overall nutritional composition, or differences in quantities consumed by each group.
Parallels to Vertebrate Research and Urban Wildlife Survival
According to BGNES, these results mirror a broader body of vertebrate research linking ultra-processed diets to negative health outcomes, including obesity, gut microbiome disruption, and oxidative stress. Scientists involved in the work suggest that these dietary impacts raise important questions regarding human food waste and urban wildlife. The ability of urban-adapted species to locate diverse food sources, including unprocessed waste, may underpin their survival in human-dominated environments. Researchers have called for further studies to isolate the roles of individual food additives, assess gut microbiome health, and determine whether urban insects develop long-term preferences for ultra-processed foods.
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