Exploration of Foods and Foodomics

Table 6. Distribution and comparison of BP level, anthropometric measures, and health risks among the UPFs intake group.

Characteristics	Categories	Total (n = 360)		Low-moderate (n = 245)		High (n = 115)		p-value
Characteristics	Categories	n	%	n	%	n	%	p-value
Sex	Male	186	51.67	124	50.61	62	53.91	0.559
Sex	Female	174	48.33	121	49.39	53	46.09	0.559
BP level	Normal	223	61.94	156	63.67	66	57.39	0.647
	Elevated	13	3.61	10	4.08	4	3.48
	Hypertension Stage 1	94	26.11	60	24.49	34	29.57
	Hypertension Stage 2	30	8.33	19	7.76	11	9.57
BMI for adolescent	Severe thinness	2	1.16	1	0.93	1	1.52	0.782
	Thinness	5	2.89	2	1.87	3	4.55
	Normal	98	56.65	62	57.94	36	54.55
	Overweight	42	24.28	27	25.23	15	22.73
	Obese	26	15.03	15	14.02	11	16.67
BMI for adults	Underweight	16	8.56	11	7.97	5	10.20	0.106
	Normal	92	49.20	72	52.17	20	40.82
	Overweight	46	24.60	36	26.09	10	20.41
	Obese	33	17.65	19	13.77	14	28.57
Body fat percentage	Underfat	36	10.00	25	10.20	11	9.57	< 0.001*
	Normal	126	35.00	90	36.73	36	31.30
	Overfat	105	29.17	83	33.88	22	19.13
	Obese	93	25.83	47	19.18	46	40.00
WHtR and WHR	Normal	226	62.78	159	64.90	67	58.26	0.224
WHtR and WHR	High	134	37.22	86	35.10	48	41.74	0.224
ABSI	Normal	184	51.11	135	55.10	49	42.61	0.027*
ABSI	High	176	48.89	110	44.90	66	57.39	0.027*

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Chi-square test and Fisher exact test; *: significant if p-value < alpha (0.05). ABSI: A Body Shape Index; BMI: body mass index; BP: blood pressure; UPFs: ultra-processed foods; WHR: waist-to-hip ratio; WHtR: waist-to-height ratio.

Declarations

Acknowledgments

This research paper is made possible through the generous funding of the Research and Publication Department (RPD) of the Colegio de San Juan de Letran-Manila. Moreover, gratitude is due to the College of Business and Administration and Accountancy (CBAA) and Letran Nutrition Clinic for the support and assistance they provided in the conduct of the study.

Author contributions

MB: Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Writing—original draft, Writing—review & editing, Funding acquisition, Supervision, Investigation, Visualization. JCB: Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Writing—original draft, Writing—review & editing, Funding acquisition, Resources, Supervision, Investigation. SMN: Funding acquisition, Resources, Supervision, Investigation. BNE: Data curation, Investigation. KAV: Data curation, Investigation. AF: Data curation, Investigation. All authors read and approved the submitted version.

Conflicts of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Ethical approval

The study obtained approval from the Region II Trauma and Medical Center to ensure the study met the ethical guidelines (R2TMC-IRB Protocol No 2025:001). This study adhered to the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki (World Medical Association) for research involving human subjects. This includes ensuring voluntary participation, obtaining informed consent, minimizing potential risks, maximizing potential benefits, and maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of participant data. The study protocol was reviewed and approved by the appropriate ethics committee.

Consent to participate

Informed consent to participate in the study was obtained from all participants. Informed consent to participate in the study was obtained from the legal guardians of the adolescents.

Consent to publication

Not applicable.

Availability of data and materials

Data are available upon request to the corresponding author.

Funding

The study was funded by the Letran Research and Publication Department (RPD) as part of Research Faculty Grant 2024–2025 of Colegio de San Juan Letran Manila, Philippines. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Copyright

Publisher’s note

Open Exploration maintains a neutral stance on jurisdictional claims in published institutional affiliations and maps. All opinions expressed in this article are the personal views of the author(s) and do not represent the stance of the editorial team or the publisher.

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