Canadian children’s dietary habits warrant public health action, say researchers
New research from the CHILD Cohort Study (CHILD) and the University of Toronto shows that ultra-processed food consumption among preschool Canadian children is alarmingly high. The study also found the consumption of ultra-processed foods by kids in early childhood to be associated with greater risk of living with obesity or overweight, especially among boys. Published in JAMA Network Open, the findings could inform public health initiatives aimed at preventing obesity and associated health problems.
“It is known that the increasing consumption of ultra-processed foods—convenient, ready-to-eat foods with a long shelf-life and low nutritional value, usually high in sugar, saturated fats and salt (like instant noodles and chips, soda, flavoured yogurts)—is causing a public health crisis worldwide,” comments lead author Zheng Hao Chen, a graduate student in nutritional sciences at the Miliku lab at the University of Toronto.
“And it has already been shown that adults who consume these foods are at higher risk of living with obesity. However, our study is important for suggesting that this risk may begin early, among preschool kids, and especially among males.”
The research used data from 2217 participants in CHILD, a major Canadian pregnancy cohort study that has been following close to 3500 kids from before birth into adolescence, collecting information from them at key developmental stages to track the impact of genetic and environmental factors on their longer-term health.
The researchers looked at the early-life dietary habits of these children, based on questionnaires completed by their caregivers when the children were three years old. They compared this information with physical measurements taken of the same kids at age five, including their height, weight, waist size, and skinfold thickness.
The researchers found that, at age three, on average these children were getting nearly half of their daily energy intake from ultra-processed foods. They also found that by age five, kids who consumed these foods had higher body fat measurements and an almost 20% increased risk of living with overweight or obesity. These associations were particularly high among boys whose diets included ultra-processed foods.
“Canada ranks among the top countries for highest sales of ultra-processed foods,” says lead author Dr. Kozeta Miliku, CHILD’s Clinical Science Officer and an Assistant Professor in Nutritional Sciences at the University of Toronto, “so perhaps it should not be surprising that the children in this study consume so much.”
“However, it is still very concerning, especially given the associations we found between these dietary exposures (high ultra-processed food consumption) and the risk of overweight or obesity development. It is also worrisome because long-term eating habits are often set in early childhood.”
“These findings truly warrant public health attention.” adds Miliku.
“To provide kids with a healthier future, Canada must promote healthier food choices in early childhood—through such things as front-of-package-labelling, caregiver nutrition education, dietary recommendations of healthcare professionals, and nutritious menu design in daycare, preschool or school food programs that follow Canada’s Food Guide.”