British children are consuming ‘exceptionally high’ proportions of ultra-processed foods (UPFs), increasing their risk of obesity and damaging their long-term health, according to the findings of a large prospective cohort study.
The study, published in JAMA Pediatrics, is the first to assess longitudinal associations between consumption of UPFs (eg, frozen pizzas, mass-produced bread, fizzy drinks, ready meals) and adiposity trajectories from childhood to early adulthood.
Researchers followed 9,025 children from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children Birth Cohort born in the early 1990s, from ages seven up to 24 years. Three-day food and beverage diaries were completed at ages seven, 10 and 13 years. Data measures collected over 17 years included body mass index (BMI), weight, waist circumference and measurements of body fat.
Participants were divided into five equally-sized groups based on UPF consumption – in the lowest group UPFs accounted for 23.2% of grams of total diet, while the highest group consumed more than two-thirds of UPFs (67.8% of grams).
Analysis revealed that, on average, children in the higher consumption groups saw more rapid progression of their BMI, weight, waist circumference and body fat into adolescence and early adulthood. By 24 years, those in the highest UPF group had, on average, a higher level of BMI by 1.2 kg/m2, body fat by 1.5%, weight by 3.7 kg and waist circumference by 3.1cm.
Study co-author Prof Christopher Millett said: “We often ask why obesity rates are so high among British children and this study provides a window into this. Our findings show that an exceptionally high proportion of their diet is made up of ultra-processed foods, with one in five children consuming 78% of their calories from ultra-processed foods.”
Robust public health measures that promote minimally processed foods and discourage UPF consumption among children are urgently needed to reduce obesity in England and globally, the study concludes.
