New Study Shows 80% of Foods Marketed for Toddlers Are Ultraprocessed
Researchers found 49% of products failed at least one World Health Organization nutrient standard, raising questions about toddler food labeling and reformulation.
- On Sunday, researchers presented findings at the American Society for Nutrition meeting revealing that 81% of 2,783 packaged toddler foods analyzed are ultra-processed according to the NOVA classification system.
- Lead researcher Erin Hudson, a postdoctoral researcher at the department of pediatrics at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, and her team at The University of Texas at Austin examined products marketed to children ages 6-36 months at 21 grocery stores in Austin, Texas, excluding infant formula and purees.
- Nearly half of all products failed at least one World Health Organization nutrient benchmark, with 25% failing sodium standards, 17% for sugar, and 11% for fat content. Ultra-processed products were significantly more likely to be high in sugar.
- Jane Houlihan, research director for Healthy Babies Bright Futures, warned parents cannot assume toddler-marketed products are healthy and advised reading nutrition labels carefully. Experts recommend serving whole or diced fruit instead of pouches.
- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration proposed 2025 labeling rules rating foods as low, medium, or high in added sugars and sodium, yet products for children under 4 remain exempt. The Consumer Brands Association disputed findings, stating no universally accepted definition of ultra-processed food exists.
41 Articles
41 Articles
Majority of toddler foods are ultraprocessed or not meeting nutrition standards
Four out of five foods sold for toddlers in the United States are ultraprocessed, according to research that analyzed more than 2,700 products on grocery store shelves.Nearly half of those items also failed to meet at least one nutritional benchmark for children set by the World Health Organization.We wanted to know what parents were seeing when they went to the grocery store, said lead author Erin Hudson, a postdoctoral researcher at the depart…
80% of toddler foods on grocery shelves are ultra-processed, audit reveals
An audit of toddler foods sold at 21 grocery stores in Texas revealed that 4 out of 5 products were ultra-processed and 49% of all products failed to meet at least one nutrient standard established by the World Health Organization (WHO) Nutrition and Promotion Profile Model (NPPM) for commercial foods intended for children ages 6–36 months.
Study finds widespread nutrition concerns in packaged toddler foods
An audit of toddler foods sold at 21 grocery stores in Texas revealed that 4 out of 5 products were ultra-processed and 49% of all products failed to meet at least one nutrient standard established by the World Health Organization (WHO) Nutrition and Promotion Profile Model (NPPM) for commercial foods intended for children aged 6-36 months.
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