Study finds that UK adolescents consume around two-thirds of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods which potentially carry increased health risks.
LONDON, July 17 (Xinhua) -- Adolescents in the United Kingdom (UK) consume around two-thirds of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods (UPFs) which potentially carry increased health risks, a recent study found.
In the study published Wednesday in the European Journal of Nutrition, researchers from the University of Cambridge and the University of Bristol analyzed data from four-day-long food diaries of almost 3,000 adolescents in the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey spanning a decade starting in 2008. They found that, on average, 66 percent of adolescents' energy intake came from UPF consumption during this period.
"It's clear from our findings that UPFs make up the majority of adolescents' diets, and their consumption is at a much higher level than is ideal, given their potential negative health impacts," the study's lead author Dr Yanaina Chavez-Ugalde from the Medical Research Council Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge said.
According to the study, UPFs -- food items manufactured from industrial substances and containing additives such as preservatives, sweeteners, colorings and flavorings -- tend to indicate poor dietary quality and have been suggested as one of the key drivers of the global rise in diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cancer.
Chavez-Ugalde said that adolescents' food patterns are affected by factors including home environment, the marketing they are exposed to, and the influence of their peers, adding that adolescence is "an important time in our lives where behaviors begin to become ingrained."
Despite the high level of energy intake from processed food, researchers observed a slight decline in UPF consumption over the study period. They argued that this could be partly explained by increased public awareness and health concerns associated with sugar consumption, government-led campaigns, sugar-taxes in other countries and the reformulation of sugary drinks to reduce their sugar content.
The study's joint senior author Dr Zoi Toumpakari from the University of Bristol said that they hope their findings can "help guide policymakers in designing more effective policies to combat the negative effects of UPF consumption among youth and the ripple effects this has on public health." ■