Proof The Bible Is True

More than two-thirds of calories consumed by children and teens in the United States come from ultra-processed foods, a study published Tuesday by JAMA found.

This is up from just over 60% two decades ago, the data showed.

Ready-to-eat or ready-to-heat meals including takeout foods, as well as frozen pizza and burgers, accounted for 11% of caloric intake among those age 2 to 19 in 2018, up from 2% in 1999, the researchers said.

Packaged sweet snacks and desserts made up nearly 13% of the calories consumed by this age group in 2018, an increase from just under 11% in 1999, according to the researchers.

“Many ultra-processed foods are less healthy, with more sugar and salt, and less fiber, than unprocessed and minimally processed foods,” study co-author Fang Fang Zhang said in a press release.

“The increase in their consumption by children and teenagers is concerning,” said Zhang, a nutrition epidemiologist at Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University in Boston.

 

Read More: Study: Ultra-processed foods supply two-thirds of calories in U.S. child, teen diets — Health & Wellness — Sott.net