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Most infant/toddler snacks, desserts, juices contain high sodium, added sugar
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Pediatricians should advise parents to look closely at food labels, as study results published in Pediatrics indicated a significant amount of toddler meals and commercial foods contain high sodium content or at least one added sugar.
“Pediatricians can play an important role in counseling parents about the appropriate foods to feed young children for a healthy diet and thus aid in the prevention of obesity, high blood pressure, and the subsequent increased risk of heart disease and stroke,” study researcher Mary E. Cogswell, DrPH, RN, of the CDC, and colleagues wrote. “Early life exposures to sodium and sugar can set taste preferences and determine health trajectories.”
Mary E. Cogswell
Researchers used the Gladson Nutrition Database to identify a sample of 1,074 individual infant and toddler food products. Sodium and sugar content were derived from the products’ Nutrition Facts labels.
The majority of infant food products were low sodium and did not contain any added sugars. Fifty-two percent of infant ready-to-serve mixed grains and fruits, however, contained at least one added sugar, and 44% contained more than 35% of their calories from sugar.
Seventy-two percent of toddler dinners were high sodium, defined by researchers as containing more than 210 mg sodium per FDA reference amounts customarily consumed per eating occasion, and contained an average of 2,295 mg sodium per 1,000 kcal.
Thirty-two percent of toddler dinners contained at least one added sugar. The majority of toddler cereal bars, breakfast pastries, fruit and dry fruit-based snacks contained at least one added sugar.
Most infant and toddler savory snacks, desserts, juices and drinks contained at least one added sugar.
Fruit juice concentrate (56%), sugar (33%), cane (20%), syrup (15%) and malt (7%) were the most commonly added sugars. High-fructose corn syrup, molasses, honey, dextrose, fructose and glucose were listed ingredients in 2% to 4% of infant and toddler food products.
“Parents can be reassured that commercial foods for infants (eg, vegetables, dinners, plain fruit [without grains], dry cereals) sold in the United States in 2012 were generally acceptable in sodium and sugar content,” Cogswell and colleagues wrote. “However, the majority of snacks, desserts, or juice drinks for infants or toddlers, and many commercial foods meant for toddlers aged at least 12 months were either high in sodium content or contained at least one added sugar.”
Disclosure: The study was funded by the CDC. The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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