Untersuchungen haben ergeben, dass kleine Kinder bei jedem 10-prozentigen Anstieg der Kalorien durch hochverarbeitete Lebensmittel höhere Werte bei der Messung von internalisierendem Verhalten (wie Angst und Ängstlichkeit), externalisierendem Verhalten (wie Aggression und Hyperaktivität) und allgemeinen Verhaltensschwierigkeiten erzielten.

A team led by researchers at the University of Toronto has found an association between ultra-processed foods in early childhood, and behavioural and emotional development.

Specifically, the team found that higher ultra-processed food consumption is linked to behavioural and emotional difficulties including anxiety, fearfulness, aggression or hyperactivity.

“The preschool years are critical for child development, and it’s also when children begin to establish dietary habits,” said Kozeta Miliku, principal investigator on the study and an assistant professor of nutritional sciences in U of T’s Temerty Faculty of Medicine.

“Our findings underscore the need for early-life interventions such as professional advice for parents and caregivers, as well as public health campaigns, nutrition standards for child-care providers and reformulation of some packaged foods,” Miliku said.

This study, published in JAMA Network Open, is the first to examine ultra-processed food consumption and standardized behavioural assessments in kids using detailed, prospective data. It is also one of the largest ever to look at behaviour and mental health in early childhood.

Ultra-processed foods are industrial formulations made largely from refined ingredients and additives not typically used in home cooking. In Canada, they make up nearly half of preschoolers’ calorie intake.

The researchers drew information from the CHILD Cohort Study, a longitudinal, population-based study that recruited pregnant women between 2009 and 2012 and followed their children from before birth through to adolescence at four sites across Canada.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2845768?widget=personalizedcontent&previousarticle=0