Consumption of ultra-processed foods and body fat during childhood and adolescence: a systematic review
Costa CS, Del-Ponte B, Assunção MCF, Santos IS
Public health nutrition · 230 citations
How it was studied
- Design
- Systematic review (indexed by PubMed)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- Health markers and function
- Intake measured by
- Food frequency questionnaire
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Independent funding
- Government
- Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
- Government
- Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico
Based on 2 listed funder(s).
Publication
- Published
- 2017-07-05 · Public Health Nutr · vol. 21 · issue 1 · pp. 148–159
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Cited
- 391 citations · more than 97% of similar papers · 4.9× the field average
- Impact
- Top 10% most cited in its field
- References
- 50 works
- Access
- Free to read
- Research areas
- Consumer Attitudes and Food Labeling · Biochemical Analysis and Sensing Techniques · Consumer Packaging Perceptions and Trends
- Keywords
- Bioelectrical impedance analysis, Medicine, Environmental health, Consumption (sociology), Food group, Food science, Body fat percentage, Anthropometry, Body mass index, Biology
- MeSH
- humans, prevalence, adolescent behavior, child behavior, health behavior, food handling, adolescent, child, adiposity, fast foods, snacks, pediatric obesity, observational studies as topic
4 authors
From BR
- Caroline Santos Costa · correspondingUniversidade Federal de Pelotas
- Bianca Del‐PonteUniversidade Federal de Pelotas
- Maria Cecília Formoso AssunçãoUniversidade Federal de Pelotas
- Iná S. SantosUniversidade Federal de Pelotas
Abstract
Objective
To review the available literature on the association between consumption of ultra-processed foods and body fat during childhood and adolescence.
Design
A systematic review was conducted in the PubMed, Web of Science and LILACS databases. Studies that evaluated the association between consumption of ultra-processed food (exposure) and body fat (outcome) during childhood and adolescence were eligible.
Subjects
Healthy children and adolescents.
Results
Twenty-six studies that evaluated groups of ultra-processed foods (such as snacks, fast foods, junk foods and convenience foods) or specific ultra-processed foods (soft drinks/sweetened beverages, sweets, chocolate and ready-to-eat cereals) were selected. Most of the studies (n 15) had a cohort design. Consumption was generally evaluated by means of FFQ or food records; and body composition, by means of double indirect methods (bioelectrical impedance analysis and skinfolds). Most of the studies that evaluated consumption of groups of ultra-processed foods and soft drinks/sweetened beverages found positive associations with body fat.
Conclusions
Our review showed that most studies have found positive associations between consumption of ultra-processed food and body fat during childhood and adolescence. There is a need to use a standardized classification that considers the level of food processing to promote comparability between studies.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher.
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