The vast majority of baby foods, drinks, and snacks sold in the United States for children aged 6 months to 36 months are ultraprocessed and may contain additives increasingly linked to potential health harms, a new study found, reports BritPanorama.
Over 70% of the 651 foods examined for the study contained additives that emerging research has linked to “inflammation and disruptions in the gut microbiome,” said first author Elizabeth Dunford, an adjunct assistant professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
“What shocked me was the top ingredient in 71% of these baby foods wasn’t a fruit or vegetable — it was one or more additives,” said Dunford, who is also a consultant at The George Institute for Global Health, which created FoodSwitch, an app that contains nutritional information on thousands of products worldwide.
“We know that babies’ guts are not fully developed enough to be able to handle additives in the way an adult stomach could,” she said. “There is no need for these additives; they are simply cosmetic, designed to make the food look more appealing.”
The names and brands of the baby foods were not disclosed in the study published Wednesday in the peer-reviewed journal Nutrients.
An equal number of the baby foods in the study were classified as ultraprocessed foods, or UPFs. Examples include animal and fish crackers, puffs, and sweetened yogurts. Experts say manufacturers design ultraprocessed foods to be hyperpalatable, making it difficult to “eat just one.”
About 62% of foods eaten by an American child are ultraprocessed, according to a recent report by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Food preferences begin in the first years of life, so the findings of the study are alarming, said Jane Houlihan, research director for Healthy Babies, Bright Futures, an alliance of nonprofits, scientists, and donors with a mission of reducing babies’ exposures to neurotoxic chemicals.
“Babies exposed to ultraprocessed foods learn to prefer sugar and artificial flavors over the natural, nutrient-dense foods that set the stage for a lifetime of healthy eating,” Houlihan said. “Baby food companies should be making it easier, not harder, for families to choose healthy options.”
Studies have shown that eating just 10% more calories a day from ultraprocessed food may be associated with a 50% higher risk of cardiovascular disease-related death. There’s also a 55% greater chance of obesity and a 40% higher probability of developing type 2 diabetes.
The Consumer Brands Association, which represents manufacturers of baby food and other products, told CNN that there is “currently no agreed upon scientific definition of ultraprocessed foods.”
“Food manufacturers adhere to the rigorous evidence-based safety standards and nutrition policy established by the FDA to deliver safe, affordable, and convenient products that families depend on every day,” said Sarah Gallo, the association’s senior vice president.
Overall, experts say there is little regulatory oversight for baby foods sold in the United States. The American Academy of Pediatrics called for “urgently needed reforms” to the current FDA regulatory process for food additives in a 2018 policy statement.
“Companies can add new chemicals to baby foods without any FDA safety review, simply declaring them ‘Generally Recognized as Safe,’” or GRAS, said Sarah Reinhardt, senior strategic campaign director of food systems for the Environmental Working Group, a health advocacy organization that monitors chemicals in food and consumer products.
“If we want to protect children, we need stronger labeling, stricter marketing rules, and an end to the GRAS loophole, so that every additive is reviewed for safety before it ever reaches a child’s plate,” Reinhardt said in an email.
Emerging research on additives
Food additives include preservatives to resist mold and bacteria, emulsifiers to keep incompatible ingredients from separating, artificial colorings and dyes, fragrance and flavor enhancers, anti-foaming, bulking, bleaching, gelling and glazing agents, and added or altered sugar, salt and fats designed to make food more appealing.
Dunford and her team found 105 unique additives in the baby foods they examined. Over half were additives typically added to ultraprocessed foods; the rest were more natural options, such as the use of lemon juice as a preservative or beet juice for color.
Thirty-six percent of the baby foods contained synthetic flavor enhancers, including carrageenan, which has been linked to gut inflammation, the study found. Thickeners such as carrageenan, xanthan and guar gum were found in 29% of the baby foods, while both synthetic food dyes and emulsifiers were found in 19% of the products.
Petrochemical-based food dyes, which have been linked to behavioral issues in children, have received scrutiny from the Trump administration. The US Food and Drug Administration recently approved beetroot as a natural food coloring and expanded access to spirulina extract.
Parents can take action to limit their baby’s exposure to ultraprocessing and the additives that accompany it, Houlihan said.
“When you can, make meals at home using fresh, whole ingredients like fruits, vegetables, beans and whole grains,” she said. “If you’re buying packaged or processed foods, take a quick look at the ingredient list and choose options with simpler, more familiar ingredients. If it’s hard to tell what’s in a product, it may be ultra-processed and not the best choice for setting up healthy eating habits for a lifetime.”
