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Exposure to Food Additives, Dietary Indicators, and Adiposity in Chilean Preschool Children
Camila Zancheta1,2, Mariana Grilo3, Natalia Rebolledo2
1Doctoral Program in Public Health, School of Public Health, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile.
Insights
Chilean preschoolers consume numerous food additives daily, with specific patterns linked to poorer diet quality and increased body mass index (BMI). This highlights the need for reduced additive exposure in children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Food Science
- Public Health
Background:
- Food additive consumption is prevalent in children's diets.
- Understanding additive patterns is crucial for assessing health impacts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize food additive consumption patterns in Chilean preschoolers.
- To investigate associations between these patterns and dietary intake and adiposity.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional analysis of 941 Chilean children (4-6 years old).
- Identification of additives from 24-h dietary recalls and product ingredient lists.
- Exploratory factor analysis and linear regression to assess associations with dietary indicators and BMI.
Main Results:
- Children consumed an average of 45.5 additives daily, with flavourings being the most common.
- Five distinct additive consumption patterns were identified.
- All patterns were associated with dietary indicators, and two were linked to higher BMI.
Conclusions:
- Chilean preschoolers exhibit high exposure to food additives.
- Identified consumption patterns correlate with poorer diet quality and increased adiposity.
- Regulatory efforts are needed to minimize unnecessary additive exposure in children.
Objective:
To characterise patterns of food additive consumption and examine their associations with dietary indicators and adiposity in Chilean preschoolers.
Methods:
Cross-sectional analysis of 941 children (4-6 years old) from the Food and Environment Chilean Cohort (2016). Food additives present in packaged foods and beverages were identified by linking items reported in 24-h dietary recalls to ingredient lists of packaged products collected in the same year. Additives consumed by ≥ 10% of participants were included in exploratory factor analysis, and linear regression was used to associate additive patterns with nutrient intake (total energy, sugars, saturated fats, protein, and fibre), UPF caloric share, and body mass index (BMI).
Results:
On average, children consumed 45.5 additives (including repeated exposures) and 24.7 different additives per day. Flavourings were consumed by 99% of children, and fruit and soft drinks were their primary sources (24.4% of total additives). Five additive patterns were identified; all were associated with at least one dietary indicator, and two with BMI.
Conclusions:
Chilean preschoolers are highly exposed to food additives, with distinct consumption patterns linked to poorer diet quality and higher BMI. There is a need for monitoring and regulatory efforts to reduce unnecessary additive exposure during childhood.
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