Key distinction: Is it a question of "eating snacks" or a question of "what snacks to eat"?
To be clear: our concern is not with "snacking" per se, but with children's choice of snacks.
From a nutritional perspective, snacking refers to small portions of food eaten between meals. It can be part of a healthy diet, such as fruit, yogurt, nuts, etc.; it can also be a burden on health, such as potato chips, sugary drinks, desserts, etc. At the heart of the problem is that ultra-processed foods make up a high proportion of children's snack consumption.
What are "ultra-processed foods"?
"Ultra-processed foods" are derived from the nova food classification system and are a tool used by the global nutrition community to study the relationship between food processing and health. Ultra-processed foods refer to foods that are industrially produced by recombining various extracts (such as sugars, oils, fats, protein isolates) through a series of complex processes (such as hydrogenation, hydrolysis, extrusion molding). They usually:
Contains a variety of food additives (emulsifiers, sweeteners, pigments, flavors, etc.)
High energy density, but low nutrient density
Recipe away from the complete state of natural ingredients [2]
Ultra-processed foods commonly found in children's snack scenes include: most puffed foods, sandwich cookies, cakes, sugary drinks, flavored dairy products, and reconstituted meat products (such as sausages and chicken nuggets).
Why is the consumption of ultra-processed foods in the form of snacks a "driver" of childhood obesity?
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