Description and evaluation of an ultra-processed food consumption score for children
ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To present a screener for consumption of ultra-processed foods for children in early childhood, evaluating the ability of the score generated by this screener to reflect the participation of ultra-processed foods in children’s diets. METHODS This study was conducted with a con...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Universidade de São Paulo
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Revista de Saúde Pública |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0034-89102025000100203&lng=en&tlng=en |
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| Summary: | ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To present a screener for consumption of ultra-processed foods for children in early childhood, evaluating the ability of the score generated by this screener to reflect the participation of ultra-processed foods in children’s diets. METHODS This study was conducted with a convenience subsample of the 2015 Pelotas Birth Cohort (n = 365). The mothers of the participating children answered a food consumption questionnaire the day before the interview (screener) containing 16 subgroups of ultra-processed foods, followed by a traditional 24-hour food recall (24hR). Each participant’s ultra-processed food consumption score corresponded to the number of food subgroups consumed and the percentage of energy derived from the participation of ultra-processed foods in the diet on the same day was calculated from the answers in the 24hR. The association between the score and the percentage of energy from ultra-processed foods was tested using linear regression models. The degree of agreement between the classification of participants according to approximate fifths of the percentage of calories from ultra-processed foods and according to the score intervals was assessed using the Pabak index. RESULTS The average percentage share of ultra-processed foods in the total caloric value of the diet, calculated using the 24hR, was directly and significantly associated with an increase in the ultra-processed food consumption score. There was substantial agreement between the ranges of the ultra-processed food consumption score obtained by the screener and the approximate fifths of the share of ultra-processed foods in the diet calculated by the 24hR (Pabak index = 0.65). CONCLUSIONS The ultra-processed food consumption score, obtained from an ultra-processed food consumption screener, a practical and agile instrument, is capable of reflecting the participation of ultra-processed foods in children’s diets, with regard to the 2015 Pelotas Birth Cohort. |
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| ISSN: | 1518-8787 |