Analysis on the nutritional composition of prepackaged foods commonly consumed by children aged 6-12 in Chengdu / 中国学校卫生

ABSTRACT

Objective@#To analyze the current nutritional composition of commonly consumed prepackaged foods among children in Chengdu and to provide a scientific basis for health education among children and adolescents.@*Methods@#Based on the 3 day and 24 hour dietary data of children aged 6-12 in Chengdu of the Southwest China Childhood Nutrition and Growth Cohort from 2021 to 2022, the nutritional information of prepackaged foods was collected by combining offline and online methods. All foods were classified step by step, and the nutrient content of each 100 g or 100 mL food was counted and graded.@*Results@#A total of 1 902 children s prepackaged foods in 23 sub categories of 10 major categories were investigated. Nuts and seeds, snack foods, instant foods and other dairy products had higher total energy(2 476, 2 027, 1 728, 1 816 kJ/100 g), with the nutrient reference value percentage(NRV%) exceeding 20%. Fish, poultry, meat, eggs and their products had the highest protein content(22.8 g/ 100 g ) with an NRV% of 38%, nuts and seeds had the highest fat content(47.5 g/100 g) with an NRV% of 79%, confectionery and jelly had the highest carbohydrate content(82.1 g/100 g) with an NRV% of 27%, and seasoning flour products had the highest sodium content with an NRV% up to 118%. Seasoning flour products and instant foods were mostly high sodium, high fat and high carbohydrate food. Baked and puffed foods were almost high fat and high carbohydrate. Fish, poultry, meat, eggs, beans and their products were rich in protein but mostly high in sodium. Beverages and cold drinks were low in other nutrients except carbohydrate.@*Conclusion@#The nutrient content of various prepackaged foods commonly consumed by children in Chengdu are quite different. Most of the foods consumed by children are high sodium, high fat and/or high carbohydrate. Nutrition education should be strengthened to help children choose healthy foods.