Salt and Sugar in Kids’ Meals

Many pre-packaged toddler meals are heavy on the salt or sugar

Reading nutrition labels may be especially important for parents feeding young ones. A new study in the journal Pediatrics finds many pre-packaged kids’ meals contain too much salt or sugar. The researchers looked at the nutrition content of more than 1,000 infant and toddler foods and drinks. High sodium was defined as more than 210 milligrams per serving. High sugar…. greater than 35% of total calories.

The good news… all but 2 of the infant vegetables, dinners, fruits and dry cereals were low in sodium and the majority contained no added sugar. The exception: ready-to-eat mixed grains and fruit, many of which exceeded the study limit for total sugars. The not-so-good news… 72 percent of toddler dinners were high in sodium content…and nearly one third of dinners for this age group contained one or more added sugars… The majority of snacks, desserts and juice drinks for both infants and toddlers were found to be heavy on salt or contained added sugar.

The researchers recommend parents and caregivers carefully check labels for sodium and added sugar… They say reducing excessive amounts of these ingredients from birth to 24 months can lead to better health for children now and as they grow.