Are Ultra-Processed Foods Addictive to Kids?
A growing body of evidence suggests that ultra-processed foods may have properties that are particularly addictive to kids, teens, and young adults. Ultra-processed foods have been linked to behaviors like compulsive consumption and overeating. When people consume processed foods, researchers have observed biological and behavioral responses similar to addiction. These responses are absent or limited with other classifications of food, such as whole foods or minimally processed foods. Symptoms of addiction-like behaviors include eating ultra-processed foods without consideration of consequences and withdrawal.
A recent observational study found that 15% of youth are addicted to ultra-processed foods, exceeding the rate of adult addiction by 1%. For overweight and obese youth, the rate was even higher at 19%. Children’s predisposition to refined sugars and fats, which are characteristic of ultra-processed foods, could have damaging long-term consequences. High consumption of ultra-processed foods has been linked to a variety of negative impacts on children’s health.
About Are Ultra-Processed Foods Addictive to Kids:
What Makes Ultra-Processed Foods Addictive?
What Makes Ultra-Processed Foods Especially Addictive to Children?
Do Highly and Ultra-Processed Foods Meet Addiction Criteria?
Why Do People Tend To Overeat Processed Foods?
What Are the Dangers of Addiction to Ultra-Processed Foods?
Signs of Childhood Addiction to Ultra-Processed Foods
Are People Filing Lawsuits Over Ultra-Processed Food Addiction?
Contact King Law to Learn More About Filing An Ultra-Processed Food Lawsuit
What Makes Ultra-Processed Foods Addictive?
Ultra-processed foods are often hyperpalatable, meaning they are highly appealing to the brain’s reward system. Ultra-processed foods are different from whole foods or minimally processed foods. UPFs are made mostly or completely from chemicals and substances that are industrially extracted from foods rather than whole ingredients (as classified by the NOVA Food Classification System). This processing typically combines sugar, salt, fats, flavor-enhancers, pleasant textures, and preservatives to create appealing but nutrient-deficient food products like:
- Cookies
- Candy
- Ice cream
- Soda and sports drinks
- Pre-prepared frozen meals (e.g., pizza, burgers, hot dogs, nuggets)
- Canned and powdered soups and noodles
- Packaged buns and breads
According to one study, the two traits most correlated with addictive food were high fat content and high glycemic load. Glycemic load represents the speed at which carbohydrates are absorbed into the body. Ultra-processed foods frequently possess one or both of these traits.
Since ultra-processed foods are so effective at stimulating reward processes in the brain, they are more likely to lead to compulsive overeating. While this is a very effective model for creating repeat customers, it can inflict very real costs on the health of consumers. Many of these products are marketed to children, whose developing brains may be particularly susceptible to this type of food addiction.
Do Ultra-Processed Foods Have Similarities With Addictive Drugs?
While the science of food addiction is still evolving, researchers have observed responses to ultra-processed food consumption that are similar to those of addictive drugs. Processed foods correlate with addictive actions such as:
- Continued use even after someone experiences negative consequences
- Consistent cravings
- Inability to eat less, despite repeated attempts
- Neurobiological imaging patterns similar to those of substance abuse
These traits are distinct from more modest feelings of satisfaction and fullness that come from eating healthier, whole foods. The addictive properties of ultra-processed foods and their rapid absorption into the body can make it difficult for someone to feel full.
What Makes Ultra-Processed Foods Especially Addictive to Children?
Ultra-processed food addiction rates in youth exceed those of adults, suggesting greater vulnerability to these products. Children and teens generally exhibit less self-control than adults. This makes them more susceptible, both biologically and socially, to addictive behaviors.
Many of these products are marketed directly to children and their parents, who may experience peer pressure or fear of missing out if they don’t consume the brand. These campaigns often increase children’s consumption of ultra-processed foods, with a staggering 40% of the average child’s food intake considered “empty calorie.”
More disturbingly, the foods themselves may inhibit development in children, leaving them less able to resist cravings. For example, a Chinese study of preschool children found a link between ultra-processed food consumption and lower cognitive function in preschoolers.
Sugar in Ultra-Processed Foods and Children’s Brains
Children have a reputation for loving sugar, a common component of ultra-processed foods. Sugar tolerance (the amount of sucrose needed to achieve a sense of pleasure or satiety) varies from person to person. Differences in sugar tolerance may be explained by how many dopamine receptors someone has and how their receptors react to dopamine. Children have fewer of these receptors than adults, which means it can take more sugar to produce a comparable response.
Ultra-Processed Foods and Dopamine
Ultra-processed foods can produce a more intense sense of pleasure than whole foods or minimally processed foods. By removing fibrous material from grains, food producers make the remaining sugars in the flour more immediately bioavailable. This produces a “quick fix” when consumed. Dopamine pathways play key roles in functions ranging from movement to emotion, to cognition, to cardiovascular and renal functions.
Do Highly and Ultra-Processed Foods Meet Addiction Criteria?
There is still some disagreement over how to formally classify food-related addictive behavior. Despite frequently being viewed as a psychological disorder, ultra-processed food addiction is not recognized as a behavioral disorder by the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).
On the other hand, research suggests that highly processed foods could be considered addictive substances if the same criteria that are applied to tobacco products were applied to them. In both cases, the addictive substance in question triggers:
- Compulsive use
- Psychoactive effects
- Reinforcing behavior
- Urges and cravings
Research is ongoing into the magnitude of these reactions compared to other addictive substances.
Why Do People Tend To Overeat Processed Foods?
Ultra-processed foods can make it easier to overeat through several mechanisms. The first mechanism is that they’re highly palatable and designed to appeal to the brain’s reward system through sugars, salts, and fats. These items would normally be found in small quantities in nature. In their refined state, these processed ingredients are quickly absorbed by the body, triggering its reward systems and encouraging more consumption.
The second issue is that ultra-processed food products are usually junk food that kids crave. Ultra-processed foods tend to be low in nutrients, fiber, protein, and healthy fats that signal to the body that it is full. In other words, it can take more ultra-processed food calories to feel satiated.
What Are the Dangers of Addiction to Ultra-Processed Foods?
High intake of ultra-processed food is bad for children and teens. Food addiction is a major source of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. While these diseases are more frequently associated with adulthood, children whose diets are high in ultra-processed foods are at a higher risk of developing them.
These risks come not only from higher caloric intake but the quality of the food itself. Of particular concern is added sugar which, next to caffeine, is the ingredient most likely to drive an addictive response. In addition, sugars that are higher in fructose may have more addictive and more toxic effects than table sugar, which is around 50% fructose, 50% glucose.
Childhood Obesity
Consumption of high amounts of ultra-processed foods has been correlated with larger waist circumferences in children, though the link to childhood obesity is not as well-established as it is to adult obesity. A study found that nearly 40% of all calories consumed by children between the ages of 2 and 18 were empty calories, with sugar-sweetened beverages notably linked to an increase in BMI and body fat in children and adolescents.
Early childhood obesity can follow a child into their teenage years, with around 90% of children who were obese at age three also being overweight or obese in adolescence.
Childhood Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease NAFLD
Children could be at higher risk of developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)—now sometimes called metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD)—if they consume large amounts of ultra-processed foods. A review of 15 studies showed a significant association between ultra-processed food consumption and the onset of NAFLD. Of particular concern is the high concentration of fructose in many ultra-processed foods. Consuming large amounts of fructose, which is largely metabolized by the liver, has been independently linked to NAFLD.
Though NAFLD, which is characterized by the buildup of fat around the liver, is more commonly associated with middle age, children can develop it. Advanced NAFLD can lead to serious liver damage, including cirrhosis.
Childhood Onset of Type-2 Diabetes
A review of 18 studies found a positive association between ultra-processed food consumption and the risk of developing diabetes. Moderate consumption of ultra-processed food was associated with a 12% increase in the chance of developing diabetes. Instances of type-2 diabetes in children, characterized by insulin resistance, are expected to increase significantly by 2060.
Long-Term Diet and Health Implications
A diet high in ultra-processed foods can lead to negative health outcomes over the long term. Obesity, diabetes, and NAFLD each carry with them a number of serious health implications. For example, diabetes raises the risk of developing a variety of serious health complications over the course of one’s lifetime, including kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, nerve damage, and blood vessel damage. Fatty liver disease may lead to liver disease and certain types of cancers. Similarly, obesity is a major predictor of negative health outcomes ranging from diabetes to cardiovascular disease, and cancer, and has even been linked to negative socioeconomic outcomes.
Signs of Childhood Addiction to Ultra-Processed Foods
Children who are addicted to ultra-processed foods will often demonstrate predictable behaviors, especially cravings and withdrawal. A study found that ultra-processed food addiction behaviors can manifest in the following ways:
- Binge-type eating, wherein large amounts of ultra-processed food are consumed within a 2-hour window
- Grazing, wherein ultra-processed food is consumed throughout the day in response to persistent cravings.
The Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS) can also be used to identify addiction behaviors. It asks a series of questions about feelings associated with junk food, rated by frequency. The childhood-focused version includes questions like:
- When I start eating, I find it hard to stop.
- I feel tired a lot because I eat too much.
- The way I eat makes me feel really unhappy.
- I eat food rather than do things I like.
Tips To Reduce Ultra-Processed Foods In a Child’s Diet
The convenience and popularity of ultra-processed foods can make them easy to reach for, but there are plenty of strategies to reduce a child’s intake, including:
- Identifying ultra-processed foods in the child’s diet (they have a long list of ingredients, usually more than four)
- Looking for added sugars (including corn syrups, honey, and agave)
- Shopping the perimeter of the supermarket (whole foods tend to be on the rim)
- Finding healthier, less processed versions of the foods the child likes
- Adding fruits and vegetables to the child’s diet
Are People Filing Lawsuits Over Ultra-Processed Food Addiction?
Armed with a growing body of research that suggests ultra-processed foods are addictive and damaging to health, people are filing lawsuits against the manufacturers of these products. Parents are alleging that ultra-processed food companies engineer their products with full knowledge of their addictive qualities and negative impacts on health. They also allege that these companies target children with marketing campaigns specifically designed to appeal to a younger audience.
The first lawsuit of its kind was filed on December 10, 2024, when Bryce Martinez filed a lawsuit against multiple ultra-processed food manufacturers after developing diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease at age 16.
Lawsuits Filed By Parents Whose Children Have Type 2 Diabetes or NAFLD
King Law and our partners are currently representing parents who believe their child has developed non-alcoholic fatty liver disease or type 2 diabetes as a result of ultra-processed food addiction. Using our decades of experience fighting large corporate entities on behalf of our clients, we can help you pursue legal action against ultra-processed food manufacturers.
Lawsuits Filed By Adults Who Were Diagnosed As Children
If you are an adult who was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes or NAFLD as a child and recently learned that ultra-processed foods could be the cause, you may still be able to file a lawsuit. You will, however, want to act quickly, as your window to extend the statute of limitations for filing a lawsuit within your state could be small. Your diagnosis must have occurred after 1985 to pursue a case. Contact our team to learn how to file a UPF lawsuit.
Contact King Law to Learn More About Filing An Ultra-Processed Food Lawsuit
If you suspect your child is addicted to ultra-processed food or is suffering from conditions related to ultra-processed food consumption, get in touch with us today for a free case evaluation by calling us at (585) 316-0536 or filling out an online contact form. Our team can help you understand if you are eligible for an ultra-processed food lawsuit.
Our team has years of experience holding corporate entities accountable for their conduct. We work on a contingency basis, which means we only get paid when and if you receive compensation.