Fizzy drinks are a daily indulgence for some youths
Instead of brocolli, grapes and tomatoes kids in the UK are feasting on chocolate, energy drinks and crisps - installing a new 'five-a-day'.
The survey found that a shocking one in ten children admitted that they had already eated sweets, pastries, chocolate or crisps before school has even started.
The research questioned secondary school children's views on their own diet, it yeilded some interesting findings which may suggest why a third are overweight and obese, things like a daily indulgence of fizzy drinks being one of several concerns.
Victoria Taylor, Senior Dietitian at the British Heart Foundation (BHF) said: “Five-a-day seems to have a whole new meaning for some young people. They are consuming an alarming amount of fizzy drinks, sweets, chocolate and crisps as a regular part of their daily diet.
“It’s already been suggested that this generation of children may not live longer than their parents due to the implications of their lifestyle on levels of obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
“We’ve all got to realise that this generation’s food choices today could have long term consequences on their future health.”
Despite 29 per cent indulging on sugary snacks three or more times every day and being more likely to have crisps at lunch than fruit, it is particularly concerning that the majority of children felt the responsibility of eating healthier mainly lies with their parents. However one third did feel the onus was on themselves.
The survey of 2,000 11- to 16-year-olds has been released by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and helps to give a unique insight into their daily diet. Based on the results, the charity calculates a child’s typical daily diet includes one packet of crisps, one chocolate bar, one fizzy drink and one energy drink. That means kids are consuming 22 teaspoons of sugar (90g), more fat than a cheeseburger, and almost a third of their daily calorie intake from snacks alone.
To launch the Food4Thought campaign the BHF is placing healthy vending machines in thirty schools across the UK. The pilot project aims to encourage school pupils to eat healthier snacks during the school day. The pupils will play a key role in deciding the products sold in vending machines, with the healthiest school winning a prize at the end of the school year.
In this video, Akai Osei, the 12-year-old street dancer from Kent who won Sky One’s Got To Dance last year, shows his support for this year’s Food4Thought campaign by performing a surprise routine in the middle of an unsuspecting school canteen.