Many Toddler Foods are Ultra-Processed and Fail WHO Nutrition Guidelines: American Society for Nutrition

A review of toddler foods available at 21 Texas grocery stores found that ultra-processed products dominate the shelves, reported the American Society for Nutrition (ASN). Four of five items were determined to be ultra-processed, and almost half failed at least one nutrient standard set by the World Health Organization (WHO) because they contained too much sugar, sodium, fat, or excessive calories.

The findings come at a time when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is considering updated rules regarding front-of-package nutrition information, healthy product claims, and food marketing aimed at children.

“Many parents may assume that products sold on the baby/toddler food aisles of their grocery stores have to meet certain nutrient standards. Our findings highlight that half of the toddler foods available in local grocery stores do not,” said Erin A. Hudson, ASN science policy fellow and PhD candidate at the University of Texas at Austin. “As a result, parents have to be vigilant in checking labels and ingredients to determine the nutrient content and processing level of products for their toddlers.”

Hudson shared the findings at ASN’s Nutrition 2026 conference earlier this month in National Harbor, Maryland, with co-author Marissa Burgermaster, PhD, assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin.

Study Details

The team evaluated 2,783 products in total. They used the NOVA classification system to determine that 81% were ultra-processed.

The nutrition analysis highlighted several areas of concern. For instance, 17% of products didn’t meet WHO recommended nutrient content levels for sugar, 25% exceeded recommended sodium levels, 11% fell short of the standard for fat content, and 12% did not meet the recommendation for energy density.

Products exceeding the guidelines included fruit pouches (high in sugar), oat bars (high in sugar and calories), mac and cheese (high in sodium and fat), turkey sticks (high in sodium and fat), cheese puffs (high in calories), and peanut butter puffs (high in sodium, fat, and calories).

Higher fat and calorie levels didn’t always indicate lower nutritional quality. Some less-processed foods contained more fat and calories because they included nutrient-dense whole-food ingredients like peanuts or beef. However, ultra-processed products tended to contain high sugar content without nutritional benefits.

“During these critical years of development, most parents are trying to feed their children healthfully but may be challenged to do so by the toddler food products available in their grocery stores,” said Hudson. “Warning labels on products exceeding nutrient thresholds could help parents navigate the toddler food environment and might encourage manufacturers to reformulate these products.”

Notably, the study focused exclusively on packaged foods displayed on grocery store shelves, not encapsulating a full range of foods that parents serve their toddlers at home.