Junk food and children

Junk food is foods and drinks that are high in added sugars, unhealthy fats, salt or are heavily processed. These foods are often low in nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre. This makes them less healthy choices for your child.

Junk food is also called:

• fast food
• snack food
• extra food
• convenience food
• non-core food

The Australian Dietary Guidelines call junk foods 'discretionary choices'. Eating too much junk food leaves less room for healthier options from the five food groups.

What does junk food include?

• sugary snacks and drinks — such as soft drinks or candies
• salty snacks — such as instant noodles and chips
• foods high in saturated or trans fats — such as pastries, fried chicken or cakes

Junk food can affect your child's health in many ways. These foods often have little nutritional value.

Here's why limiting junk food is important for your child:

• Weight and health risks — eating too much junk food can lead to weight gain. This may increase the risk of your child becoming overweight or obese. This may also lead to health problems, such as diabetes.
• Missing out on nutrients — junk food fills your child up but doesn't provide the nutrients they need to grow and thrive. It might also stop them from eating healthier options, such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
• Building unhealthy habits — giving your child junk food regularly can affect what they want to eat. This makes it harder to encourage healthy eating habits in the future.

The less junk food your child eats, the better for their health. Energy from food is measured in kilojoules (kJ).

Try these tips:

• Minimise these foods in your child's diet and focus on nutritious, whole foods instead.
• Occasional treats — save junk food for special occasions rather than making it a regular part of your child's diet.
• Balance is key — make sure most of your child's meals and snacks are healthier options from the five food groups.
• Healthy swaps — offer healthier alternatives to junk food, such as homemade snacks or fresh fruit.

Suggested serving sizes for junk foods

If your child is having junk food occasionally, a serving of 500 to 600 kilojoules is OK. This means:

Sweet treats

• biscuits, plain sweet — 2 to 3 (35g)
• doughnut — 1 (40g)
• cake slice or muffin — 1 (40g)
• chocolate — 5 squares (25g)
• ice cream — 2 scoops (75g)
• sugar lollies such as jelly babies or snakes — 5 to 6 (40g)

Savoury snacks

• salty crackers — mini packet (30g)
• potato crisps — half a snack packet (30g)
• hot chips (take away) — 12 (60g)
• pastry or meat pie (individual size) — 1 (60g)

Other snacks and drinks

• soft drink — 375mL
• jam or honey — 1 tablespoon (60g)
• processed meats, such as salami — 2 slices (50 to 60g)
• sausages — 1 and a half regular or 2 thin (50 to 70g)
• butter — 1 tablespoon (20g)

Salt (sodium) is a common part of many foods, but children often eat too much of it. Sodium is found naturally in foods such as milk, meat and eggs. It's also added to processed foods to improve taste. Processed foods and snacks are some of the biggest sources of added salt in children's diets.

High salt intake can raise blood pressure, even in children. Long-term high blood pressure increases their risk of heart and kidney problems later in life.

• children between 1 to 3 years old should have between 200mg and 400mg of sodium daily
• children between 4 to 8 years old should have 300mg and 600mg of sodium daily
• children between 9 to 13 years old should have between 400mg and 800mg of sodium daily

All children need some fat in their diets to stay healthy. It's important to know where different fats are found and how to make good choices.

Different types of fats

Saturated fats — eating too much can increase the risk of heart disease later in life.

Saturated fats are found in:

• butter
• cream
• full-fat dairy
• fatty meats
• processed foods, such as biscuits, cakes and fried foods

Unsaturated fats — are healthier fats. They are important for heart and brain health.

Unsaturated fats are found in:

• nuts
• seeds
• fish
• avocados
• plant-based oils, such as olive and canola oil.

Trans fats are found in small amounts in processed foods and animal products. While trans fats in processed foods have decreased in Australia, it's best to limit them as much as possible.

Read more about dietary fats on healthdirect.

Why are fats important for children?

Your baby's first food is breast milk or formula. The fat in breast milk or formula is important for your baby's growth.

Young children need fats for energy and brain development. Low-fat diets are not suitable for young children. If you give your toddler cow's milk or other types of milk, they should have full fat varieties until they rare 2 years old. Then they should change to low-fat dairy products.

For older children, fat gives your child energy and important nutrients for growth and physical activity. However, they should limit saturated fats and replace them with unsaturated fats.

All sugars added to foods provide energy, but they add no essential nutrients.

Sugar-sweetened drinks are especially likely to increase the risk of excess weight. They don't fill you up or reduce your appetite for other foods. Sugar is also a food for the bacteria that cause holes in teeth.

How much sugar?

The natural sugars in milk and fruit (whole fruit, not juice) are not a problem. You don't need added sugars, such as:

• glucose
• fructose
• sucrose or table sugar

Sugars should be restricted to 25g to 50g per day. This is the same as 6 to 12 teaspoons of sugar.

Eat for Health offers information on topics, such as:

• What are discretionary food choices
• The best foods for infants
• Healthy eating for children
• Healthy eating during your pregnancy

Find more information about food labelling on the Food Standards Australia website or at Eat for Health.

Other languages

Multicultural Health Communication Service offers translated information on how to prepare a healthy lunchbox.

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples

For guidelines and illustrations on healthy eating tips for Aboriginal and/ or Torres Strait Islander people you can look at the Eat for Health factsheet.