Publication Cover
Nutritional Neuroscience
An International Journal on Nutrition, Diet and Nervous System
Volume 26, 2023 - Issue 9
1,138
Views
3
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Review

Junk food consumption and psychological distress in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis

, , , , , , & show all
Pages 807-827 | Published online: 11 Jul 2022
 

ABSTRACT

Background: Available evidence indicates that junk foods, defined as unhealthy foods with high-calorie and low-nutrient value, negatively affect mental and metabolic health of children. This study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis to clarify the association between junk food consumption and psychological distress in children and adolescents.

Methods: A systematic literature search of relevant documents published in PubMed, Web of Science, and SCOPUS was conducted up to 2022. All observation studies which assessed association of junk foods and psychological distress in children and adolescents were included. Random-effect model was used to pool odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) from individual studies. Subgroup meta-analysis was performed based on junk foods categories (sweet drinks, sweet snacks and snacks).

Results: Data of 17 included articles on junk foods consumption in relation to depression, stress, anxiety, sleep dissatisfaction and happiness in children and adolescents were included in this systematic review. According to random effect model, the pooled OR in the highest vs. the lowest category of junk foods was 1.62 (95% CI: 1.35–1.95) for depression, 1.34 (95% CI: 1.16–1.54) for stress, 1.24 (95% CI: 1.03–1.50) for anxiety, 1.17 (95% CI: 1.05–1.30) for sleep dissatisfaction and 0.83 (95% CI: 0.75–0.92) for happiness. In subgroup meta-analysis, there were significant associations between different types of junk foods and psychological distress (P < 0.05).

Conclusion: This meta-analysis showed that junk foods consumption was associated with increased odds of psychological distress in children and adolescents. These findings support the current recommendation of decreasing junk foods intake.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author (s).

Data availability statement

The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article.

Log in via your institution

Log in to Taylor & Francis Online

PDF download + Online access

  • 48 hours access to article PDF & online version
  • Article PDF can be downloaded
  • Article PDF can be printed
USD 65.00 Add to cart

Issue Purchase

  • 30 days online access to complete issue
  • Article PDFs can be downloaded
  • Article PDFs can be printed
USD 273.00 Add to cart

* Local tax will be added as applicable

Related Research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.