Sweet and salty: nutritional content and analysis of baby and toddler foods.

Background: To critically examine baby and toddler food products sold in Canada for their sugar and sodium content, and to assess these in light of current recommendations.

Methods: Baby and toddler foods (n = 186) were coded for various attributes, including 'Nutrition Facts' label data. Four 'categories' of baby/toddler foods were analyzed against their 'adult' counterparts for sugar and salt to reveal whether a 'halo effect' attributed to baby/toddler food is warranted.

Results: 63% of products have either high levels of sodium or an excessive proportion of calories coming from sugar. Over 12% of products had moderate or high levels of sodium; over 53% of products derive >20% of their calories from sugar. Baby and toddler foods were not found to be nutritionally superior-in terms of sodium or sugar-to their adult counterparts.

Conclusions: Baby and toddler foods are currently overlooked in the public, and public policy, discussions pertaining to dietary sodium and sugar. Yet these products are clearly of concern and should be closely monitored, since they promote a taste for 'sweet' and 'salty' in our youngest consumers.