A new analysis from Tufts University released on Jul. 9 finds that children worldwide continue to consume low amounts of healthy plant-based foods, including fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, beans, and legumes. The study examined dietary trends in children and adolescents over nearly 30 years and highlighted regional differences in consumption patterns.
Researchers analyzed data from the Global Dietary Database using more than 1,200 dietary surveys from 185 countries between 1990 and 2018. They specifically looked at the intake of five categories of healthful plant-based foods by individuals from birth to age nineteen. The findings showed that globally, daily servings ranged from an average of 1.19 for children under one year old to 3.55 for those aged fifteen to nineteen years old.
The study found little variation by sex but noted significant regional differences: South Asia had the lowest rates across all ages while East and Southeast Asia reported some of the highest rates due mainly to greater consumption of non-starchy vegetables. Intake increased with age in most regions except high-income countries, where it declined as children grew older.
In the United States, researchers observed a unique pattern: infants consumed among the highest amounts globally—2.7 servings per day for those under two—but this dropped to just 1.8 servings per day among youth aged two through nineteen years old. The authors said this decline suggests American families establish healthy eating habits early but face challenges maintaining them throughout childhood and adolescence.
"When children don't get enough of the right foods, it hurts their bodies and minds, limiting their energy, metabolism, learning, and mood," said Dariush Mozaffarian, cardiologist and director of the Food is Medicine Institute at Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. "Our findings support the importance of identifying gaps and advancing solutions to advance the consumption of minimally processed, healthy plant-foods for children globally."
