'I'm a doctor - teach your kids to avoid ultra-processed food addiction by doing one thing'

A doctor has warned that British parents should be sitting down with their children at meal times and engage in “role-model good eating” to ensure their offspring don’t develop unhealthy eating habits.

Dr Chris Van Tulleken told the Times about his first hand experience of transitioning away from eating ultra processed foods (UPFs) with his three children as he has learnt more about the dangers of UPFs in recent years.

Among the changes he has made to his home include the removal of a bowl of chocolates and sweet treats he used to offer to guests but which his children also used to consume. His warnings come as awareness grows about questionable impact of UPFs on the human body and concerns about their long term impact intensify.

Dr Van Tulleken is an advocate both for restriction of UPFs and for hands on parenting to ensure children have healthier lifestyles whilst accepting they will still inevitably consume UPFs at some point.

He said: “If you want your kids to develop good eating habits, sit down with them at meals and role-model good eating. Eat off china plates with cutlery, eat real food and do it yourself in front of them.

"I do think that it's very important for children to have a normal life. And so when they go to a party they eat the same food that everyone else does. They're allowed to eat anything.”

Outside of his own home Dr Van Tulleken has gone so far as to suggest that UPFs should be discussed in the same way we discuss the dangers and usage of tobacco.

He added: We need to think of food and alcohol in the same terms, using the same regulatory framework, as we think about tobacco… the rate of addiction across cocaine, alcohol, tobacco and ultra-processed food is all about the same: 10 to 20% of people, having tried it, can't quit.”

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This isn’t the first time Van Tulleken, who features in a BBC documentary about UPFs, has discussed his relationship with them. In conversation with podcaster Spencer Matthews, he compared switching to UPF free diet as like becoming a vegan or vegetarian.

He explained: “While I continued to eat moderate processed food. I now think I eat none. My mum made a potato salad the other day and I don’t know if she used store-bought mayonnaise.

“I don’t police it that thoroughly. But my experience if you eat none as a vegan would eat no meat or as someone of Jewish or Muslim faith would eat no pork if they observe that rule. The opportunities for actually eating are quite small, if you’re at a service station good luck to you. There’s just a load of my day where I just don’t eat.”

Although having a UPF free life could have a positive impact on someone’s overall health, doing so would take effort, could be quite time consuming and may be difficult for some to incorporate around a hectic lifestyle.

However, dietician Nichola Ludlam-Raine told the BBC, people could take simple steps to reduce their intake with the 80/20 rule by balancing what was physically and psychologically positive to consume: “We should focus on including more nutrient-rich foods such as fruit, vegetables, legumes, whole-grains and protein sources that promote beneficial effects on our physical and mental health approximately 80% of the time.

“Then, 20% of the time, we can include less nutrient-dense foods such as biscuits, cakes, ice creams and chocolate bars which provide energy and can also benefit our mental wellbeing by providing a sense of enjoyment and balance.”