The recent case of an American toddler diagnosed with type 2 diabetes highlights the severity of the problems our modern processed food diet causes. According to Reuters,¹ the three-year old girl, who weighed in at 77 pounds, is one of the youngest persons ever diagnosed with this obesity-related disease.

In the past, type 2 diabetes was referred to as “adult onset” diabetes, and most patients were in the senior category. But as our diets and lifestyles have changed, so has the disease.

And, while lack of exercise is certainly a factor, one would be hard-pressed to accuse a two-year old of being too sedentary. Clearly, diet plays a more important role in individuals this young. So what’s wrong with children’s diets these days?

Many Babies Are Raised on Sugar

In short, most babies and toddlers are fed far too much sugar right from the start.  Many parents fail to realize that infant formulas can contain significant amounts of added sugars and starchy fillers,² which paves the way for chronic disease from day one.

Past investigations have also revealed trans fats — now known to promote heart disease — in some formulas, as well as genetically engineered (GE) ingredients, which are also suspected of causing obesity and health problems in the long term, primarily by promoting inflammation and disrupting gut flora.

Last year, data³ from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showed that more than 29 million Americans were diagnosed with full-blown type 2 diabetes,⁴ a statistic researchers predicted in 2001 wouldn’t be reached until 2050.⁵

A more recent study,^6,7,8,9,10 which also for the first time included estimated disease rates for certain minority groups, suggests as much as HALF of the American public may have either prediabetes or diabetes.

Diabetes rates have also soared in other countries. In the UK, rates have risen by 60 percent in the last decade.¹¹

When you start investigating the diets of babies and young children, these statistics become less surprising. In fact, they’re to be expected.

One in four Americans eats some type of fast food on a daily basis,¹² and nearly half of the money Americans spend on food is spent on fast food meals.13 More than one-third of school-aged children and adolescent eat fast food on a daily basis.