Impact of poor childhood diet

[Tea4tea]

I had a terrible diet growing up. Everything, and I mean everything, I ate was processed food. I didn’t start eating fruit, vegetables and whole grains until my 20s. I constantly ate junk food and sweet treats. I have been much better in my 30s but still not brilliant and have never been able to shed some old habits (eg my ridiculously sweet tooth).

Now I am terrified of the impacts of this and the health implications for my later years. Other than striving to be as healthy as I can be now, what else can I do to minimise the damage done?

I don't think there's anything more you can do other than eating healthily now and getting sufficient exercise (plus of course good sleep, seeing the doctor if you have any concerning symptoms, not smoking, not drinking too much.)

I wouldn't overthink it. I was a child of the 60s /70s and my childhood diet was pretty appalling by today's standard. My dad didn't cook, mum disliked cooking and a typical evening meal would be something processed - things like Findus cheesy pancakes. We had very little fresh fruit and veg. If we had dessert it would likely be angel delight or a yoghurt packed full of sugar. There are better controls on amounts of sugar and additives in food now. Fizzy drinks back then just seemed to be made of sugar and bright colours!

As an adult, I learnt to cook from scratch; dh and I eat a mainly plant based diet but will eat chicken and fish in moderation. We drink sensibly and neither of us smoke, and we swim and do other exercise regularly. Dh says his childhood diet wasn't much better; less processed food than mine but very carb and sugar heavy. His mum liked baking and would make a lot of sweet stuff for the kids.

Just keep doing what you're doing and don't stress about what you can't change from the past