Introduction:

the consumption of biscuits is high in the Spanish paediatric population. Biscuits are ultra-processed products with a high energy content and energy density and generally contain added sugars and unhealthy fats.

Methods:

we conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study on the characteristics and nutritional composition of biscuits available in Spanish supermarkets, and compared biscuits marketed to children to all other biscuits.

Results:

we analysed a sample of 350 biscuits. The mean energy content was 471.86 ± 35.83 kcal/100 g. Saturated fats were used in 53.1%, palm oil in 47.1% and added sugars in 90% (median content, 25 g/100 g; IQR: 20-33). The median dietary fibre content was 3.2 g/100 g (IQR: 2.4-5.2). The packaging of 86 advertised that the product contained fibre, specifying the total fibre content in 95.34% of cases, with a median value of 5.45 g/100 g (IQR: 4-7.9). Of the total products, 53 (15.1%) were marketed to children, and their mean energy content was 466.47 ± 19.31 kcal/100 g. The main fat was olive oil or high oleic sunflower oil (HOSO) in 67.9%, and palm oil was present in 20 (37.7%). There were added sugars in 98.1% (mean sugar content, 25.88 ± 6.82 g/100 g). The median dietary fibre content was 2.9 g/100 g (IQR 2.27-3.42). The packaging of 75.5% featured some form of advertising. The comparative analysis showed that a greater percentage of biscuits specifically marketed to children had added sugars (98.1% vs 88.6%, p = 0.033) and that these biscuits had a lower fibre content (median, 2.9 g/100 g vs. 3.5 g/100 g, p = 0.005), that a greater percentage contained olive oil or HOSO (67.9% vs 36.7%, p <0.001), and a greater percentage featured promotional advertising in their packaging (75.5% vs 45.5%, p <0.001).

Conclusions:

biscuits marketed to the paediatric population had added sugars and a high energy content; more than 37% had saturated fats and a high proportion featured advertising in the packaging. On the other hand, we found that monounsaturated fats were used in more than 50% of these products. The findings of this study could serve as reference to guide the development of public health interventions or product reformulation by manufacturers.

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