Joe Wicks slammed after claiming ADHD is 'caused' by processed foods

Joe Wicks has sparked controversy by linking ADHD to ultra-processed foods, prompting a backlash from one of the UK's top ADHD charities.

The charity ADHD UK has issued a statement slamming Wicks for his comments. Joe, also known as The Body Coach, made remarks on BBC Radio 5 Live's Headliners podcast, suggesting that the increase in ADHD diagnoses among children could be attributed to their diets. He reflected on his own childhood eating habits and mused that if it were 2024, he might have been diagnosed with ADHD, believing his diet played a significant role in his behaviour back then.

Speaking on the podcast, Joe said: "Looking back now, there's no doubt the food I was eating was directly linked to my behaviour. I was never diagnosed with ADHD but I think nowadays it's this common thing that every child seems to be being diagnosed.

"And I think a lot of it can stem back to the diet and the foods that we're eating. So, when I think about my diet it was cereal for breakfast, concentrated juice from the milkman, Sunny Delight, Wagon Wheels, sandwiches just jam, Nutella, very little nutrients - pure sugar."

Widely recognised for his health and fitness initiatives, Joe has authored 11 cookbooks and developed The Body Coach app. He became a household name during the Covid-19 lockdown with his 'PE with Joe' workout sessions streamed live, reports Wales Online.

He explained: "The thing about ultra-processed foods is we can eat so much, so fast, because they're so palatable, we know these foods just taste amazing and we can consume so much of it. And then we're taught this is what kids eat, kids need these snacks in their lunchbox, this is what they have for dinner."

"So, we're kind of being confused and led down this path that adults have adult food and kids have kids menus and kids food. And that's the issue we've got because people are cooking less than ever and relying on these processed foods and it's a shame because kids are getting their energy sucked out of them."

"They're struggling at school with focus, they're gaining weight, and probably having really low energy crashes because these foods are just not going to give your children the energy they need to sustain a healthy day - a balanced level of energy." His comments have prompted a response from ADHD UK. The co-founders of ADHD UK took to Instagram to counter Joe Wicks' recent comments on diet and ADHD.

Dr Max Davie, a consultant paediatrician specialising in ADHD, stated: "There is absolutely no evidence that any particular diet, including ultra-processed food, has any causative role in the development of ADHD symptoms and to suggest otherwise is a gross distortion of the facts."

Harry Shelford, CEO of the charity, expressed his disappointment: "It was really disappointing to hear Joe Wicks linking a processed food diet to having ADHD. Joe is a force for so much good but on this he is abjectly wrong. His core point that a good diet can help people in so many ways is absolutely correct. But diet good, bad, or ugly won't make you have ADHD or make you not have ADHD."

He further clarified the impact of such claims: "To suggest for ADHD that swapping sweets or burgers for a plate of veggies is all that is needed to 'fix' someone with ADHD is both wrong and damaging. It's misleading and undermines the very real difficulty of living with the life-long condition ADHD."

Meanwhile, The Body Coach himself reflected on his past eating habits and the motives of the ultra-processed food industry, saying he didn't want to "demonise" the food which "got me through life". However, he criticised the profit-driven nature of businesses selling these products and encouraged people to avoid salty, sugary, and fatty foods, advocating for home cooking instead.

He suggested that cooking your own meals can "completely turn around" your health. Joe further stated: "Ultimately, I believe, the more I talk about it, we can eat ourselves into depression. These ultra-processed foods, the way they interact with our body and our gut, there's now science to show that it's linked to the brain. We can eat ourselves into anxiety and depression."

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