Top nutritionist brands Australia's Health Star Rating system 'inaccurate' amid ADHD and cancer concerns
Mandy Sacher, a paediatric nutritionist, says parents are being lied to by the HSR on boxes of cereals and muesli bars at their local supermarket.
She says the government-backed health star rating on products marketed to children from brands such as Uncle Toby's, Milo, Coles, Woolworths and Aldi are inaccurate.
Food manufacturers are responsible for the accurate use of the system, however, the rating is not compulsory and doesn't account for added processed ingredients.
Ms Sacher found many popular muesli bars would score just 1.5 to 2 stars under her own 'Real Food Rating' system despite their high HRS.
She said parents were being 'misled' into buying products that actually contained up to nine different types of sugar and were linked to a series of health conditions.
The processed snacks are now being directly linked to behavioural issues in children, patterns of addictive eating, ADHD and mental health issues, the nutritionist said.
'A 2024 meta-analysis of more than 58,000 children showed that those consuming more ultra-processed snacks were 25 per cent more likely to exhibit ADHD symptoms,' Ms Sacher said.
'We're not just fuelling poor diets - we're actively undermining kids' behaviour, mental health, focus and long-term health.'
The nutritionist has launched her own Real Food Rating which organises popular lunchbox items into five categories; Best, Good, Okay, Limit and Avoid.
Products to avoid include Milo Bars, K-Time Baked Twists, Chewy Choc Chip Muesli Bars, Aldi Hillcrest Yoghurt Museli Bars, Nutri-Grain Bars, and Kellogg's LCM bars.
'With so many so-called 'healthy' products misleading parents, it was time to create a tool that truly empowers families to shop smarter. This isn't just about star ratings - this is a movement to reclaim our food and protect our kids,' Ms Sacher said.
Ironically, wholefood-based bars made from nuts, seeds and dates were unrated or scored lower than those products filled with sugar and additives.
'This is not a system grounded in real nutrition - it's a marketing loophole,' she said.
The nutritionist is calling on the federal government to urgently review the HSR system - which hasn't been updated since 2014.
'Brazil has already integrated food processing levels into its national dietary guidelines. France is refining Nutri-Score to address public health gaps. Canada has introduced mandatory front-of-pack warning labels,' she said.
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