Fitness guru Joe Wicks has denied claiming that ultraprocessed food could trigger ADHD, months after he was slammed for saying his hyperactive behaviour in childhood was down to ‘Wagon Wheels and jam sandwiches’.
Appearing on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Headliners podcast in April, the father of-four appeared to suggest that some diagnoses of the brain condition could ‘stem back to the diet and foods that we’re eating’.
Wicks, nicknamed the Body Coach, also admitted he ‘ran on sugar’ as a child, blaming his love of junk food on his behavioural issues.
At the time his comments were slammed by leading ADHD experts and charities who labelled them ‘misleading,’ ‘wrong,’ and ‘damaging’.
But in a fresh interview, Wicks, 39, who rose to prominence with his PE with Joe workout videos during Covid lockdowns, said he wasn’t ‘saying that ADHD is caused by poor diet’.
Instead, he claimed he was merely highlighting that certain foods and poor diets can affect children’s behaviour.
He told The Telegraph: ‘It was really upsetting because it was never my intention.
‘I was just trying to say that diet has a massive effect on our mood as adults and kids, our energy, our focus.
Appearing on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Headliners podcast in April, the nation’s favourite work-out guru appeared to suggest that some diagnoses could ‘stem back to the diet and foods that we’re eating’
Fascinating graphs show how ADHD prescriptions have risen over time, with the patient demographic shifting from children to adults with women in particular now driving the increase
‘And I said something that offended some people in the ADHD community. They’ll never forgive me for that.’
‘Obviously, what I was saying was certain foods I ate… and even now, with my kids, it really affects them.
‘They don’t want to sit still, their behaviour changes. I wasn’t saying that ADHD is caused by poor diet.
‘I just think it can really have an impact.’
Speaking on the BBC podcast in April, Wicks — who has penned 12 cookbooks selling millions of copies worldwide — 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.’
In a fresh interview, Wicks, 39, who rose to prominence with his PE with Joe workout videos during Covid lockdowns, has said he wasn’t ‘saying that ADHD is caused by poor diet’. Pictured, Wicks at Glastonbury Festival earlier this year
Speaking on the BBC podcast in April, Wicks — who has penned 12 cookbooks selling millions of copies worldwide — said: ‘Looking back now, there’s no doubt the food I was eating was directly linked to my behaviour.’ Pictured with his wife Rosie and four children
Amid the backlash his comments stirred up, Wicks released a video statement on his Instagram account days later in which he said that reports had taken his comments out of context.
But, he added, that with hindsight he wished he had worded his comments about childhood ADHD diagnoses differently.
‘It’s triggered and angered so many people in the ADHD community and rightly so. I completely understand,’ he said.
‘I know that’s not factual, that isn’t true. I don’t believe that. I never have, I never would say that.
‘It’s a neurodivergent disorder that affects the brain and there are lots of factors involved.
‘I do believe that food has a massive impact whether you have ADHD or not.
‘It really impacts our mood and our ability to sit still and focus, even our energy and our mental health.
‘In hindsight, listening back to it [the podcast episode] a couple of times, I do wish I had said misdiagnosed.
‘What I mean is, many children are being misdiagnosed and I do believe that is happening around the world.’
NHS statistics show more than 230,000 people in England are now taking ADHD meds to combat their inattentiveness and hyperactivity.
Prescription rates jumped by a fifth last year, marking the biggest annual rise since modern records began in 2015.
Data suggests it has largely been fuelled by a rise in women in their 20s and 30s, although rates are still increasing in kids.
Experts have warned rogue private clinics are over-diagnosing the condition and have questioned the widespread prescribing of powerful stimulant drugs to treat it.
The booming market is thought to have been fuelled by celebrities such as model Katie Price and Love Island star Olivia Attwood talking about their ADHD ordeal and waits of up to ten years for an assessment on the NHS.
Social media sites are also full of users telling how medication helped to calm them down, control their fidgeting and boost their concentration.
But experts have also argued that ADHD was only officially listed in the UK as a disorder that affects adults in 2008.
Before then, it was just recognised as a childhood problem that kids grew out of.
As a result, rather than being over diagnosed, some experts claim many adults now being told they have ADHD have gone years having their symptoms dismissed.
Podcasts are also increasingly being blamed for amplifying pseudo-science.
Earlier this month a BBC World Service investigation, which explored the accuracy of health information featured in 23 episodes of Barlett’s Diary of A CEO podcast, found 15 contained an average of 14 harmful claims that went against scientific evidence.
Flight Studio — the podcast’s production company — hit back at the analysis that included verdicts from top scientists, branding it ‘disappointing and disingenuous’.
It claimed that the podcast has had nearly 400 episodes published to date, meaning the BBC reviewed less than four per cent of episodes.
The company also said some of the guests featured on the podcast have also featured on the BBC.
