Nearly a third of adults in the UK are eating less healthily than last year because of the effects of the credit crunch and soaring food prices.

A survey found around one in three, or 32 per cent, of adults' diets had deteriorated compared to last year as they turned to cheaper processed foods in order to save money. Amongst 35 to 44-year-olds this figure rose to 45 per cent.

The statistics were revealed after a telephone poll of more than 2,000 UK adults conducted earlier this month on behalf of the specialist debt counselling charity Christians Against Poverty.

Matt Barlow, UK chief executive of Christians Against Poverty, said with the right support people could be helped to avoid the worst of the economic downturn.

He said: "These results are truly shocking and evidence that we are slipping further into financial difficulty as a country.

"However, whilst many would concentrate solely on the impending crisis, we want to underline how there is a solution for those trapped by debt in the UK."

The survey found that more than half, or 53 per cent, of the 2,057 people surveyed said they were in worse financial state than last year.

One in five said their financial situation was "much worse".

Under 25s appeared to be weathering the financial storm better than the over 45s, according to the findings.

Nearly 60 per cent of 45 to 54-year-olds said they believed they were in a worse financial state than last year but this figure dropped to 41 per cent for 18 to 24-year-olds.

The survey also found food bills for the average family had gone up by £1,040 a year in the last 12 months.

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