Mediterranean diet may control weight among kids

Mediterranean diet may control weight among kids

Children taking a Mediterranean diet are at least 15 percent less likely to be overweight or obese than those children who do not, claims a new study.

Weight, height, waist circumference and percent body fat mass were measured in children from eight countries – Sweden, Germany, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Belgium, Estonia and Hungary.

“The adherence to a Mediterranean-like diet was assessed by a score calculating by giving one point for high intakes of each food group which was considered typical of the Mediterranean diet such as vegetables, fruit and nuts, fish and cereal grains,” explained study author Gianluca Tognon from University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

“One point was given for low intakes of foods untypical of the Mediterranean diet such as dairy and meat products,” he said. High scoring children were then considered high-adherent and compared to the others.

The team found that children with a high adherence to a Mediterranean-like diet were 15 percent less likely to be overweight or obese than low-adherent children.

The findings were independent of age, sex, socio-economic status or country of residence. “The promotion of a Mediterranean dietary pattern is no longer a feature of Mediterranean countries.

“Considering its potential beneficial effects on obesity prevention, this dietary pattern should be part of EU obesity prevention strategies,” said Tognon.

Source: Times of India


Stressed parents make for obese kids

Researchers including an Indian-origin scientist have linked parental stress to weight gain in children.

The study found that children whose parents have high levels of stress have a Body Mass Index, or BMI, about 2 per cent higher than those whose parents have low levels of stress.

Children with higher parental stress also gained weight at a 7 per cent higher rate during the study period than other children.

Those figures may sound low, said lead author Dr. Ketan Shankardass, but they’re significant because they are happening in children, whose bodies and eating and exercise habits are still developing. Plus, if that weight gain continues and is compounded over a lifetime, it could lead to serious obesity and health issues.

Dr. Shankardass, a social epidemiologist with the hospital’s Centre for Research on Inner City Health, studied data collected during the Children’s Health Study, one of the largest and most comprehensive investigations into the long-term effects of air pollution on the respiratory health of children.

The childrens’ BMI was calculated each year. Their parents were given a questionnaire to measure their perceived psychological stress that asked how often in the last month they were able or unable to control important things in their life and whether things were going their way or their difficulties were piling up so high they could not overcome them.

Dr. Shankardass noted that more than half the students followed in the California study were Hispanic, and that the effects of stress on their BMI was greater than children of other ethnic backgrounds.

The research has been published in the journal Pediatric Obesity.

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