According to various studies, children aged 6-12 years, (i.e. primary school students) show bad eating habits and an unbalanced diet, factors that predispose short-term or long-term to the appearance of health problems. This report highlights the importance of adopting healthy eating habits and dietary choices from the earliest years of life.
There are many reasons why health education programs should focus on children's nutrition, and the most obvious reasons relate to the effects of childhood eating habits in later adulthood.
Nutritional parameters established during childhood are often maintained into adolescence or adulthood.[1]
A study involving more than 300 boys and girls from 3the until the 6ththe class, showed these children's "concern" about diet and body standards. A total of 45% children expressed a desire to be thinner and 37% children had already tried to reduce their weight.
In another study with 457 children 4her In elementary school, 40% of children reported dieting occasionally or very often.[2]
Indeed, the fear of becoming overweight or obese can be expressed even at the age of 5,[3] This is an indication that the psychological and physiological background of eating disorders is established during childhood and these disorders become more evident during adolescence. The conditions of unhealthy eating and eating disorders (especially cases of self-imposed malnutrition) can be quite serious. As one author points out, the low-calorie and low-fat diets that are particularly widespread among those who "diet" - and which are often designed with a restriction of staple foods, such as dairy products, meat and eggs - are generally deficient in nutrients necessary for development and long-term health. The unbalanced diet with these diets is associated with reduced intake of zinc and iron but also reduced intake of other necessary metals such as copper and magnesium. In order to obtain the necessary amounts of calories and trace elements without dairy products, meat and eggs, large amounts of grains and cereals must be consumed.
[1] Gustafson-Larson A, Terry RD. Weight-related behaviors of fourth-grade children. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 1992;92:818-22.
[2] Maloney MJ, Daniels SR, Specker B. Dieting behavior and eating attitudes in children. Pediatrics 1989;84:482-9.
[3] Lifsnitz F. Moses N. Nutritional dwarfing, and fear of obesity J. Am. Col. Nutr., 1988;7:367-76.
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