The presence of children can be bad for your diet

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Adults living with kids eat more saturated fat than those who do not, according to a national survey.
Most studies on family and diet look at how parents' choices affect what the kids eat. But how does the presence of children affect adult diet? A new report from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III looks at this question. The researchers, from the University of Iowa and elsewhere, looked at the diets of 6,600 adults living with and without children. They found that adults living with children ate an additional 4.9 grams of fat, including 1.7 grams saturated fat, daily, compared to those living without children. This is the equivalent to an extra pepperoni pizza every week.

Those with children in the home were also more likely to consume cheese, ice cream, beef, pizza and salty snacks - none of which are especially healthy. It may be that the pressures of family life lead adults to go for more fast and convenience foods or they may think the kids don't want healthy foods. The study does not, however, prove that children make your diet worse - more research is needed to understand the reasons for the link between the presence of kids and higher fat consumption. Meanwhile, there are a few simple tips you can use to improve the diet of the whole family. For example, popcorn or low-salt pretzels are a better snack than potato chips. Try baking or cooking in olive oil rather than butter or lard, and limit pizza and other fast foods to once a week or less. And children older than two can benefit from low fat, rather than full cream, milk.

Source
Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine online 4th January 2007

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