Are Diet Foods Making YOUR KIDS Fat

One out of every three children are actually overweight, or near 25 million American children, and these figures are increasing. Actually, in just the past 30 years, the amount of overweight children has doubled. Fifty years back, just a small percentage of the population had problems with their weight. We now have an epidemic, including among children. This is very serious, as being overweight as a kid can lead to type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and many more health problems.

Even though many are quick to blame inactivity and much more TV watching and video game playing, alongside simple overeating, because of this increase, I think there is another factor involved. This increase in childhood obesity in addition has happened while we have greatly increased the number of diet and low-fat foods in our diets, including diet sodas, fat-free chips, low-fat dinner entrees and much more. Around the turn of the century, there were NO diet foods, and we ate more fat, including more butter and cream and red meat, and very few people were overweight. And fewer still were obese. So what is going on? Should you be buying your kids low-fat diet foods to greatly help them lose weight?

REDUCED CALORIE DIET Foods Lead to Overeating and Obesity

According to an article in the journal "Obesity," published in August, 2007, researchers have discovered that when children eat low-calorie versions of foods which are saturated in calories, overeating occurs and that leads to obesity. The top author of the paper, David Pierce, says that "based on what (we have) learned, it is best for children to eat healthy, well-balanced diets with sufficient calories because of their daily activities instead of low-calorie snacks or meals."

Diet Foods Condition One to Want More

Although eating diet foods may also lead to obesity and ill health for adults, it appears that for children, there's another factor going on. It appears that the utilization of diet drinks and other diet foods from an early on age seems to condition them to want to eat more, because you can eat more of the dietary plan foods with fewer calories. Another study at the University of Massachusetts corroborates this. It found a link between diet soda drinking and an increased risk of obesity, along with higher rates of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Eat HEALTHY FOODS Instead of Diet Foods

Although the study referenced above did use rats, not children, the researchers believe that since the young animals were made to overeat when given low-calorie foods and drinks on a regular basis, that is directly applicable to your children. As we have seen, obesity rates are high and climbing even amongst our youngsters. Mr. Pierce recommends using old-fashioned ways of maintaining your children healthy and fit such as eating well-balanced meals and exercising regularly. He continues on to admit that "diet foods are probably wii idea for growing youngsters."

We completely agree. We need to go back to real foods, for both children and adults, and cut out the dietary plan foods, the low-fat foods, the pre-packaged foods, and the junk food. We need to be eating whole fruits, vegetables, meat and dairy from grass-fed animals, and wholegrains. You need to understand that children are growing and need more calories than a grown-up of their size. You do not desire to feed them a low-calorie diet, and especially not a low-fat diet. Kids need top quality fats for his or her brains and reproductive growth especially.

In addition to heading back to real foods, additionally it is true that an excessive amount of TV watching or video game playing instead of exercising outdoors is bad for all of us, as well as your kids are no different. Set an example for them and encourage some outdoor activity of all days, along with exercising yourself. This, in conjunction with the real foods, can help your kids attain and maintain a normal healthy weight.

Copyright 2008 Karen Pijuan. This article may be copied only in its entirety and only if all links, including those in the resource box or the about-the-author section, remain intact.

Karen Pijuan are the owners of several health-related websites and contains written numerous articles about nutrition, vitamins, healthy living, whole food supplements, natural body care and cleaning products, natural weight reduction and more. Discover more about what to look for in a healthy vitamin, and also resources for where to find the complete food vitamins she recommends at [1]

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