'Only Child' Seven Times More Likely to Be Obese

Only-children are significantly more likely to be overweight by the time they turn seven, warns a new study. The findings of the study are published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.

This is because families with multiple children tend to make more healthy eating decisions than families with a single child, the study added.

Fructose - The Toxic Sugar | Sugar and Obesity
Sugar in terms of caloric value is similar to starch, but in terms of metabolic effects, it is far different. It comes with a special payload.

‘Obesity is more common among youngsters who don't have any siblings. ’

Tweet it Now

The study found that this kind of obesity could be seven times more common among youngsters.

"Healthier eating behaviors and patterns may result from household-level changes rather than peer exposure, as peer exposure is also present in away-from-home care," said study lead author Chelsea L. Kracht from the University of Oklahoma in the US.

According to the researchers, data were self-reported in daily food logs kept by mothers over the course of three days -- two weekdays and one weekend day. Teachers kept logs by proxy for any food children ate while at school.

Carbohydrates and Its Role in Obesity
Over 1 billion people world-wide are obese thus affecting their health due to their nutrition and lifestyle. 3.9% of India’s population is obese! Know more about obesity and its prevention.

Mothers also completed the Family Nutrition and Physical Activity questionnaire to evaluate typical family eating behavior like food and beverage choice.

Researchers have found that only-children, who researchers refer to as 'singletons,' had less healthy family eating practices, beverage choices, and total Healthy Eating Index 2010 score, coming in lower on three out of the 12 areas measured.

Malnutrition to Obesity - The Big Leap
Obesity is the root cause of problems like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, arthritis and gall bladder disease. A serious look at our strategies is needed to tackle this fast growing epidemic.

They also had significantly lower total scores across weekdays, weekends, and on average, indicating there are both individual and collective differences in eating patterns between the groups.

Researchers found mothers of singleton children were more likely to be obese themselves. Moreover, maternal BMI had a much stronger connection to the child BMI percentile and waist circumference percentile than singleton status.

Childhood Obesity - Criteria - Causes - Complications, Treatment
Childhood obesity is one of the most serious health challenges in the developing countries and needs to be understood and tackled effectively.

Maternal BMI did not significantly contribute to overall eating patterns but did contribute to empty calories.

The research also found that time spent in away-from-home care like school and daycare was not connected to children's eating patterns.

"Nutrition professionals must consider the influence of family and siblings to provide appropriate and tailored nutrition education for families of young children," said Kracht.

"Efforts to help all children and families establish healthy eating habits and practices must be encouraged," Kracht added.

Source-IANS