Yoli Truth: Kids mimic parents’ diets from an early age

October 28, 2009

Disclaimer: Yoli products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

With Yoli about to take the beverage industry by storm, I wanted to share with you even more ways that we as parents can make a difference in the lives and wellbeing of our children. This study shows that as parents if we improve our own eating habits and the drinks we consume that our children will follow in our foot steps.

Sometimes the obvious has to be stated for it to sink in. For most people, I recommend just replacing the existing sodas and drinks that you are currently buying with Yoli’s Truth Citrus Health Blast. This will give you and the kids a better option without the need to spend more money on beverages. Also, if you drink coffee in the morning, try to replace that with Yoli. I found that I get similar energy levels that last much longer.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Parents who want their preschoolers to eat their vegetables may need to take a hard look at their own eating habits, new research suggests.

In a study of 120 young children who were allowed to “buy” food from a play grocery store, researchers found that even 2-year-olds tended to mirror their parents’ usual food choices.

Children who stocked up on sweets, sugary drinks and salty snacks generally had parents whose typical grocery list featured such items. Similarly, children with the healthiest shopping habits seemed to be following their parents’ lead as well.

The findings, reported in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, suggest that even very young children do not indiscriminately reach for candy when given the chance. Instead, they seem to already be forming food preferences — potentially lasting ones — based on their parents’ shopping carts.

“The data suggest that children begin to assimilate and mimic their parents’ food choices at a very young age, even before they are able to fully appreciate the implications of these choices,” write the researchers, led by Dr. Lisa A. Sutherland of Dartmouth Medical School in Lebanon, New Hampshire.

That, the researchers say, means that the grocery store can be like a classroom, where parents teach their children that foods like fruits, vegetables and whole grains take priority over snacks and desserts.

Yoli Truth Blast Cap Drinks For the study, Sutherland’s team had 120 children aged 2 to 6 years old each take a turn in a play grocery store. The children were told they could buy anything they wanted out of 133 items: “healthier” foods included fruits, vegetables, whole-grain cereals, bread and milk; “less healthy” items included desserts, candy, potato chips, soda and sugary cereals.

Parents completed questionnaires on how often they bought specific foods and beverages. All said they brought their children with them on grocery store trips.

Most of the children, the researchers found, bought some sugary, salty treats; on average, their carts were filled with equal parts healthy and unhealthy items.

However, 35 children bought significantly more healthy fare than junk food. In general, the study found, the health-consciousness of a child’s shopping cart mirrored that of her parents’ grocery list.

“Nutrition interventions for children most often begin with school-aged children,” Sutherland and her colleagues write. “This study suggests that preschool children are already forming food preferences and are attentive to food choices made by their parents.”

Giving preschoolers a taste for healthy foods, the researchers add, could ultimately make it easier for them to keep up a lifetime of smart eating.