Opportunities in Children’s Health

They eat terribly and are in poor health—children need the nutritional industry’s help to get healthy.

By Gregory Stephens, RD

The eating habits of children in the U.S. has diminished in quality during the past decade, creating some significant health consequences. While it has been well documented that children are becoming increasingly overweight, there is also a nutritional crisis looming for children. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), teens are not getting enough calcium. NIH considers this shortfall a “pediatric disease with geriatric consequences.” It is also estimated that 30% of adolescents in the U.S. may be vitamin D deficient, as a result of less exposure to sunlight and consumption migration from milk to soda. Vitamin E, fiber and potassium are also coming up short in children’s diets.

While the American Heart Association (AHA) recommends that children two years and older eat mostly fruits and vegetables, whole grains, dairy, beans, fish and lean meat, by the time children are 19 to 24 months, French fries are the most commonly eaten vegetable. In addition, children between the ages of two and 12 eat only half the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Moreover, as parental influence wanes and peer influence builds, children 12 and older exhibit even fewer healthy eating habits.

Dining Out

It is clear that the increase of dual income households over the past few decades is taking its toll on the American family diet. According to the Natural Marketing Institute’s (NMI) annual Health & Wellness Trends Database, more than one-third (35%) of working moms say their family doesn’t eat as healthy because they and/or their spouse are working. The majority of moms appear to recognize that eating healthy is about balance and trade-offs—the good news is they welcome help from manufacturers and retailers to meet the needs of their busy lives.

Working long hours, extracurricular activities and running errands are just a few examples of the countless events that steal from family meal time. More than one-quarter (27%) of stay-at-home moms and roughly one-third (35%) of working moms indicate that their family doesn’t eat together as often as they used to. This, however, represents a slight decrease over last year, perhaps due to more moms making trade-offs in order to prepare healthy meals for the family to enjoy together at home.

With less time for home prepared meals, drive-through windows and other fast-food fare are becoming more the norm rather than the exception for many families. In fact, three-quarters of all U.S. parents state that they eat at fast food restaurants on a regular and consistent basis. On a healthier note, more than half (60%) of working mothers also readily admit that they would eat more fast food if it was available in healthier versions. While some quick serve restaurants are making efforts to offer healthier, lower calorie options, fast food should still be consumed in moderation and is no substitute for a well-balanced, nutrient-rich, whole food diet.

Healthy Weight

Sedentary lifestyles, technological advances, suburban sprawl, poor nutritional choices and many other factors are responsible for the increase in the number of overweight and obese children. Obesity among children has shown some drastic increases, and is starting at much younger ages, with 10% of 2-year-olds diagnosed as being overweight, which is double the rate from the mid-1970s. NMI research indicates that approximately one-third of parents indicate their child is currently managing their weight. This weight problem among children may also be a contributor to the increased prevalence of “adult” diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Research also shows that children managing weight show much higher management of emotional-related issues. For instance, children who are managing their weight are more likely to be experiencing depression, anxiety and stress (Figure 1). While the fattening of America’s youth is measurable in in­creased disease states, the phenomena may also be creating a whole realm of negative emotional states too.

Is Supplementation & Fortification the Solution?

Concerned over whether their child is obtaining the proper amount of nutrients in their diet, mothers are turning to dietary supplements to help fill in the gap.

As is evident in Figure 2, children of stay-at-home moms are slightly more likely to use supplements (14%) than are children of working moms (11%). Perhaps stay-at-home moms have more time to become educated about the latest supplements and scientific research, and since they are more likely to be with their children during the workday, they may be more likely to stay on top of their children’s supplement usage.

Although working moms are using children's supplements with less frequency than stay-at-home moms, they use them more for children five years and younger than for those age six and older. Interestingly, the opposite is true for stay-at-home moms; they are using children’s supplements for children age six and older more often than for those age five and younger. This may be due to the household construct as working moms are more likely to have older than younger children.

Fortification is also gaining momentum in the food industry. The number of vitamin and mineral fortified food and beverage product launches within the children’s category has been on the increase during the past several years and will most likely continue as new fortification technologies emerge.

While vitamin and mineral fortified French fries are not necessarily the answer to the nutritional crisis facing many of today’s children, providing the basic framework for nutrition early in a child’s life is vital. In the end, children will follow examples set by their parents. If parents follow healthy, nutritional eating guidelines, children are far more likely to adopt them and be better equipped to make healthy choices throughout their life.NW