Photo: cafemama (flickr)
Smart Food, Dumb Food
A new study has found that toddlers who eat foods that are highly processed as well as foods high in fat and sugar are more likely to have a lower IQ than those children who have a more nutritious diet.
Researchers from England and Canada asked parents to fill out questionnaires, at ages three, four, seven and eight and a half, based on how much and how many times their kids were fed junk food.
Based on the responses, the researchers found that children who ate fatty and sugary foods at age three had a lower IQ at age eight-and-a-half than children who ate healthier foods; every one-point increase in a child’s processed fat intake was associated with a 1.67-point fall in IQ.
Too Late To Change?
A child’s brain grows the fastest during its first three years, and according to the report, it’s possible good nutrition during this period may encourage optimal brain growth.
Researchers also found that the diet during the first three years is the most important, because toddlers’ diets could change IQ levels later in childhood, even if eating habits improve with age.
“This suggests that any cognitive/behavioral effects relating to eating habits in early childhood may well persist into later childhood, despite any subsequent changes to dietary intake,” the authors wrote.
Even though the study only found an association and not a direct cause and effect, this study sheds light on the importance of feeding kids a nutritious diet.