Posted on 01/30/2005 5:33:35 PM PST by beavus
University Park, Pa. -- A Penn State analysis of the diets of a nationally representative sample of U.S. preschoolers, ages 2 to 5, shows that more than three-quarters of the children are not getting enough fiber.
Children who consumed the most fiber also had the most nutrient-rich diets. However, all children in the study ate fewer dairy servings than recommended by the Food Guide Pyramid.
"There is clinical evidence that children with low fiber intakes are at risk of chronic constipation," said Sibylle Kranz, assistant professor of nutritional sciences who led the study. "However, there are also other reasons to encourage fiber consumption in children. For example, fiber has been shown to lower cardiovascular risk in adults. Children who eat high-fiber foods are more likely to grow up into adults who consume adequate fiber."
The study is detailed in the February issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association in a paper, Dietary Fiber Intake by American Preschoolers is Associated with More Nutrient-Dense Diets. The authors are Kranz; Diane C. Mitchell, Penn State Diet Assessment Center coordinator; Anna Maria Siega-Riz, associate professor of maternal and child health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; and Helen Smiciklas-Wright, Penn State professor of nutritional sciences.
In the study, dietary consumption estimates were based on two-day averages of 5,437 children whose parents provided information in the 1994-1996 and 1998 Continuing Survey of Food Intake by Individuals conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The researchers conducted separate analyses on the 2- and 3-year-olds and the 4- and 5-year-olds and compared them.
The younger children had, on average, a higher fiber intake than the older children. The 2- and 3-year-olds, whose fiber intake placed them in the top quarter of the sample, met the new National Academy of Sciences Dietary Reference Intake level. These guidelines propose that Americans of all ages consume 14 grams of total fiber per every 1,000 calories based on evidence for reduced cardiovascular disease risk at that level.
The main fiber sources consumed by the children were, in order: low-fiber fruits, such as applesauce; legumes; and high-fiber cereal. Other low-fiber, low-nutrient foods that contributed very small amounts of fiber to the children's diets included pizza and other high-fat, grain-based mixed dishes; and high-fat, salty snacks such as chips. High-fiber vegetables and fruit, which should be a major source of fiber, were consumed in too small quantities to contribute to the total average fiber intake.
"If parents feed their preschoolers fiber-rich foods, they are most likely providing important nutrients for the children as well,” Kranz said. "An easy substitution to get more fiber into their diets is to change to whole-grain products and high-fiber cereals. Also, children usually like sweet potato, baked beans, grapes and oranges and they're all high-fiber, high-nutrient foods."
The study was supported by a seed grant from the Penn State College of Health and Human Development.
What a load of.....
Captain Obvious! Of course a low-fiber diet is also poor in general nutrition. Get those kids a fiber supplement!
There's no need to fear! FIIIIBER man is here!
The Prune Lobby funded this report.
Whole oats ... wheat bran ... chickpeas ...
"An apple a day..."
LOL! Cayenne pepper capsules. Feels like you swallowed hot coals, all the way through your digestive tract.
Broccoli and cheese casserole, beenie weenie... add an egg salad sammich and your kid will be be the brightest one in class. If not in intelligence and regularity then in ignitable methane potential. It is for them after all....
...keeps the roids away.
LOL!
My tax dollars at work! :)
Ay carumba!
Nutritional scientists are vegetables?
Well put.
Sheesh!
I'll bet these clowns figured out that if you drink a glass of water; one might eventually have to urinate?
Hmmmm. I'll have to cognitate, do 35 years of studies, and write my thesis paper why this happens.
BTW, is the symbol of ZERO a number? I knew of a guy that wrote his PhD mathmetical thesis on this topic.
This is a serious issue. Fiber in the diet can do wonders...not just for regularity. It can remove cholesterol from your digestive tract, so it stays out of your bloodstream; can also help with blood sugars and help you feel full, longer so you'll eat less - type 2 diabetes is becoming an epidemic.
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