Is Your Child A Fussy Eater (Part 3)

What you eat at age six (6) affects your health at age sixty (60). It is easy to see how a child’s diet equates to his present health and growth. The implications of his food intake on his future health and life expectancy is less apparent, yet some problems of chronic ill health in adult life has links to food intake in early childhood.


CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH

Atherosclerosis starts in childhood. It runs in families, as some are more predisposed. If close family members, uncles and grandparents have or had high blood pressure, high cholesterol or heart problems before the age of sixty the child needs to watch out.

Fr instance it is recommended that all adults limit the fat content of their daily diet to less than 30 percent of total calories. Children under the age of two years should not have a restricted fat intake but after this age the same rule should apply. Reduced fat milk fortified with vitamin A & D can be used after the age of two.

There is a theory that kids who are fat or chubby in their childhood will be fat in adulthood as quantity of fat cells are determined by genetics spurned by diet during childhood. Once a certain amount of fat cells (not the size of them) are present in childhood, it is difficult to be slim later.


DIABETES

In most countries the incidence of diabetes is about ten (10%) percent an don the rise. Type 2 or mature-onset diabetes which is an adult type diabetes is now a problem even with teenage kids. This is directly due to poor dietary habits of eating too much refined carbohydrates.


OBESITY

Cardiovascular disease and diabetes are more common in overweight people. Over seventy (70%) percent of children who are overweight at ten to thirteen years will become overweight adults with its associated risks. As mentioned earlier this is because the number of fat cells increases in childhood and remains fixed during adult life.

Obesity is now an epidemic among children today. Carbonated and high fructose drinks have been a contributive factor. Sedentary lifestyle with high intakes of fat and refined carbohydrates and salt, with low fiber, protein and vitamin content are apparent today.



OSTEOPOROSIS


It is critical to amass a high bone density before one reach adulthood. It is inevitable that after the age of fifty (50), the bone becomes fragile and brittle with increasing age. Bone stores are laid down during childhood and adolescence to produce peak bone mass in early adult life. This will affect the density of bone present in later life and the severity of osteoporosis.

Bone growth in childhood needs a good supply of calcium. Children under the age of three (3) need about 500mg daily and those between four (4) and eight (8) need 800mg daily together with vitamin D and magnesium. This can be obtained from milk, fish and soy products.


ANOREXIA & BULIMIA

There have been very few studies conducted about the effects of childhood picky eating behaviors on the development of eating disorders later in life. One study that does address this issue was performed by Margaret Marchi, Ph.D and Patricia Cohen, Ph.D. In this study, problematic eating behaviors were traced in a large sample of children over a period of ten years. Children and their parents were questioned about the occurrence of unpleasant meals, struggles over eating, and picky eating during their daily routines, as well as about the amount of food eaten, speed of eating, and interest in food eaten. Picky eating was found to be very common among young children, regardless of sex differences. The study found that children who had troublesome patterns of eating when young were more likely to have problems with food later in life. Picky eaters showed an increase in the frequency and severity of bulimic and anorexic symptoms upon adolescence and adulthood.

Kotler et al. (2001) showed many of these same results. This study examined the extent to which symptoms of eating disorders remained stable over time, as well as the effect early childhood eating problems have on the development of eating disorders. This study showed a dramatic increase in the risk of developing an eating disorder when an individual had experienced eating problems earlier in life.

Another study, dated 1986, does not show a strong relationship between disturbed childhood eating patterns and bulimia later in life. In this study, twenty bulimic women and their parents were questioned retrospectively about childhood eating problems. Only two of the families reported fussy eating during childhood. Data from this study does not suggest a relationship between childhood feeding problems as a causal factor in the development of bulimia later in life.

Victor Chen on Radio Sabah

Speaking in Singapore 23 Dec 07 - Age Without Getting Old

Reasons for Fussy Eating (2)

Every parent knows it is difficult to get children to eat nutritious food, whether it is a toddler who wants nothing but instant noodles or a teenager who lives on junk food and soft drinks. Children need to eat frequently to sustain their high energy levels and keep their bodies growing.

Many young children go through periods of being fussy eaters and this is a normal part of growing up. Children often want to eat certain foods at a certain time and in a certain way. Many children, especially those from 1.5-5 years of age are sometimes picky eaters. They eat what appears to an adult as a small amount of food, and yet they are well, active and growing normally. The term “Fussy eaters” is not used for children who are breast feeding, only toddlers and children.

Some babies are very fussy while feeding, while others tend to doze off after a few minutes of feeding. The mother is not sure whether or not he has had his fill. But no sooner does she put him in the cot that he is up again and crying for feed.

ACQUIRED

It may be that while feeding he is not in a comfortable position, or his nose is blocked due to secretions or being pushed against the breast. In a bottle-fed baby, the hole in the nipple may be so small that the child tires easily.

Fussy eating habits are more acquired. An anxious mother is more likely to have an anxious fussy eater. Making meal times a battleground can worsen the situation. Often there may be no obvious reason. The child’s nervous system may not have matured enough to realize when his stomach is full. Whatever the reason, it makes the mother tense, which, in turn makes feeding even more difficult. The mother gets frustrated having to feed every half an hour, and the child remains unsatisfied and irritable.

FAMILY INFLUENCE

Your child should eat a more balanced diet. Start by setting a good example. If other members of your family commonly eats lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy products, your kids will learn to eat a good diet. Kids tend to copy their parents, so if you eat well, they are more likely to eat well too. Limit snacks and drinks between meals. Drinking too much liquid can lessen your child's appetite. This will help ensure that your child is hungry enough to eat solid foods. Do not overfeed. Obesity in children is rarely recognised by parents and is a major health problem.

Is your child a fussy eater? (1)

Fourty-five percent (45%) of worried mothers seek doctors’ advice on the childrens’ eating problems. This is not surprising as studies has shown that 52% of toddlers are not hungry at meal times; 42% end meals very quickly; 35% are picky eaters; and 33% have evidence of food selectivity1.

Getting your child to eat healthily amid all the temptations and increasingly competitive society even at childhood can be rather daunting. Infections with various pestilences are on the rise – JE virus, Sudden Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), bird flu (H5N1 virus), dengue - and threatening our children.

There is also increasing awareness that certain nutrients like DHA and taurine can affect the child’s mental progress and helping him to be ahead of his peers. Thus the need to give him enough omega-3 foods besides making sure he eats 5 portions of fruits and vegetables a day.

Food is essential for life; it provides the fuel the child needs for energy, the micronutrients to keep the body functioning; proteins for growth and to make antibodies; and brain lipids for mental development. So a well balanced diet is crucial for a child’s growth and development and has implications for the child in the future, physically, biologically and socially.


1.1. WHAT IS AN EATING PROBLEM?

Eating problems can seriously affect a child’s growth and development. The definition of ‘eating problems’ is the inability or refusal to eat certain foods due to medical, behavioral, psychological or environmental factors1, 2.

The main types of eating problems include3:

Poor appetite
Food refusal
Inappropriate food for age
Extreme or limited food choices



1.2. HOW DOES AN EATING PROBLEM AFFECT THE CHILD?

Whatever the type of problem, the underlying issue is that there is not enough of the essential nutrients being eaten to maximize the developmental potential of the child. If the child’s diet is limited and results in him missing out entire food groups, there could be health implications. Refusal to drink milk and dairy products could result in weak bones and teeth; not eating fruits and vegetables increases the risk of asthma and iron deficiency in childhood can increase the risk of heart disease and certain cancers in the long term.

My article for Tupperware Inspira magazine

Detoxification is based on the principle that illnesses can be caused by the accumulation of toxic substances in the body. These include heavy metals and various chemicals such as pesticides, pollutants, and food additives. Drugs and alcohol have toxic effects on the body. Digestion of food also creates toxic by-products. Some people’s digestive tract becomes unable to digest food properly due to years of overeating and diets high in fat and processed foods and low in fiber. When this happens, food cannot pass through the digestive tract efficiently. Instead of being digested properly or eliminated from the bowel, food can literally rot inside the digestive tract and produce toxic by-products. This state is known as toxic colon syndrome or intestinal toxemia.

The body has natural methods of detoxification. Individual cells detoxify in the lymphatic system. The liver is the main organ for detoxification assisted by the kidneys, intestines and skin. Detoxification therapies try to activate and assist the body’s own detoxification process.

Proper detoxification specialists will do a host of tests of the blood, urine and allergic reactions. They will enact dietary changes, eliminating allergy-causing and unhealthy foods, and emphasizing foods that assist detoxification and healing – low fat, high fibre, vegetarian with a raw food emphasis. Processed foods, alcohol and caffeine are avoided. Nutritional supplements, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, and essential fatty acids are often prescribed here as well as herbal supplements.

For toxic bowel syndrome, herbal laxatives and high fiber foods such as psyllium seeds are given to cleanse the digestive tract. Colonics are used to cleanse the lower intestines.

Lacto-Fiber
Lacto-Fiber contains both soluble fiber to absorb intestinal toxins and insoluble fiber to cleanse the colon. Lacto-fiber also contains important nutrients to prevent colon cancer that results from toxins accumulating in the intestinal tract. It also help rid toxins trapped in the lymphatic system.

Other methods
Certain doctors also provide chelation therapy to rid the body of heavy metals. Some of them also offer colonic lavage to clean out your lower intestine.

Fasting is another major therapy in detoxification. It is one of the quickest ways to eliminate stored toxins in the body and to prompt the healing process. There are various types of fast – liquid fast, juice fast, etc. All in all we should fast regularly to keep healthy.

Speaking in PuDongHua (Chinese)

I did something I never did before and that was to speak in Mandarin in Hong Kong. I can converse but the scientific terms were hard to memorize. Moreover, the subject was on "Live Cell Therapy".

Part4: Caffeine

Depending on preparation, one cup of brewed coffee contains etween 60 and 150 mg of caffeine, instant coffee about 100mg, brewed tea between 20 and 50mg and caffeinated soft drinks. I January 2004 the IOC removed caffeine from its list of banned substances.

Drinking 2.5 cups of percolated coffee (300mf of caffeine) up to 1 hour before exercise extends endurance ; it also improves short duration, high intensity exercise. This is roughly a 5mg/kg of body weight. The ergogenic effects of caffeine are not dose relayed with no additional benefits from caffeine doses above 5m/kg of body weight. The effect also last 5 hours so there is no need to ingest additional dose.

Its precise action is elusive. In the past it has always been attributed to its use of fat in the initial exercise period thus sparing the powerful carbohydrate fuel which can be used later. However, other erogogenic effects includes its enhancement of motoneuronal activity.

There are health warnings with caffeine however - irritability, headaches, insomnia, agitation dehydration etc. With caffeine, ingesting small amounts produces desirable effects, large quantities can create havoc.