Recent scientific research suggests that children who eat a Mediterranean diet, particularly when high in nuts and vegetables, may experience modest weight gain. However, these effects become less significant when considering one’s body mass index (BMI) at the onset.
The findings of this dietary research shed light on the potential connections between what children eat and their risk of becoming overweight. Interestingly, part of the study discovered that children’s adherence to the Mediterranean diet appears to protect them against huge increases in their standardized body mass index (zBMI). However, these effects become less prominent and statistically significant when considering the initial, or baseline zBMI.
The research seems to highlight the potential power of specific foods found within the Mediterranean diet such as cheese or yogurt, nuts, vegetables that could lower the risk of substantial zBMI increases in children – although the overall effect remains small.
Childhood obesity is becoming an increasingly vital public health concern, with rates blowing up worldwide. In Spain, childhood obesity along with overweight problems have remained over 30% for the previous two decades. Worryingly, the latest data proposes that nearly 41% of kids between the ages of six and nine were overweight and that 17% were obese.
The Mediterranean diet, acclaimed for its emphasis on consuming a high number of plant-based foods like fruits, legumes, nuts, vegetables, and whole grains, combined with moderate intakes of fish and dairy products may help in maintaining a balanced diet.
The perpetuation of childhood obesity into teenage years and, subsequently, adulthood, is very common. Research estimates stipulate that 55% of children who have obesity may remain obese in their teenage years, and a whopping 80% of obese teenagers will carry their obesity forward into their adult life.
Unhealthy diets and a lack of physical activities are leading factors that contribute to kids suffering from obesity. However, the Mediterranean diet is considered a balanced one and can be influential when it comes to children’s weight management. The diet is rich in antioxidants, fibers, plant-based proteins, and healthy fats. However, there is a need for more evidence to comprehend the impact of the Mediterranean diet on childhood obesity fully.
The research studied 1,389 children between eight to ten years of age from different regions in Spain, from 2012 to 2014, with regular check-ups after every 15 months. Through a combination of different questionnaires and measurements, researchers analyzed the relationship between the kids’ adherence to the Mediterranean diet and the changes in their zBMI.
The observational data recorded at the beginning of the research showed 9.4% kids had low adherence to the Mediterranean diet, 49.5% had medium adherence, and 41.2% had high adherence. An important conclusion of the study was that certain foods within the Mediterranean diet, when consumed in specific quantities, can significantly reduce the chances of high increases in zBMI.
The research also concluded that eating nuts two to three times a week and daily consumption of dairy products like cheese or yogurt along with cooked or fresh vegetables can significantly help. Children who had high or medium adherence to the Mediterranean diet at the start of the research were less prone to high increases in zBMI.
However, the direction of zBMI seemed to decrease when the adherence to the Mediterranean diet increased by one point at the beginning. This relationship weakened and was statistically insignificant when zBMI at the outset was taken into consideration.
It’s also interesting to note that there were no significant non-linear relationships between the adherence to the diet and changes in zBMI. However, substantial changes to zBMI were not observed in children who adhered to the diet and the prevalence of an excessive increase in weight.
While several studies have observed a link between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and lower BMI, the exact impact on childhood obesity remains unclear. More long-term studies of higher quality are needed to provide more robust evidence about the potential of the Mediterranean diet in reducing childhood obesity.
