| Subject: Are we a rare breed??/ |
Author:
Beth
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Date Posted: 16:58:18 09/01/06 Fri
Author Host/IP: AC82661B.ipt.aol.com/172.130.102.27
I think we're a pretty darned smart group of gals...read this and tell me your thoughts.
Obesity link to poor learning
THURSDAY , 31 AUGUST 2006
By KIM THOMAS
More bad news in the obesity epidemic: girls who are overweight in their early school years are likely to achieve less academically than their peers later in life, new research shows.
The research, examining the link between childhood obesity and academic achievement in primary school, found overweight female children scored significantly lower on tests than their slimmer peers.
The study, published in the International Journal of Obesity, recommended overweight girls be more carefully monitored to ensure their success.
The American researchers found that girls who moved from being normal weight to overweight between kindergarten and end of year three had significantly reduced test scores and teacher ratings of social behaviour.
The findings come as no surprise to child experts in New Zealand who say being overweight can limit children's participation in activities and, as a result, their absorption of information and knowledge.
Nearly one-third of New Zealand children are overweight (21%) or obese (10%), according to a Fight the Obesity Epidemic survey.
Cary Mohlmann, a teacher at Christchurch's AngelCare preschool, said she was not at all surprised by the international research linking obesity to poor educational achievement in females.
Mohlmann said fatter pre-schoolers were less able to participate fully in activities, particularly social interaction or physical play, and tended to develop self-esteem issues as a result.
"I see self-esteem issues starting at as young as three or four in overweight children," she said.
"Often their social skills are lower than other kids because they can't get in there and participate as much, and their sense of self-worth is often lower."
Mohlmann said she had not noticed that overweight children were slower at learning but said lower self-esteem often meant children were not as confident at participating in learning activities or were used to being in "deficit".
Obesity Action Coalition executive director Celia Murphy said her group had done a study which showed poor nutrition was linked to poorer academic achievement.
Murphy said while there was a perception that fatter children were often over-nourished, the opposite was often the case as their diets tended to be low in nutrients.
Another factor which might affect obese or overweight children's ability to learn was they were often bullied, or had poorer social skills.
This could led to them being distracted or focusing on things other than the lessons, Murphy said.
Dietician Lea Stening said food – and obese children often ate poorly – could affect learning.
For example, small amounts of protein had been proven to improve the levels of neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine in the brain, reducing fatigue and sustaining working memory under stress.
Last month, Canterbury diabetes specialist Don Beaven told a parliamentary health select committee inquiry into obesity that children should be weighed periodically in schools so weight issues, and related problems, could be tackled early.
Beaven's advice was panned by a school principal representative who said teachers were already responsible for too many things outside reading, writing and arithmetic.
Another study in the International Journal of Obesity, tracked almost 18,000 Britons from childhood to their 40s, and found children who performed poorly at school were more likely to be overweight in later life.
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