Food for Thought- the Impact of Childrens Eating Habits on Their Health

Your Child The Grandparent

At the turn of the century the life expectancy of an urban dweller in the UK was around 50 years, today our children may have a life expectancy as high as 100 years. Medical advances may preserve them through illness for longer. They will spend more of their lives as older people, but possible have more health problems associated with unhealthy living. The way that we raise them will impact upon the quality of their lives, and patterns set today may protect them from a lingering but unhealthy older age.

At the moment 60% of people over the age of 50 are taking four or more prescription drugs. A majority of this medication could be made unnecessary through adherence to a healthier lifestyle, changing eating and exercise habits. If we educate our children to be active every day, and to eat a balanced diet ,we are instilling in them habits which should last a life time, and make that lifetime last longer.

The western lifestyle encourages over consumption of calories from low-quality unhealthy foods high in fat, salt and sugar. Heart Disease, Cancers and Strokes are the biggest killers. A huge proportion of these deaths can be avoided by changing eating and exercise habits. These are also concerns that bad health is impacting on the fertility of westerners and that our children could suffer infertility along side ill-health.

Obesity is expected to overtake these problems as the West