More fat linked to less weight in kids study

According to the Swedish Research Council, higher intake of fats is associated with lower body weight. The research also correlated higher BMI with higher sugar intake. Researchers said that more studies are planned to investigate if obesity was being caused by an early increase in insulin, and not fat. The dissertation study focussed on 182 healthy four-year-olds in Gothenburg and examined eating habits and lifestyles. Twenty per cent of the children were classified as being overweight based on their body mass index. Diets, socio-economic, lifestyle and health questionnaires were completed by the parents of the children, and analysis of the children's body build showed that weight increases was a result of the body storing more fat, but those who ate the most fat were not the ones who weighed most. Instead, children who ate the most "junk food" were the most overweight, reports lead Dietitian Haglund Garemo. Startlingly, a fourth of all energy requirements of the children was coming from "junk food" (candy, ice cream, cookies, and sweet beverages).

According to Garemo, "every third child in the study ate far too little unsaturated fat, above all too little omega-3. These children had significantly higher body weight. This supports other studies that show that obese children have shortages of omega-3," she said.

Steve - this study is not saying to load up on unhealthy saturated fat. What it is saying, something that we have echoed for years, is that excess carbohydrate consumption from refined grains and junk food is the main obesity indicator, not high fat intake. There have been several studies like this that have come to the same conclusions within the last year. Another major discovery in this study relates to the children's scant consumption of unsaturated fats, in particular, omega-3.