Young children may make parents less fit
Apr-16-2011

Could kids be to blame for new parents' bad health habits?
A study found that mothers of young children were heavier and ate more calories, sugary drinks and fatty foods than childless women. Dads and moms in the study were less active than their peers without kids.
Sheri Lee Schearer, 34, says the results reflect her life with a 5-month-old son. Before, when she worked as a paralegal, she had time to make a spinach salad or go out for one. Now, as a stay-at-home mom in southern New Jersey, she grabs whatever is easiest and quickest.
"I often find that his needs come before mine," she said. "Do I get to the gym? No. Do I eat always healthy? No."
Quick, easily prepared foods are often high in fat and calories. Parents who choose these foods may end up serving them to their children, perpetuating a cycle of unhealthy eating, the study authors said.
"This isn't a study about blame," said co-author Jerica Berge, a University of Minnesota researcher. "This is about identifying ... a very high-risk time period" for parents that doctors should be aware of so they can offer solutions, she said.
That may include diet advice, parent-child exercise classes, or just getting parents to take walks with their kids, the researchers said.

Read the rest of the article right here: http://health.yahoo.net/news/s/ap/us_med_parents/fitness

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