Children Gain More Weight During Summer Months, Says Study

Children are likely to gain weight during summer months, says a new study. The reason being that kids often struggle to follow a healthy diet during vacation.

The research also suggested that those who depend on school-assisted lunch programs are more prone to obesity than the ones who do not. Also, weekend diets were found to be worse than the ones on weekdays.

For the study, researchers observed a group of children between the age group of 8-12 for six years. While 50% of the participants were girls, 49% of the children were non-white and 25% of the kids belonged to food-insecure households.

Easier access to snacks, more screen time, more sedentary time and not following a fixed daily routine was found to be the main culprits behind the weight gain.

How to prevent weight gain during summer months?

Experts urged all the parents to keep track of everything that their children have access to. The researchers also urged the parents to strictly follow a meal schedule and set a good example for the kids by eating healthy.

The study even suggested parents include more fruits and vegetables in their daily diet in order to reverse the effect. The researchers then said the kids must reduce the intake of sugary drinks in summer.

Instead of depending on sweetened juices, teas and sodas, children must drink lot of water, Nutritionist Reyna Franco told CBS New York. According to her, kids can also have flavored club sodas if they find it hard to drink plain water.

The study, titled Diet Quality and Fruit, Vegetable, and Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption by Household Food Insecurity among 8- to 12-Year-Old Children during Summer Months, was conducted by Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.