According to a new study, children's diets affect their parents' cardiovascular risk.
Cardiovascular diseases occupy a major place in public morbidity and mortality, especially in Bulgaria. They are the result of many factors and in addition to genetic predisposition, lifestyle is also important for their manifestation. It is difficult to determine the share of each of the factors in the occurrence of these diseases.
It has been proven that the level of cholesterol in the blood is a laboratory indicator with a particularly high diagnostic and prognostic value and its control is one of the main pillars of the therapy and prevention of cardiovascular accidents.
The European Society of Cardiology reports a curious study with even more curious results:
Does children's nutrition affect the health of their parents?
The study took 20 years. Between 1989 and 1992, about 1,000 families with newborns were selected, which were randomly divided into two groups equally. The first group received detailed advice, while the second was a control group.
Parents in the first group received at least one tower a year, for a period of 20 years, to consult a nutritionist about what their child's diet should be. The children themselves, after reaching the age of 7, also received such advice on their own, separately from their parents.
The main focus of this intervention in eating habits was to limit saturated fats and increase the intake of unsaturated fats . The control group did not receive such advice.
Great results
Against the background of the study, parents were tested annually for weight, blood pressure, serum lipids, blood sugar and insulin. The results of the parents in the first group showed lower levels of total cholesterol as well as dangerous LDL-cholesterol compared to those of the parents in the control group.
It turns out that long-term nutrition counseling aimed at children has a beneficial effect on parents. It is believed that in the family the food on the table is common and this makes it easier for adults to choose healthy.