Study Reveals Why Kids Choose Unhealthy Snacks

CINCINNATIWhen it comes to understanding why some kids choose snack foods over healthier options like fruit, attitudes, relationships, intentions and personal behavior control all factor into the answer, according to a new study published in the journal International Quarterly of Community Health Education.

Researchers at the University of Cincinnati investigated factors that could help predict childrens snack choices. The study focused on 167 fourth-and-fifth-grade elementary schoolchildren in the Midwest over a 24-hour reporting period. Participants were asked to report all snack foods and drinks that they had eaten in a 24-hour period. The information was then entered into the USDA National Nutrient Database to calculate the consumption of high-calorie snacks as well as calories from fruits and vegetables.

They found snacking represented a large part of the childrens daily calorie intake. Overall, the group reported consuming an average of approximately 300 calories from high-calorie, low-nutrition foods, such as chips, candy and cookiesnearly 17% of their daily caloric needs. They reported eating only 45 calories from fruits and vegetables combined.

The survey examined a number of behaviors in relation to snacking, such as whether the children thought that choosing lower-calorie snacks was a good idea, whether they were confident in knowing how to choose lower calorie snacks, and if they felt any social pressure from parents, teachers or friends in choosing lower calorie snack foods. The study found that intentions (stemming from attitude, social connections and behavioral control) predicted the childrens direction toward healthy or unhealthy snacking.

The study found some significant differences in snack choices among gender and ethnicity. Girls reported eating more high-calorie snacks (348.3 calories) than boys (238.8 calories). Black children reported consuming the least high-calorie snacks (221.6 calories), compared with Hispanic children (297.6 calories), Caucasian children (282.3 calories) and Asian children (280.8 calories). The Hispanic and Asian children also reported consuming more of the healthier fruit and vegetable snacks than the Caucasian and black children.

According to the researchers, part of the increases in childhood snacking could stem from the growing number of children who skip breakfast. Higher calorie snacks such as chips and cookies are less filling, making it easier to over consume compared with higher-fiber fruits and vegetables.