Kids & Cholesterol

American Fitness, March, 2001

Fast food is quick and inexpensive. Also, kids like it, so that's often what we feed them. When you consider they are spending more time watching television, playing video games and sitting at computers, it's obvious that we are developing a generation ripe for cardiovascular disease. Researchers say the more fast-food restaurants your community has, the higher your kids' risk.

According to Shawna Nesbitt, M.D., assistant professor of internal medicine and chief of the Lipid Clinic at the University of Michigan Health System, the diets of children older than age 2 should consist of no more than 30 percent fat. The recommended caloric intake for children ages 2 to 9 is 1,600 calories a day and 2,200 per day for ages 9 to 18.

Parents can help lower fat and sodium intake by buying low-fat snacks and foods and limiting their intake quantities. For more information, visit www.americanheart.org/Heart_and_Stroke_A_Z_Guide/cholk.html.>

COPYRIGHT 2001 Aerobics and Fitness Association of America

COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group