Communication with Parents Improves Dietary Habits of Youngsters

A latest study states that college students who communicate with their parents make healthier lifestyle choices.

The research, conducted at Penn State University, says that youngsters eat better and workout more when they communicate more with their parents.

For the study 746 freshmen were questioned on the amount of time they spent with their family through messages, e-mails or talking to them personally. They were asked how often they consumed fruits or vegetables, exercised or indulged in any sort of physical activity.

The researchers found that the children who communicated 30 minutes or more with parents were 14 percent more likely to consume fruits and vegetables and 50 percent more likely to be involved in 30 minutes or more of physical activity. The results appear in the current issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health.

 "Only a third of college students consume a diet that is consistent with national recommendations," says Meg Small, research associate in the Prevention Research Center for the Promotion of Human Development at Penn State.

"In addition, college students' physical activity levels decline from the first semester to their seventh semester. Our research suggests that parents may play an important role in influencing their adolescents to establish behavioral patterns that improve their long-term health and chronic-disease risk."

However, Small said that they do not know what sort of conversations children had with their parents that had such positive effect on their behavior.

"It is likely that communication with parents has both direct and indirect effects on college students' eating and physical activity behaviors," says Small. "Parents may directly remind students to eat a variety of healthy foods and engage in physical activity. Indirectly, communication with parents may remind students someone cares about their health and well-being, and that may motivate them to take better care of themselves."