Researchers in Finland have discovered a link between early childhood nutrition and reading performance in school.They say variety with an emphasis on grains, fruits and veggies is key to the development of cognitive skills at a stage wheres kids need to be at the top of their game…
A better diet in the early learning years can mean better
performance in reading and other skills.
A joint report by two Finnish universities concludes that a kid’s diet during the early school years is crucial to the development of fundamental skills such as reading. The study was conducted over a three-year period and involved 161 kids from grades one to three.
Central to the findings are the so-called Baltic Sea Diet and the official Finnish government nutrition recommendations. Both of these protocols are high in vegetables, fruit, fish, whole grain and unsaturated fats, and low in red meat, sugary products, and saturated fats.
Study spokesman Dr. Eero Haapala, from the University of Eastern Finland and the University of Jyväskylä, also told reproters: “Another significant observation is that the associations of diet quality with reading skills were […] independent of many confounding factors, such as socio-economic status, physical activity, body adiposity and physical fitness.” That lends the findings all the more scientific validity.
So…
This finding just reinforces the importance of good early childhood nutrition. Perhaps most important is the emphasis on fresh foods including fruits and veggies as well as whole grains. And who could argue with the recommendation to limit processed, sugary foods and red meat?
Healthy body, healthy mind. Just makers sense! For all of us!
~ Maggie J.