SWEET NEW ADVICE FOR KIDS AND MILK
AUSTRALIAN dietary guidelines are getting an overhaul and it is likely recommendations that call for low fat daiy for kids over two will change.
“This switch from full fat at two has a touch of the dieting mentality which is not what is wanted but there have been calls from paediatric experts to change the guidelines for dairy. The guidelines have been in place since 2013,” Nutrition Australia’s Aloysa Hourigan said.
The news of a guideline shake-up comes as a new world-first Australian study shows that full fat milk is just as healthy as low fat for children.
Researchers at Edith Cowan University (ECU) found that there were no differences in obesity or cardiovascular health in kids who had low fat dairy products rather than full fat. For the first time, the study comprehensively measured the children’s obesity, body composition, blood pressure and blood biomarkers to monitor the effects of their dairy consumption.
The landmark study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
“This study is timely as we consider dairy intake. The switch to low fat dairy at two was introduced to help fight obesity so it is interesting that the research shows full fat has no impact on obesity. Parents must remember that it is portions that are important. Children aged two to three should have only one-and-a-half portions of dairy daily,” Ms Hourigan said.
ECU’s Associate Professor Therese O’Sullivan led the investigation into the consumption of full fat dairy products in children as part of the Milky Way study.
Although children consuming low fat dairy took in less calories and fat from dairy, they naturally turned to other foods and drinks to make up this difference.