For most of people who live in a bustling city where life is fast, fast food is usually something they turn to during these busy days. However, Living in a neighborhood where there is greater area of fast food outlets may affect bone development in early childhood. This is according to a first study to investigate the connection between the food environment of the neighborhood and the bone development in the first 6 years of life.
Researchers from the University of Southampton concluded that if this theory is confirmed in the future studies, and then there would be a need to reduce the access to fast food outlets. That way there will be benefits for childhood and long term bone development. The team found that having more healthy option for food in the neighborhood is connected to higher bone mass in young children.
The study, used data on 1,107 children that was collected in the Southampton Women's Survey. This is a research project that aims to learn about the dietary and lifestyle factors that influence the health of women and their children. In the study they compared the bone mineral density and bone mineral content of children at birth, and then at age 4 or 6, to the number of supermarkets, healthy specialty stores and fast food outlets in their neighborhood.
After collecting all these data, it showed that neighborhoods with a higher number of fast food outlets are connected to newborns lower bone mineral density and bone mineral. However, this was not significant at age 4 and 6. Contrasting to the findings above, the team noted that having more healthy options in the neighborhood was connected to children having higher bone mineral density at age 4 and 6.
Coauthor Cyrus Cooper, professor of rheumatology and director of the Medical Research Council Life course Epidemiology Unit at Southampton suggest that the mothers and children who are exposed to more healthy food environments can maximize childhood bone development through the quality of the maternal diet and dietary choices during childhood.
He said that if the study is confirmed then improving the food environment could benefit children's bone development. There had been initiatives and campaigns to improve the food environment in some parts of the UK. Local planning regulations do not allow fast food outlets within 400 meters of schools. Research shows that having a balanced diet with adequate amounts of fruits, vegetables, protein, calcium and vitamin D helps develop healthy bones throughout life.
