Talk to any child expert, doctor, or family counsellor, and they will tell you that childhood, especially their first few years, are extremely critical. This is the time when everything about them, from their physiological to psychological, has to be properly developed. It's a period of learning, exploration, and building of their character.
To help children born in low-income families, the government has set up a program called Head Start. Through the Department of Health and Human Services, the government is able to extend education for early childhood, as well as nutrition and health support, from the time they are born until 5 years old. It is the objective of the program that by the time they are ready for a more formal schooling, they are prepared.
In a new study that has just been released in Pediatrics on Monday, January 12, Head Start is doing a lot of help for both parents and children as far as health and nutrition are concerned. In fact, it's preventing childhood obesity.
The research headed by Dr. Julie Lumeng of University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, collected health-related information of more than 40,000 pre-school children in the state. These data covered 8 years from 2005, and about 19,000 of them are under the Head Start program while a little over 5,000 is from Medicaid.
Compared to other children who were on Medicaid or non-Medicaid, at least 33% of those kids prior to being accepted in Head Start were considered to be either overweight or obese.
However, those who were under the Head Start program lost weight more quickly than the other children considered in the study. Kids who were underweight also put on some pounds.
According to Lumeng, there are two possible reasons for the positive outcome on the children's health. One, the nutrition component of the program compels children to follow a healthy diet. Also, they were given time to participate in active play.
