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Can Food Affect Your Child's Behaviour?

This page was reviewed or revised on Thursday, October 22, 2009 1:25 PM

Do comments like these sound familiar?

“You can tell when my kids have eaten sugar. It makes them bounce off the walls!”

“My child gets so hyper when he eats anything with food additives.”

Many attempts have been made to understand children’s behaviour. Some people wonder if food plays a role. Read on for more information.

 

Sugar and Hyperactivity

 Some parents and teachers complain that children get “hyper” from eating too much sugar. However, there is no scientific evidence to show that sugar is linked with hyperactivity, poor behaviour or learning difficulties in children. In fact, recent studies have shown that sugar tends to have a calming influence.

Children may indeed become over-excited and active on occasions where lots of sugary foods are served, such as birthday parties or family celebrations. This is likely a result of typical childhood excitement, not their sugar intake. Being tired or changes in routine may also be responsible.

Some very active children are labelled as hyperactive. However, actual hyperactivity in children is characterized by restlessness, irritability, aggressiveness and short attention span and is difficult to diagnose.

Nevertheless, it does make sense to monitor a child’s sugar intake for other reasons:

• Foods high in sugar may replace more nutritious foods needed for growth.
• Sticky, sugary foods, especially when eaten between meals, can contribute to dental cavities.
• High sugar foods are often higher in fat and calories. These types of foods can contribute to weight gain.

Food Additives and Other Food Components

In the early 1970’s, Dr. Ben Feingold developed one of the most popular theories linking diet and behaviour. He claimed that artificial colours, flavours, preservatives and salicylates (compounds found in many fruits, some vegetables and a number of other foods) were linked to hyperactivity and learning disorders in children. Feingold recommended a diet free of these substances to treat and prevent hyperactivity.

Studies have found the Feingold diet to be effective only in a small fraction (less than 5%) of hyperactive preschoolers. Many researchers believe that any noted improvement in the behaviour of children on this diet results from the special attention given to them rather than the diet itself.

Caffeine

Caffeine is found in coffee, tea, cola-type beverages, iced tea, chocolate and many headache or cold medicines. Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system. Caffeine also makes the body lose water, which can contribute to dehydration and affect mood.

Children can become excited, restless, irritable and unable to sleep if they get too much caffeine. The caffeine in a can of cola can have a much stronger impact on children than on adults because of their smaller body size and because they are not used to its effects. Like adults, some children may also be more sensitive to caffeine.

Health Canada recommends that children’s caffeine intakes do not exceed the following:

 4-6 years 45 mg/day*
7-9 years 62.5 mg/day*
10-12 years 85.5 mg/day*

* Using the recommended intake of 2.5 milligrams of caffeine per kilogram of body weight per day and based on average body weights of children.

To help limit caffeine intake, try offering water, milk and fruit or vegetable juices instead of cola-type beverages or iced tea.
 

Sources of Caffeine

Item	Amount of item	Caffeine content
Cola-ttype beverage can	355 mL	36-46 mg
Iced Tea can	355 mL	25 mg
Cocoa beverage	250 mL	6 mg
Coffee	250 mL	76-179 mg
Tea	250 mL	15-50 mg
Chocolate brownies	42g(1piece)	10 mg
Milk chocolate bar	2 oz/56g	14 mg
Baking chocolate square	1 oz/28g	25-58 mg
Cold relief medication	1 tablet	30 mg

Source: Caffeine and Your Health, Health Canada , 2003.

The Bottom Line

 It is true that children can get very excited at times. Before blaming food additives, sugar or other food components, think about this:

A shortage of sleep, over–stimulation, hunger, too much television, a lack of attention and not getting enough exercise can all have an impact on behaviour.

The best advice is to make sure children:

• get adequate sleep
• have regular meal times
• eat a balanced diet that includes a variety of foods from all four food groups
• participate in plenty of physical activity
• avoid too much caffeine

For a copy of Canada’s Food Guide and Canada’s Physical Activity Guide to Healthy Active Living contact Community Health Services at 519 383-8331.