Heart Health Begins EARLY
The status of your health as an adult began in your mother’s womb. That seems remarkable, yet completely sensible. As our bodily systems develop from the very beginning, they grow and strengthen in progression from what came before. There is ongoing evidence that childhood health is more than just the number of missed school days — it is an indicator of adult health.
For heart health, for example, begin good habits in infancy, according to this recent report by HealthDay News:
The value of adopting a heart-healthy diet early in life is being demonstrated in an ongoing study in Finland, where researchers in 1990 began following more than 1,000 infants who were 7 months old at the time.
Half of the children were allowed an unrestricted diet, while the parents of the other half were directed to feed their children a diet low in saturated fats — the unhealthy fats that are typically found in foods from animals. Those parents also received dietary and lifestyle counseling twice a year.
The benefits of the low-saturated fat diets and counseling were revealed in tests done when the children were 11. Ultrasound images of the boys’ arteries found that those on the low-saturated fat diets had blood vessels that were better able to widen, allowing blood to flow more freely.
No such difference was seen for the girls, a finding reported for females in some adult studies. “The reason for this is not known, but one explanation could be estrogen,” said study co-investigator Dr. Olli Raitakari, chief physician at the Turku University Central Hospital. Estrogen, the female sex hormone, influences the number of receptors for LDL cholesterol, the “bad” kind that clogs arteries, he said.
Still, the findings for the boys were very encouraging, Raitakari said, and the researchers believe the benefits for girls will eventually prove true. The study will continue until the children turn 20.
We all certainly want to give our children the gift of good health. We truly can start giving that gift right now!
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