Boredom eating starts when you’re FOUR as study finds kids eat 79% more when they’re not entertained

According to new research, children from the age of four eat more when they are bored.

A new study has shown that young children eat 79 percent more calories when they are bored, compared to when they are in a neutral mood.

Researchers from Aston University in Birmingham asked 119 parents about the feeding habits they used with their child and about their child’s temperament.

Children aged four and five took part in a series of everyday scenarios in which their mood was assessed – one of which was boring.

They were given a standard meal and had to indicate when they were full.

Children aged four and five took part in a series of everyday scenarios in which their mood was assessed – one of which was boring

Analysis showed that children who were bored ate an extra 94 calories even though they were already full, compared to children in a neutral mood who ate just 53 extra calories.

They also found that when parents reported frequently using food to calm their child’s emotions, and when their child was highly emotional, the child ate five times more calories when bored.

Dr. Rebecca Stone, who led the study, said: ‘If children eat that many more calories during one moment of boredom induced in a laboratory (a four-minute period), given that boredom is a commonly experienced emotion in children, the likelihood is for excessive caloric intake in response to boredom for a day, a week or a year, is potentially very important in a food-rich environment.’

She said the experience of boredom is important to the development of a child’s sense of self and creativity, and does not recommend that children avoid boredom.

Instead, she suggests that children should learn to experience boredom without turning to food, and that parents can try to divert their child’s attention from food when they are bored.

Professor Claire Farrow, who also worked on the research, said: ‘It is widely believed that children tend to reach for food when they are bored, and that some children do this more often than others.

‘This is the first study in which this is tested experimentally in the laboratory. Although there appear to be individual differences between children in their eating behavior when they are bored, it is useful to know that the dietary habits adults adopt around food can determine the likelihood of this happening.

‘While it’s tempting to use food as a tool to comfort children, research suggests that emotional feeding can lead to more emotional eating in the future.

‘It is important that parents and carers are aware that this short-term solution may pose future challenges.’

The findings have been published in the journal Food Quality and Preference.

WHAT SHOULD A BALANCED DIET LOOK LIKE?

Meals should be based on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, preferably whole grains, according to the NHS

• Eat at least 5 portions of varied fruit and vegetables every day. All fresh, frozen, dried and canned fruits and vegetables count

• Basic meals on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, preferably whole wheat

• 30 grams of fiber per day: This is the same as eating all of the following: 5 servings of fruits and vegetables, 2 whole-grain cereal cookies, 2 thick slices of whole-grain bread, and a large baked potato with the skin still on

• Provide some dairy or dairy alternatives (such as soy drinks) and choose lower fat and lower sugar options

• Eat some beans, legumes, fish, eggs, meat and other proteins (including 2 portions of fish per week, one portion of which is fatty)

• Choose unsaturated oils and spreads and consume them in small quantities

• Drink 6-8 cups/glasses of water per day

• Adults should have less than 6 g of salt and 20 g of saturated fat for women or 30 g for men per day

Source: NHS Eatwell Guide