More than 50 percent of Taiwanese schoolchildren consume excessive fat and cholesterol but insufficient calcium and dietary fiber in their daily diets, according to a study released yesterday by the Child Health Promotion Society of the Republic of China.
The study was based on a survey of 2,500 elementary school students around the country between 2001 and 2002.
It was found that fat intake as a source of calories exceeded the recommended 30 percent benchmark in approximately half of the schoolchildren.
Also, cholesterol intake by 50 percent of girls and 70 percent of boys exceeded the recommended daily allowance of 300mg, with approximately one-quarter of the children even seeing their cholesterol intake exceeded by 400mg.
Ninety-eight percent of the children consumed only 400mg to 600mg of calcium daily, which is less than the recommended daily allowance of 700mg to 1,000mg.
Eighty percent of the children consumed only 12g to 18g of dietary fiber daily, which is lower than the recommended 22g.
According to Lin Yi-chin (
Compared with a similar study conducted 10 years ago, this study shows that the levels of cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and triglyceride in school children have risen significantly, which is an alert for cardiovascular diseases, Lin said.
She warned that long-term insufficient calcium intake in children could hamper their bone development and lead to serious problems such as bone fractures and osteoporosis.
Meanwhile, insufficient fiber intake has caused constipation in more than one-third of the school children, she pointed out.
In addition to adopting low-fat and low-salt cooking, parents should provide their children with more dairy and soybean products, whole grains and deep-green vegetables to improve their nutrition, she said.
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