Inculcating proper food habit is a most difficult task faced by the parents and the new study says that early years of a child hold key to lifelong dietary behavior.
Kate Storey and colleagues from the University of Alberta found pre-schoolers with a low-income family background and children who watched TV or played video games for long hours consumed unhealthy drinks and junk food.
Parents of about 1,800 pre-schoolers were interviewed to examine the food habits of their children.
"Dietary behavior and intake patterns are influenced heavily by what happens in the first few years with children, and they maintain those patterns throughout childhood and into adolescence," said study co-author John C. Spence, associate dean of research in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation, in a news release. "In addition to basic health education, this study identifies a need in how we're dealing with poverty and recognizing there's more to poverty than simply the number of dollars people have. Many families live in places that might not be very healthy for them and, as a result, they make unhealthy food choices."
More than half of the children from poorer neighborhood, aged between four and five (54.5 percent) were found drinking at least one soda per week compared to the children coming from higher socio-economic backgrounds.
Pre-schoolers from low- income families were found consuming more fruit juice by decreasing their milk intake.
"If you're drinking a lot of soda and fruit juice, that can displace consumption of water and milk, which are important not just for quenching thirst, but for developing healthy bones and teeth, and health and wellness in general," study co-author Kate Storey, a registered dietitian and assistant professor in the School of Public Health, said in a statement.
The unhealthy eating habits were found more common among children who spend more time on TV and video games. Very few children were found adding enough healthy items like fruits and vegetables to their meal list. Children from low and medium income neighborhoods were also found consuming potato chips, fries, candies and chocolate more.
Children going to school were found less dependent on junk food.
Families may be depending up on the high-calorie foods for convenience and to save money, investigators said.
