Recent rat studies have helped scientists better understand the connection between taste and calorie consumption. It seems that early on, in rodents at least, rats learn by taste that certain foods provide varying levels of calories. So when young rats were fed low-calorie foods they tended to overeat, because their bodies weren't receiving the proper information. Adolescent rats who were not affected by the low-calorie foods, leading researchers to conclude that this is something that develops in childhood.From this research, scientists concluded that human children may similarly be affected if fed low-calories foods at a young age. Because childhood obesity and weight is such a concern in our society today, parents may be tempted to feed these "diet" options to kids, but that practice may just backfire on them in the long run. Teaching kids how to balance their foods and eat proper portion sizes seems like a better way to teach them good nutrition for life. What do you think?
