Austin, TX (PRWEB) April 01, 2013
Dr. Marta Katalenas, noted pediatrician and author of The Step Up Diet: From Scratch... The Quality, Quantity, and Timing Solution to Childhood Obesity, is advising parents to rethink their use skim milk as tool to combat childhood obesity. Dr. Katalenas notes that whole milk and proper nutrition, along with the quantity, quality, and timing of meals, is essential to a childs diet.
There isnt a single culprit ingredient that has caused the obesity epidemic, but we clearly eat too many carbohydrates since sugar is added to everything, stated Dr. Katalenas. To fight obesity you need proper nutrition, which includes drinking milk three times a day, and you need to consider Q-Q-T: the quality of food, the quantity you serve and the timing of meals.
According to a new research study on childhood obesity in the Archives of Disease in Childhood, milk is a good source of calcium and vitamin D, but low-fat milk may not be useful in promoting weight loss. In the past The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Heart Association recommended that children consume low-fat milk after age two to avoid weight gain, but new research shows that children who drank skim or low-fat milk showed more weight gain than children who drank whole milk.
These findings are no surprise to Dr. Katalenas. She concludes that children who drink whole milk feel fuller, and therefore eat fewer calories in a day than children who drink skim milk. She adds that in addition to calcium for bone development, children also need fat for neural development. The brain is made up of pure cholesterol and needs fat to create the myelin lining of nerves to protect the body from nervous disorders, such as multiple sclerosis.
Some schools offer chocolate milk as an alternative to whole milk, since it contains the same amount of calcium. However, even fat-free chocolate milk contains 27 grams of sugar, which simply substitutes more calories with no nutritional value.
I advise all my patients to drink milk, and there are benefits to the fat in whole milk to protect against neurological disorders, but if they favor low-fat milk, I dont discourage it, stated Dr. Katalenas. However, my advice about nutrition goes far beyond what type of milk to drink. The origin of the obesity epidemic resides in profound changes in our lifestyles and how we make our daily food choices.
About Dr. Marta Katalenas:
Dr. Marta Katalenas is a pediatrician and owner of The Pediatric Center of Round Rock, Texas, and author of The Step Up Diet: From Scratch... The Quality, Quantity, and Timing Solution to Childhood Obesity. Her practice offers a nutrition management program that helps families make the lifestyle changes necessary to promote and maintain good health. Dr. Katalenas is a frequent guest on local television shows and is media resource on childhood obesity and pediatric health issues.
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