The foods you put on your children’s lunch boxes can influence whether they will have the first menstruation early, according to a new research.
Consuming a more inflammatory diet was associated with a 15% higher chance that children have their first menstruation the following month, while a healthier diet reduced the risk by 8%, according to a new study published on Tuesday (6) in the magazine Human Reproduction.
Starting to menstruate early is not just inconvenient – it is an indicative of chronic conditions, according to senior author of the study, Holly Harris, an associate professor of epidemiology at Fred Hutch Cancer Center in Seattle. And the new generations are starting to menstruate earlier and taking longer to have regular cycles.
Early menstruation, which is influenced by both genetic and external factors, is associated with a higher risk of breast cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes in adulthood, according to Harris.
“This can be an important period to reduce the risk of chronic diseases that occur in adulthood,” he adds.
It’s not just about weight
The study used data from over 7,500 children between 9 and 14 years old, participants in the Growing Up Today Study (GUTs). The researchers interviewed the children in 1996 and 2004, with follow -up in 2001 and 2008, respectively.
The researchers measured the diets in two ways: the alternative rate of healthy eating (Alternative Health Eating Index), which evaluates foods and nutrients that predict chronic diseases, and the empirical inflammatory dietary inflammatory food pattern), an index that evaluates the inflammatory potential of the diet.
The study used well -elaborated statistical models to evaluate the relationship between diet quality and age at the beginning of menstruation, according to Zifan Wang, associate researcher at Harvard’s Th -Chan School of Public Health in the Department of Environmental Health. He did not participate in the research.
“Consuming a healthy diet at the end of childhood and early adolescence is associated with a later menarche compared to those that consume a less healthy diet. It is important to highlight that this association was not explained by the impact of the diet on body size,” says Harris.
The previous understanding was that excessive consumption of caloric foods could lead to early menstruation because body fat accumulation signals hormones to start puberty, according to Wang. But the relationship was still observed even when the researchers considered the body mass index (BMI).
This means that childhood obesity is probably not the only factor that influences the link between early menarche and diet – another factor related to inflammatory or unhealthy diet may be contributing, according to Wang.
“Other mechanisms may be possible and deserve additional investigation,” he said.
What to do for your children
Several environmental factors influence the age of onset of menstruation, including exposure to high levels of air pollution and personal care products that may contain chemicals capable of interfering with the endocrine system, Wang explained.
It is difficult to completely eliminate their exposure to their or their child to substances that deregulate the endocrine system, and there are no clear labeling requirements to indicate which products represent this risk, according to Michael Bloom, Global and Community Health Professor at George Mason University College of Public Health in Fairfax, Virginia, in an earlier article.
In the United States, for example, there are reliable online databases available to the public, to look for safer personal care products, such as the Skinsafeproducts.comdeveloped by allergists and dermatologists at Mayo Clinic, and the Skin Deepof the Environmental Working Group, according to Bloom, who also did not participate in the most recent study.
There are guidelines for eating patterns associated with reduced risk of early menstruation. In this study, the researchers classified as healthy diets that included fruits, vegetables, healthy fats, whole grains, walnuts and legumes, Harris explained.
Diets with inflammatory pattern included red and processed meats, refined grains and sugar -sweetened beverages such as soft drinks, processed juices and diet sodas.
“Our findings highlight the need for all children and adolescents to have access to healthy meals, and the importance of morning coffees and school lunches based on evidence,” says Harris.
Changing your child or adolescent’s diet may seem like a difficult task, but small changes make a difference.
“We know that ultra -processed food calories represent about 70% of a teenager’s typical intake,” says Natalie Muth, a pediatrician and nutritionist at Well’s Primary Care Medical Group’s Well Clinic, in San Diego in a one previous report of CNN International. “Any change that reduces the consumption of things like snacks, cookies and soft drinks, and increases the intake of fruits and vegetables, is already a great victory.”
This content was originally published in eating badly can increase risk of menstruating ahead of time, says study on CNN Brazil.
Source: CNN Brasil
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