New US research has shown emotions can affect the food choices of children as young as 4½, with feelings of happiness or sadness influencing which snacks children choose and how much they eat.
Carried out by psychologist Dr. Shayla C. Holub at the University of Texas at Dallas along with Dr. Cin Cin Tan at University of Michigan's Center for Human Growth and Development, the study looked at how mood affected the snack choice of 91 children aged 4½ to 9 years old.
Participants were placed into one of three mood conditions -- happy, sad, or neutral, with the researchers using clips from Disney's "The Lion King" to elicit the three feelings.
After observing the children's snack consumption in each condition, the pair found that children appeared to engage in emotional eating.
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Children at 4 1/2 years old don't make a lot of food choices. It's whatever the parents buy and is available at home. The parents should be making the decision to have healthy food available for the kids to choose from.
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