Study Younger siblings promote good health and prevent obesity

Children with young siblings are less likely to become obese
Smaller siblings can be very stressful in childhood. For example, they destroy the toys of their older siblings and make them often in trouble. If you are one of those people who are familiar with such situations, you may have every reason to be grateful to your youngest relatives. An American study now found that younger siblings can be good for our health. Children with younger siblings are less likely to develop obesity.

Childhood siblings often argue and cause so many stressful situations. Often the older siblings are annoyed and annoyed about the behavior of the younger child. However, all this stress could also have positive side effects. Before entering first grade, older siblings are less likely to develop obesity if they have younger siblings in their family. This is what American scientists came up with in a recent study. The researchers published their work in the journal "Pediatrics".

Younger siblings can prevent obesity in their older brothers or sisters. (Image: Alexandr Vasilyev / fotolia.com)

Children without siblings have a significantly higher likelihood of being obese
Are you one of those people who were "terrorized" for years by younger siblings in their childhood? If so, perhaps you should be grateful to them. Perhaps growing up with younger siblings has saved them from obesity. University of Michigan scientists have now found that the likelihood of obesity in children without younger siblings is three times higher. Children in the first grade with younger siblings have a much lower likelihood of developing obesity, the scientists emphasize.

Lifestyle changes can be beneficial to your health
The study does not say that a single child automatically develops obesity or that the birth of a younger child, the older siblings can always protect against obesity and obesity, explain the researchers. But the findings suggest that the changes in lifestyle that the family undergoes through an additional child have a positive impact on health, adds study author Dr. Julie Lumeng from the University of Michigan. Perhaps younger siblings in the family may make older children more active because, for example, they run around more and play with their younger siblings.

Parents should not overly control the eating habits of their children
Families with a small child may also go out into the fresh air more often and are therefore more in parks and outdoor playgrounds. Older siblings may also watch less television and move more because their younger siblings support increased activity, the researchers speculate. The behavior of the family at the table and the meals themselves, could also be different by a second child. The parents of just one child are sometimes too focused on the child's diet and constantly monitor what and how much their child eats, explain the experts. That could then lead to bad eating habits. If parents use restrictive practices (keeping food away from children) or exert too much pressure to get children to eat right, they are at an increased risk of overweight, say the experts. A new child often relaxes the control of eating behavior in the older child. So this child could start to regulate his eating habits himself. Such a self-regulation can lead to a healthier weight, add the physicians.

Countless factors affect the weight of children
The current study had seen nearly 700 children from their birth to the age of 6 years. At the age of 6, children without siblings had a weight that was higher than their average weight - compared with children who had a younger brother or sister, the researchers report. However, there were also limitations in the study, such as the lack of objective birth weight controls and information on events such as divorce, relocation, or job loss in the family, the physicians explain. These factors can also influence the likelihood that our children will become obese, the authors explain. There are many other factors that can make obesity more likely in a child. Parental weight, maternal weight gain or diabetes, breastfeeding, early introduction of solid foods, shared meals, bedtime routines, TV time, and physical activity all influence the risk of obesity, the researchers add. More research was needed to understand why children with little siblings often get harder. (As)