Nutrition and Health

• Take Steps Now to Prevent Osteoporosis
• Eating Dairy Lowers Systolic Blood Pressure
• Milk - The healthy punch
• Milk, Cheese and Yogurt: The Power of Nine
• Limiting dairy can cause weak bones
• DASH to the Diet - Hypertension and you
• Dairy products and immunity - There is a link
• Milk: What makes it so good for you?
• Calcium: Where else to find it besides milk
• So you're lactose intolerant - What does that mean?

Children

• 'D' ficient teens need more milk
• More Evidence That Milk Makes Bones Stronger
• Drink Milk: Your Kids Are Watching!
• Children and dairy - The earlier the better
• Dairy is key to promoting healthy bones
• Plenty of reasons to smile about flavored milk

Weight Control

• Dairy's role in weight management
• Moderate, regular eating decreases obesity risk
• Calcium enhances weight loss efforts

Health and Nutrition

Children and dairy - the earlier the better

A recent longitudinal study of 70 young children and their mothers compared children's individual food preferences at ages 2 to 3 years, 4 years and 8 years and the mother's personal food preferences when her child was 2 to 3 years and 8 years¹. The study, published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, found that cheese and pizza were among the foods most frequently liked by almost all children and moms. While about 70 percent of children liked dairy foods at all ages, the study found that foods introduced after age 4 were more apt to be disliked than liked. The authors note that mothers influence children's food preferences by not introducing them to foods they personally dislike. Additionally, the authors say one reason why it is difficult to improve children's diet is that food preferences are formed as early as 2 to 3 years of age.

Skinner, J.D., et al. Children's food preferences: a longitudinal analysis. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2002; 102: 1638-1647.

1. Fisher, J., et. al: Maternal influences on the trade-off between milk and soft drinks in young girls' diets. Journal of Nutrition. 2001; 131 (2): 246-250.