Is pizza making our children fat?
Most youngsters and a lot of adults are enthusiastic about pizza pie, with about one fifth of school-age kids consuming at least one slice on any given day. When they are eating pizza, it comprises roughly a quarter of the day’s calories. And when was the last time you saw a teenager stop with just one slice?
Pizza Is High in Calories, Low in Nutrients
If it were a healthful dish, this wouldn’t be much of a worry. But most pizza is made with white flour rather than whole grains, and it often contains too much salt and fat.
The investigators writing in the journal Pediatrics analyzed data from four of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, ranging from 2003 to 2010. Teens eating pizza took in an additional 230 calories, 5 grams of fat and nearly 500 mg of sodium on the days they ate pizza.
Pizza Is a Special Treat
The researchers recommend that parents consider pizza in the same category as soft drinks: something to be enjoyed as a very occasional treat rather than a regular meal. The lead author offered:
“There’s often a world of difference between doing what’s right and doing what’s easy,” he added. “By leaning on pizza because we can, we’re normalizing a culture of convenience that isn’t in our children’s or their health’s best interest.”
