Unhealthy diets may affect a child’s intelligence

Research suggests there is a link between diet and our children’s brain development.

The researchers speculated that the quality of a child's diet at age three might be associated with intelligence later on because the brain is growing at its fastest rate during the first three years of life.

Children eating a diet of high fat, sugar and processed foods appear to have a decreased IQ later on in their childhood life. The links were found even after taking into account a broad range of factors that included mother's level of education, social class and duration of breast feeding.

The ongoing study of families involved recording the eating habits of around 4,000 children aged between three, four, seven and eight and a half for The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). A final IQ test was taken by each child at eight and a half years old.

Diets were put onto specific groups; Processed diets - high in fat, sugar and convenience foods, traditional diets - meat, poultry, potato and vegetables and the health conscious - salads, fruit, pasta, rice, vegetables and fish.

The researchers speculated that the quality of a child's diet at age three might be associated with intelligence later on because the brain is growing at its fastest rate during the first three years of life.

Dr Pauline Emmett who was responsible for the research at Bristol University, said: "Brain development is much faster in early life, it's when it does most of its growing. It seems that what happens afterwards is less important.

"It is possible that good nutrition during this period may encourage optimal brain growth."

Although the relationship between diet and IQ was very strong, the impact was quite small. Processed foods were linked with IQs only a few points lower. Investigators added "further research is required to help determine the true effects of early diet on intelligence."

The findings from the research were published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.