News

20th April 2004

Children of working mums have better diets

Newly published research has found that children of working mothers have healthier diets than those whose mothers stay at home.

The study, carried out by the University of Glasgow, investigated the eating and lifestyle habits of over 2000 children and their parents.

They found that children of stay-at-home mums were more likely to eat unhealthy snacks.

The researchers said the findings have turned 'on its head' the belief that working mothers always dished up less healthy foods.

The study asked children what they ate at mealtimes as well as whether or not they ate sweets, cakes, chocolate and fizzy drinks.

Parents were asked about the mother's work and qualifications.

The researchers found 63 per cent of children whose mothers were at home full-time were classed as eating 'less healthily', compared to 52 per cent of those whose mothers worked full-time.

Boys - and children living in more deprived areas - were more likely to eat less healthily and the researchers believe that some of the difference could be due to working mothers living in better off areas.

Dr Helen Sweeting, from the Medical Research Council's Social and Public Health Sciences Unit at the University of Glasgow, said the study contradicted earlier work which suggested children who eat more meals with their families ate more healthily.

"Our finding of no relationship is surprising.

"The study, which is one of very few to look at maternal employment and children's diets, turns on its head the stereotype of working mothers dishing out ready-made less healthy meals and suggests that children of working mothers might be fed more healthily.

"But the factors which had the strongest relationships with poorer diet were living in a deprived area and having a mother with fewer qualifications."

Dr Sweeting added that one of the reasons working mothers give their children healthier diets could be due to guilt at leaving them.

Dr Hannah Theobald of the British Nutrition Foundation said, "Studies looking at the association between non-working and working mothers and children's' diets tend to be inconsistent.

"More research needs to be done in this area to draw firm conclusions. We do know that healthier meals tend to be consumed if the family eats together as one unit.

"It is worth bearing in mind that this study was conducted 10 years ago; family dynamics and diets in particular may well have changed in that time."

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