The Cronkite News – Susan Horowitz
When Christina Barth was a dietitian for an elite youth soccer team, she encountered many different eating patterns among, what she described as, the “mini-professional athletes”. “I saw athletes that ate terribly, but they still performed pretty well. But I would always tell them, “Just imagine if you were eating really well how much better you’d be able to perform’,” said the registered dietitian who specializes in child nutrition. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in five school-aged children are obese, a number that has tripled since the 1970s. Children who compete in youth sports are more likely to be at a healthy weight, according to a 2012 study done by the American Academy of Pediatrics. (more)