PERSONA
Importance of Nutrition for Improving Academic Score
NEWSCOPE
RESEARCH
ISSUES
WELL-BEING
TRENDS
THEME
By Kanupriya Khanna
I
n today’s times,when exceptional intelligence or gifted child prodigies receive media attention, and 100% cut-off marks are projected as achievable targets; 95% marks in board exams are considered average. Children today are not only having to deal with peer pressure, and body image issues; but also, the pressure of scoring very high grades to get through a good college in their chosen fields. With mind-boggling competition, everyone wants their children to be exceptional achievers. It is no surprise that the foremost concern of most parents is pertaining to the academic performance of their children. NUTRITION AND COGNITIVE HEALTH A child belonging to the lower socio16
Volume 4 | Issue 1 | January-March 2019
economic status, not only has to struggle with lack of educational opportunities, but also lack of healthy nutrition. This child will most likely go through their formative years having a poor diet which lacks most essential nutrients. This may lead to a lower academic performance throughout the school years, which in turn may lead to fewer job opportunities resulting in lower socioeconomic status. When the same child grows up and starts own family, the cycle continues to the next generation. On the other side of the socio-economic spectrum, a child belonging to an affluent urban family also deals with poor nutrition but in a very different way. More than one-third of such children and adolescents, aged 6yrs to 19yrs, are considered overweight or
obese. This is because these children are overfed but remain undernourished. Studies show that more than 90% children in the urban areas, belonging to affluent families, consume more than the recommended amounts of saturated fats and added sugars. The consumption of fruits and vegetables in these children is also observed to be less than the recommended intake. Thus, even though they may appear to be well nourished, they have many underlying nutritional deficiencies. Some of these deficiencies impact the performance of these children in academics and extracurricular activities. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BREAKFAST AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE There have been many studies that have looked at the relationship between breakfast consumption and academic
