Kids with healthier diets, better grades

EDMONTON, Alberta, March 25 (UPI) -- Children with healthy diets perform better in school than children with unhealthy diets, researchers at the University of Alberta in Canada said.

Paul J. Veugelers surveyed about 5,000 Canadian fifth-grade students and their parents as part of the Children's Lifestyle and School-Performance Study.

Information regarding dietary intake, height, and weight were recorded and the Diet Quality Index-International was used to summarize overall diet quality. A score ranges from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating better diet quality. A standardized literacy assessment also was administered to the children.

The study, published in the April issue of the Journal of School Health, found that students with an increased fruit and vegetable intake and less caloric intake from fat were significantly less likely to fail the literacy assessment.

In addition, the students with the highest scores for diet quality -- fruits, vegetables, grains, dietary fiber, protein, calcium and moderate fat intake -- were 41 percent less likely to fail the literacy assessment.