Adults living with children eat more

IOWA CITY, Iowa, Dec. 29 (UPI) -- Adults living with children eat more fat than adults who don't have children in their households, a study by two U.S. universities said.

The amount of fat adults living with children consume is roughly the equivalent of eating a frozen pepperoni pizza a week, according to researchers from the University of Iowa and the University of Michigan Health System.

The finding was based National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III data, the University of Iowa said in a news release. The research will be published online in the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine.

Unlike other family diet studies that examine how adults influence children's eating habits, this review considered how children or their habits may be associated with adults' food intake, said Helena Laroche, of the University of Iowa's College of Medicine and the study's primary author.

Findings based on questionnaires said adults living with children ate an additional 4.9 grams of fat daily, including 1.7 grams of saturated fat.

She noted the study doesn't prove the presence of children causes adults to eat more. Potential reasons why adults with children at home eat more fat require more research to see if they are the actual causes.