Children consuming too many calories from fat.

• Position: Diet - Nutritional research - Brief Article

Current dietary recommendations suggest that children and adults should consume no more than 30% of calories from fat. However, researchers at Baylor College of Medicine, Waco, Tex., found that kids are surpassing that number. In fact, they discovered that certain days of the week and certain meals lead to increased dietary fat consumption among youngsters.

Researchers evaluated more than 500 fourth- to sixth-grade students and found that just 13% met the recommendation to consume 30% or less of energy from fat. In addition, compared with weekdays, children consumed a higher percentage of energy from fat on the weekends. Further, more was consumed at lunch and dinner meals, compared with breakfast and snacks. Researchers also found that children with fathers or mothers who earned a college degree reported consuming a lower percentage of energy from fat and significantly low-fat eating practices than...