Ensuring sweet beginnings in early childhood
- Nadine Dreyer
Parents can help their toddlers thrive if they encourage play and healthy eating habits.
The years from birth to the age of three are critical to a child’s development and thriving later in life depends on nurturing care during this time. Early experiences mould the brain architecture and provide the foundation for future learning, behaviour and health.
And now I am three …
In the first three years of life, the brain is a sponge, soaking up experiences. From the second a baby is born, a mother’s emotions and the way she responds to her child help shape who the baby will become, including the confidence to learn, vulnerability to illness and ability to relate to others.
Dr Alessandra Prioreschi, a scientist consultant at the Wits Developmental Pathways to Health Research Unit, has developed a free app to support childcare in South Africa. Using insights from mothers in Soweto, the app is designed to provide resources to support mothers in breastfeeding, encourage loving parenting habits and promote child development through play.
By the age of three, the brain has grown to 80% of its adult size and is developing memory, language, thinking and reasoning skills. At this age, a child has around 1 000 trillion neural connections, which are ‘pruned’ as the toddler grows older.
“Even a mother’s smile at the right moment can make a difference to the baby’s development,” says Prioreschi. “So, too, does diet.”
Toddling towards obesity
One of Prioreschi’s focus areas is child obesity and the statistics for South Africa are alarming. According to UNICEF, the percentage of overweight and obese children under five years rose from 13% in 2016 to 23% in 2024. The cultural belief that a fat baby is a healthy baby further drives the prevalence of overweight babies.
“Obesity affects how a child’s organs develop and increases the risk of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes later in life,” says Prioreschi.
Playing for keeps
Playtime for children helps prevent obesity and is as important for their development as exercise is for adults. Children who play more reach their developmental milestones, such as sitting, crawling and standing, quicker. Furthermore, good parenting means healthy eating – clear product labelling that warns of high sugar content would help parents decide which products to buy for their kids.
The exhibition titled From Past to Present: A Journey Through the History of Nutrition and Commercial Food in South Africa was launched at the Adler Museum of Medicine on 15 November 2023 by the SAMRC/Wits Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science, School of Public Health. The exhibition forms part of the Centre’s academic project to provide evidence, methodologies and tools for effective decision-making in health.
Sweet deceits
A new Lancet series on ultra-processed foods co-authored by researchers from the Priority Cost-Effective Lessons for System Strengthening in South Africa (PRICELESS SA) part of the South African Medical Research Council’s Wits Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science, brings together a wealth of evidence about the harm to our health of ultra-processed foods, designed to be “hyper palatable” to attract more sales. “Unfortunately, children are particularly vulnerable and their taste preferences are developed in early childhood,” says PRICELESS SA Director, Professor Susan Goldstein.
There are many examples of ways to reverse this trend. These include legislative policies to limit sugar intake, such as a higher sugar tax on sugary beverages and front-of-package warning labels to enable people to make informed choices.
“Many of these policies have been mooted in South Africa and globally but the multinational food industries have blocked these policies, putting profit over the health of our children,” adds Goldstein.
Researchers in the Wits Department of Physiology analysed over 600 non-alcoholic beverages from major supermarkets and found that 60% would require warning labels under proposed national regulations for high sugar.
Parents often believe that fruit juices are a healthier option for children but these have the highest sugar content and often escape sugar-related policies due to a loophole that excludes naturally occurring sugars.
“We advocate for stronger labelling regulations that include naturally high sugar,” says physiologist Dr Siphiwe Dlamini, whose latest study analysed 271 breakfast cereals and porridges sold by three major South African supermarkets. The researchers found that 73.5% of these products would require warning labels due to high levels of sugar, saturated fat, salt and artificial sweeteners.
To paraphrase the proverb: it takes a village to raise a child, but love, playtime and healthy food are essential if they are to thrive.
- Nadine Dreyer is a freelance writer.
- This article first appeared in?CURIOS.TY,?a research magazine produced by?Wits Communications?and the?Research Office.
- Read more in the 20thissue, themed #Thrive, which explores what it truly means to flourish — across a lifespan, within communities, and on and with our planet.
- This feature is part of a series on what is required for us to thrive at each stage throughout our lives. Also read: