The study was the work of researchers at the University of Michigan. They looked at a group of 805 children at age 4 and checked back on them at age 11. The study found that children who are able to delay gratification are les likely to be overweight.

 

As part of the study, a group of 4-year-olds was asked to choose candy, animal crackers or pretzels as their preferred food and left alone with two plates of different quantities of the food. They were told they could eat a larger portion of chosen food if they waited until the examiner returned. If they could not do that, they could ring a bell to summon the examiner back into the room, at which time they could eat the small quantity.

 

Forty-seven percent of kids participating in the study failed the test, either by ringing the bell before a seven-minute waiting period elapsed, spontaneously beginning to eat the food, becoming distressed, going to the door or calling for a parent or the examiner.

 

Interesting was the fact that kids who had difficulty delaying gratification were about 30 percent more likely to be overweight by age 11 than those who could delay gratification. Also, the weight of the mother made a difference in the child’s ability to wait to eat.

 

“Moms who are overweight themselves have kids that are less able to wait. No study like this one can prove causation, but there’s an association,” said study coauthor Dr. Julie Lumeng, a developmental and behavioral pediatrician at the University of Michigan Health System.

 

That’s why if parents want to reduce the risk of obesity in their children, they should teach the child to delay gratification and model the behavior themselves, Lumeng added.