[August 16, 2011] Ice-cream overindulgence putting Taiwanese kids' health at risk: welfare group Tweet TAIPEI, Aug 16, 2011 (The China Post - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Ice cream has long been served up as a popular method to cool off in the summer in Taiwan, but children are consuming too many calories from overeating ice cream, a Taiwanese lobby group said on Monday, August 15. Presenting the public with the "2011 Elementary School Children Ice Cream Consumption Report" on Monday, the Child Welfare League Foundation (CWLF) of Taiwan urged parents to safeguard what their children consume, and especially watch how much ice cream their children eat during the summer. According to surveys completed in Taiwan by 2,163 fifth and sixth graders between May 10 and May 24, while 21 percent of the children consume one serving of ice cream per week, and 3.4 percent eating at least one serving per day, some children reported having downed four ice blocks and one bucket of ice cream in a day. These children have been consuming too many calories along with the coolness, according to the CWLF. Many Taiwanese children believe that consuming cold products is one of the best ways to cool off in the summer, and their favorite products include ice creams, slurpees, Popsicles, and McFlurry's, which, as pointed out by Wang Yu-min, director of CWLF, are all rich in sugar content, calories and fat. For example, one cup of medium-sized Sprite-flavored slurpee is 523.6 kcal, the equivalent of two bowls of white rice, Wang said. As indicated by survey results, locations where Taiwanese children most frequently visit to purchase their cooling aids include convenience stores and fast food chain stores, and some children even repeatedly visit street vendors, raising additional health concerns, the CWLF said. Parents in Taiwan should also be held accountable for children who overindulge in ice cream consumption, as many parents have the same habit. Over 70 percent of children reported that their parents would buy them ice cream, while some said their parents do not limit the amount they consume. Many children do not even drink water anymore, as they truly believed that artificial drinks and icy products have the same quenching effect, the CWLF added, advocating that parents set good examples for their children by drinking more water and consuming less ice cream to protect their children's health. To see more of the Asia News Network, go to http://www.asianewsnet.net/home/ Copyright (c) 2011, The China Post, Taipei, Taiwan / Asia News Network Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]