The study found that 8 to 10 year olds who took a nutrition class chose better foods to eat.

But unfortunately, the study also found that junk food still makes up a third of what young people eat.

Doctors say time is running out and parents who allow their kids to eat junk could be condemming them to a lifetime of bad eating and obesity.

U.S. Health Officials say there are now 9 million children 6 to 16 who are overweight, and those children will probably carry their weight into adulthood. Doctors say parents need to act now to prevent problems for their children in later years.

Doctors say you should explain to your child why one food is better than another and then teach them through example. Parents can start by making small changes in their children's diet, for example by giving them non fat milk instead of 2 percent and packing an apple in the child's lunch. They also stress the benefit of lots of exercise.

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Interestingly, said Franckowiak. When we allowed people to engage in their own choice of activity after treatment, those in the lifestyle activity group tended to maintain their fitness better than aerobics participants. We also learned that, in the short run, weight loss does not appear to be compromised when engaging in novel exercise routines such as lifestyle activity or short-bout aerobic exercise.

Franckowiak hypothesized that a lifestyle program may offer opportunities to fit physical activity into a busy schedule. He said there is much more to be learned about weight loss and fitness. This is the tip of the iceberg. We ™re looking at data showing what the individuals may have done during the year. It is possible, he said, that lifestyle activity serves as a gateway to other traditional forms of exercise.

While much research has been done on how to lose weight, the subject of how to maintain weight loss is of continuing interest ”ask any dieter. That, said Franckowiak, is the million-dollar question we ™re trying to answer.

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