A study concluded in 2004 suggests that children fed a poor diet are more likely to be irritable, swear, argue, and generally develop an anti-social attitude.
Professor Adrian Raine from the University of Southern California (USC) co-authored a study based on the development of more than 1000 children from Mauritius, an island in the Indian Ocean just off the coast of South Africa.
The researchers analysed data over a 14-year-plus period which included factors such as social background, education and health, and they concluded that the more under-nourished the children, the greater the risk of anti-social behavior in later years.
Professor Raine also pointed out that parents could help prevent their children developing anti-social and aggressive bevavior by ensuring they receive a nutritional diet.
But not all experts agree with the finding in this study, with some suggesting that genetics and poor parenting play a greater role in bad behaviour than diet. But there’s no doubt that diet can certainly play a role.
The study was published in the American Journal of Psychiatry.