Self-control and obesity: Gender matters in children

Relationship between self-regulation and weight different for girls and boys, study finds

A toddler's self-regulation -- the ability to change behavior in different social situations -- may predict whether he or she will be obese come kindergarten, but the connection appears to be much different for girls than for boys.

Self-regulation is something all children must develop, and poorer self-control in childhood is associated with worse adult health, economic and social outcomes. However, a new study from The Ohio State University found that more self-regulation may not necessarily reduce the risk of obesity, especially in girls.

Girls who scored at either the low or the high end on measures of self-regulation when they were 2 years old were more likely than girls with average self-regulation to be obese at age 5, while boys with high self-regulation were less likely to be obese than their peers with low or average self-regulation, found the study, which appears in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.