5 Healthy Lifestyle Factors That Parents Can Follow

"The BMI of a mother is the strongest correlate of BMI of children, followed by smoking, physical activity, alcohol consumption and of the mother's diet, "explains Sun.

Physical activity is more likely to encourage one's children to play sports or to engage themselves in other activities. Similarly, a mother who does not smoke is more likely to encourage her children to not smoke.

The study suggests that if a mother wants to have a healthy lifestyle, she could benefit not only her health, but also that of her child. In addition to the physical health factors, Sun said that a mother's lifestyle can have a significant impact on the emotional, social and psychological health of her children.

"A mother who consumes alcohol in moderation may have a lower risk of depression. And we know with depression that this can be a devastating factor that could impact the health of a child. "

The paper did not study the fathers, but the researchers said that they hoped this would be done in a future study.] However, Sun added," If both partners choose a healthy lifestyle, their children could more likely lead a healthy life. "