It has been said that "you are what you eat.'' Many young children consume far too many foods laden with sugar, sodium and saturated fats. Foods such as cakes, pies, pizzas, frankfurters, and chips.

With such a faulty diet, many young people will develop health problems.

An expert who conducted a ground-breaking diabetic survey in Bermuda, said that diabetes rates were about twice what he had expected them to be. An alarming fact is 10.7 percent of adult Bermudians, or one in nine adults over the age of 18 have diabetes.

Many young people will also develop heart conditions if too much sodium and foods high in cholesterol are consumed.

Food can affect your child's performance at school.

Laurence E. Morehouse and Leonard Gross (maximum performance) have said, "We all have fantasies about achievement. We would all like to be better performers at everything we do; better producers, leaders, organisers, homemakers, athletes and dancers.

" We would all like to read faster and write more coherently, think more clearly and sleep more soundly. What few of us realise is how close fantasy is a reality.

"There is in every one of us a better performer than we are. A modest adjustment in our habits can enable us to move with greater speed, function with greater economy, maximise power, minimise injuries, learn faster, score higher, and win more often.'' Encourage your children to eat well-balanced meals. Help them to become healthier and better performers.