The present paper discusses the eating
habits, the personal hygiene rules and the physical
activities of 192 parents and their children, aged 3‐4.
The research demonstrated that: a) As far as diet is
concerned, the children/subjects were mostly
following a Mediterranean type of diet, which
involves meat, dairy products and legumes;
however, they were consuming great quantities of
sweets and small quantities of vegetables and fruits.
b) As regards hygiene, the children were quite
careful that the fruits and utensils they used were
clean, but they were taking less care of washing
their hands and brushing their teeth. c) Concerning physical activities, the children were involved
mostly in vigorous activities, but they were also
watching television on a daily basis.The differences
among the subjects were identified in terms of: a)
residence. The children living in advantaged areas
were found to consume more fruits, which they washed first, and also washed their hands and
brushed their teeth more frequently than the
children who lived in depressed areas. b) gender.
The girls played video games more than the boys,
whereas the boys played with balls, or skippingrope,
hula‐hoop etc. c) age. The children, aged four,
were more receptive to advice about how to chew
their food and played outdoor games more
frequently than the children aged three and a half. d)
weight. The overweight children participating in the
research were found to eat more vegetables and the
percentage of the parents who were not joining in
children’s energy‐requiring physical activities
(bicycling, walking etc.) was smaller in comparison
with the percentage of parents whose children had
normal weight.