deldaley
29-01-2008, 11:44 AM
Better diet could stop criminals from getting a taste of a taste of porridge
Improving the eating habits of would-be criminals could cut rates of crime and antisocial behaviour by as much as a third, scientists have suggested.
Simple measures to make sure that prisoners, including murderers, get a recommended daily dose of vitamins and minerals could make them less impulsive, reducing violence both inside prison and in the wider community, according to researchers at the University of Oxford.
Young male inmates in England and Scotland are to be given vitamin supplements as part of the first large study to determine if better nutrition can improve the health of their brains and help them to keep violent urges at bay. The £1.4 million project, funded by the Wellcome Trust, follows controlled studies in Britain and Denmark where nutrition supplements reduced assaults, thefts and other offences among inmates in young offender institutions.
The three-year study will begin in May, involving an estimated 1,000 inmates at young offender institutions at Hindley in Greater Manchester, Lancaster Farms in Lancashire and Polmont in Falkirk, Central Scotland. It will involve serious offenders, including killers, aged between 16 and 21.
Alongside their normal prison diet some inmates will be given placebo while others will receive the full recommended daily intake of more than 30 vitamins and minerals, plus a dose of omega-3 fatty acids, which earlier studies have claimed can help to reduce aggression and mood swings. Experts will then monitor whether those receiving the supplements experience reduced levels of violence, drug-taking and self-harm, taking into account all other relevant factors.
A pilot project ten years ago found that prisoners who took vitamin pills and other supplements committed a quarter fewer disciplinary offences and 37 per cent fewer violent offences.
Improving the eating habits of would-be criminals could cut rates of crime and antisocial behaviour by as much as a third, scientists have suggested.
Simple measures to make sure that prisoners, including murderers, get a recommended daily dose of vitamins and minerals could make them less impulsive, reducing violence both inside prison and in the wider community, according to researchers at the University of Oxford.
Young male inmates in England and Scotland are to be given vitamin supplements as part of the first large study to determine if better nutrition can improve the health of their brains and help them to keep violent urges at bay. The £1.4 million project, funded by the Wellcome Trust, follows controlled studies in Britain and Denmark where nutrition supplements reduced assaults, thefts and other offences among inmates in young offender institutions.
The three-year study will begin in May, involving an estimated 1,000 inmates at young offender institutions at Hindley in Greater Manchester, Lancaster Farms in Lancashire and Polmont in Falkirk, Central Scotland. It will involve serious offenders, including killers, aged between 16 and 21.
Alongside their normal prison diet some inmates will be given placebo while others will receive the full recommended daily intake of more than 30 vitamins and minerals, plus a dose of omega-3 fatty acids, which earlier studies have claimed can help to reduce aggression and mood swings. Experts will then monitor whether those receiving the supplements experience reduced levels of violence, drug-taking and self-harm, taking into account all other relevant factors.
A pilot project ten years ago found that prisoners who took vitamin pills and other supplements committed a quarter fewer disciplinary offences and 37 per cent fewer violent offences.