Diet foods and drinks for children may lead to overeating and obesity, according to a new report based on studies of rats.

A team of researchers at the University of Alberta contends that animals learn to connect the taste of food with the amount of caloric energy it provides, and children who consume low-calorie versions of foods that are normally high in calories may develop distorted connections between taste and calorie content, leading them to overeat as they grow up.

"It is better for children to eat healthy, well-balanced diets with sufficient calories for their daily activities, rather than low-calorie snacks or meals," said Dr. David Pierce, the lead author of the paper.

The researchers conducted a series of elaborate experiments that proved substituting low-calorie versions of foods and drinks led to overeating in a sample of young rats. Although both lean and obese rats overate during their regular meals, the added calories have more serious health implications for obese animals.

Adolescent rats that were also fed diet foods did not display the same tendency to overeat. The researchers believe the older rats did not overeat because they, unlike the younger rats, relied on a variety of taste-related cues to correctly assess the energy value of their food.

"Our research has shown that young animals can be made to overeat when low-calorie foods and drinks are given to them on a daily basis," Pierce said.

Pierce added that his team's "taste conditioning process" theory may explain "puzzling results" from other studies, such as a recent one from researchers at the University of Massachusetts, who found links between diet soda consumption among children and a higher risk of obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

The research appears in the academic journal Obesity.