Childhood obesity is a serious problem with important health and social consequences. Obesity rates in children began to rise in the UK in the mid 1980s but there has been a rapid escalation in the last 10 years.
Current statistics suggest the prevalence of obesity in children is at least four times higher today than it was 30 years ago.
In 2008, the Health Survey for England showed:
- 31% boys aged 2-15 years were overweight / obese
- 29% girls aged 2-15 years were overweight / obese
- International comparisons confirm these as amongst the highest rates in Europe
Childhood obesity is different from obesity in adults in various ways. The most obvious difference is that children and adolescents need to grow. During puberty, adolescents will double their weight and increase their height by 20%. This will have consequences for the diagnosis of childhood obesity, and also the management strategies for its prevention and treatment. To compound the problem, studies suggest that many parents simply don’t recognise the problem in their children. In one report, 71% of participating parents with overweight or obese toddlers misperceived their child's weight, identifying it as either a healthy weight or even lighter than a healthy weight.
Why are children getting fatter?
It is commonly assumed that today’s children consume more “junk” foods
than ever before and that this over-consumption is the most important
factor in fuelling the current epidemic of child obesity. Furthermore,
the press and media have encouraged the widespread belief that food
advertising to children has an adverse effect on children’s food
preferences and purchasing behaviour. There are, however, compelling
arguments to resist both these claims.
Firstly, evidence suggests that consumption of fatty or sugary foods may
not be the primary factor in determining child obesity. Research
studies do not show a consistent association between dietary fat or
sugar and obesity in young children. Moreover, the current obesity
epidemic appears to be taking place against a background of declining
calorie intake in children, especially younger children.
Secondly, despite media assertions to the contrary, there is no good evidence that TV advertising has a substantial influence on children’s food consumption and, consequently, no reason to believe that a complete ban on food advertising – which some politicians and lobbyists have demanded – would have any useful impact on childhood obesity rates. This conclusion is supported by experience from Quebec where, although food advertising to children has been banned since 1980, childhood obesity rates are no different from those in other Canadian provinces. A similar advertising ban has existed in Sweden for over a decade, but again this has not translated into a reduction in the rates of child obesity.
One of the latest plans is for councils to band food takeways in a bid to stop children eating junk food. Read Dr Ashton's thoughts on this radical plan
