| Obesity Research |
| Obesity is strongly associated with premature adult mortality but at any age it increases vulnerability to infection and disease. Despite increasing awareness of the severe health risks, the number of obese children appears to be growing. Accurate figures are not available because of difficulties in both defintion and measurement, although as a orking rule children can be said to be overweight when they are more than 20% in excess of the standard weight for their health and age. As many as one-third of British babies are too fat before they are one year old, but many normal weight babies become obese by the age of 14 or 16. Causes of Obesity Although, strictly speaking, it is eating more than is required for growth and activity which results in the storage of surplus nutritional energy in the form of fat, there are comple genetic, physical and social factors involved which may disturb an individuals energy balance. National studies have demonstrated an increase in the number of overweight children and infants since the second world war, finding twice as many seven year olds born in the late `50's were overweight when compared with seven year olds born a decade earlier. It seems that some children are born fat and stay fat, some are born fat and slim down later, while some normal weight babies become fat children - and it is this group that is thought to be increasing Physical factors These include a familial tendency, observed in many UK studies, and US research has found 80% of babies born to 2 obese parents are heavily overweight, wit h40% born overweight when only one parent is obese. While a family pattern of over-feeding - giving food is often equated with giving love - may be one obvious psychological and social cause of overweight. Young overweight children have been noted to fidget less than their peers, and studies of schoolgirls playing netball and tennis found those who were overweight stayed motionless for considerable periods. A vicious circle Because obesity leads to clumsiness and slowness, fat children are often rejected by their peers and so have fewer opportunities for physical activity, and at the same time the sense of rejection may cause social withdrawal and even a degree of emotional disturbance for which the child tried to compensate by eating. The overweight is thus maintained and even increased. Obese children have found in man studies to be unpopular with their classmates, seen as self-induglent and respnsible for their own problem. Many more teenage firls than boys are too fat, one large scale study found 32% of 14 year olds obese compared with only 4% of boys of the same age. While girls are culturally expected to be less phyiscally active than boys and so may have disproportionate energy intake-output balance. It has also been suggested that obesity in teenage girls may be an eating disorder akin to anorexia. Although the obese schoolgirl increases weight instead of losing it, there is a similar preoccupation with food and the same depression, sense of helplessness and isolation as in her anorexic counterpart. With obesity the social class difference is weighted toward the lower end of the social scale, with more obesity among girls. While it is not clear why so many girls than boys become obese, it has been suggested that the overall increase in obese adolescants is due to social changes. Changes in eating habits generally, opportunities for children to buy for themselves carbohydrate and sugar snacks and drinks, a reduced level of physical activity with labout saving devices in the hime and greater use of private cars, have combined to increase energy intake and reduce energy output. Treatment and Prevention The National Child Development Study findng that 70% of overweight adolescants had not been overweight at the age of seven seems clear indication that prevention should start early. Handicapped children are at particular risk of becoming overweight but treatment of established obesity in any child is difficult. Individual food needs vary considerably - children of the same age, sex, height and weight have been found to have very different energy requirements. Any diet that must be adjusted to the indvidual child and at the same time conform as closely as possible to the family pattern. Far better that sensible eating habits are established from infancy and that physical activity of some kind is encouraged for all. |
| References 1. British Medical Journal (1975) "Nature and nurture in childhood obesity." 2. Poskitt and Cole (1978) Nature and nurture in childhood overweight." 3. Peckham and others (1983) Prevelance of obesity in British children born in 1946 and 1958" 4. Mayer (1975) "Obesity in schoolchildren." 5. Colley (1974) "Childhood Obesity" 6. Bruch (1974) "Eating disorders: obesity, anorexia nervosa and the person within." |
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