Childhood obesity is on the increase - as are the associated health problems. But how can we help kids realise the benefits of healthy eating and exercise when tempting 'treats' are never far away?

Kids today are getting bigger. According to a survey published in the British Medical Journal in 2001, nearly 16 per cent of two-year-olds are overweight (and 6 per cent are obese) while more than 20 per cent of four-year-olds are overweight (and 7 per cent obese). Even more worryingly, the survey also found that in 1984, approximately 5 per cent of English boys tested were overweight - a decade later that figure had almost doubled to 9 per cent. These statistics are also similar for girls.

Since then, the figures have increased steadily. The government's latest health survey for England found that today, about 30 per cent of all children are either overweight or obese, figures which have increased 50 per cent since the mid-1990s. Until the early 1980s childhood weight figures had remained steady but over the last two decades they've increased rapidly and are showing no signs of slowing down.

Why, why, why?
Kids come in all shapes and sizes and grow at different rates and while there's nothing wrong with a chubby child, problems, both in the short- and long-term, begin when the child becomes seriously overweight or even obese. Doctors generally define a child as obese when the total body weight is more than 25 per cent fat in boys and 32 per cent in girls. So why are kids today piling on the pounds?

Basically, we're all eating too much fat and sugar and doing too little exercise. For children, an increasingly sedentary lifestyle spent in front of a telly that exposes them to up to 10 food commercials for every hour they watch, means that it's little wonder they're getting bigger. Children today do less exercise, play less sport and spend more time watching videos or playing computer games than they did 20 years ago. This combined with the barrage of high-fat, heavily advertised and easily available junk food marketed specifically at them makes weight gain almost inevitable.

Future problems
The problems associated with childhood obesity are numerous. Overweight children can be bullied by their peers, which can cause low self-esteem. Overweight kids are far more likely to grow up into overweight adults and therefore have a higher risk of developing heart disease, diabetes, cancer, arthritis and other serious health problems later in life. However, the increase in overweight children in the last 20 years has also seen a big rise in children's health problems associated with being overweight. In the short-term, overweight children are more likely to have high blood pressure, respiratory problems, cardiovascular conditions and an increased tendency of blood clotting. Recently, the first cases of adult diabetes have been diagnosed in overweight teenagers.

What can we do?
So how can we help our children develop a healthy attitude to food and exercise? Creating the right environment at home, in which healthy eating and exercise are the norm, is a good place to start. BUPA advise parents to establish healthy eating and exercise habits while children are young to avoid potential weight problems developing later on. This means filling the fruit bowl rather than the sweetie drawer, eating meals together as a family wherever possible, and setting a good example to children by eating fresh fruit and vegetables with them.

Exercise is also vital. Rather than driving our kids everywhere, we should encourage them to walk or cycle more. We should also use exercise as a treat, a fun thing to do together as a family or with friends. Instead of packing them off to their bedrooms to play on the computer, invite their friends over and go and play football or rounders in the park. Setting a good example really helps. It helps to associate activity with fun and shows children that preparing and eating healthy meals is also fun and beneficial too.

Not just a family affair
The government is so worried by the increase in childhood obesity (and the inevitable strain on the NHS) that it's commissioned research to look at how advertising carried out by the food industry affects children's eating habits. It's also introduced a scheme to provide every child in the country aged four to six with a free piece of fruit every day and is planning to introduce more educational programmes about diet in schools.

However, the government is reluctant to go as far as restricting or even banning adverts which promote junk food on children's TV, which some medical experts would welcome. A new diet and exercise plan developed by paediatricians at Great Ormond Street Hospital has also achieved significant success with participants. Based on a traffic light approach to food, overweight children were encouraged to eat 'red' foods such as crisps and chocolates only once or twice a week, 'amber' foods such as protein, carbohydrates and dairy products, in healthy portions slightly more often and 'green' foods such as fruit and veg as often as they liked. Combined with family therapy and advice on diet, exercise and nutrition, doctors were encouraged by the success of the scheme.

Doctors in the US are already prescribing 'skinny pills' for overweight children, something most doctors here in the UK are keen to avoid. However, if diet, exercise and education aren't curbing the increasing weight of our children, it will be only a matter of time before we have to resort to medication or even surgery to help overweight children. Obesity can be a health timebomb - so experts recommend tackling the problem early on rather than paying the price later.

If you're worried about your child's weight, see your GP.

For more information, go to
www.nationalobesityforum.org.uk
www.weightconcern.co.uk