Formerly unknown because very rare, childhood obesity has become a real scourge in recent decades. Its growth is particularly linked to lifestyle and eating habits. Being already a major public health problem in adults, obesity in children is even more complex and much more dangerous for the future life of the child.
Childhood obesity: definition
As in adults, childhood obesity is assessed using anthropometric indices, including height and weight. Nevertheless, the development of the child is rapid, the energy needs differ according to age and the distribution of fats varies from one child to another. It is not easy to propose a single consensual method to define obesity. It is best to refer to the attending physician .
For children under 2 years old, measurements taken at certain parts of the body are useful, such as the
circumference of the arms or the thighs or the
direct ratio of weight to height . The values found are compared with standardized development curves. These vary according to regions and eating habits, the best would be to refer to the pediatrician who will know how to interpret the figures.
It is possible to
calculate the BMI of a child from 0 to 18 years old. However, there is no precise limit value to define childhood obesity because it varies according to the environment in which the child evolves.
- Thus, childhood overweight is defined by convention as being a BMI between the 85th and 95th percentile for age and sex (1) .
- Childhood obesity is defined as a BMI above the 95th percentile for age and sex (1)
You didn’t understand anything? Rest assured it’s normal. These values are statistical indices. To simplify to the extreme, this means that an obese child has a weight that is greater than 95% of the weights of other children of the same age . This means concretely that the definition of obesity varies from one region to another, once again it is better to refer to the pediatrician to interpret the figures .
The causes of childhood obesity
All the studies are unanimous: it is essentially the way of life of societies , particularly Western ones, which is the cause of childhood obesity (2) . If current trends continue, the number of obese children will reach 70 million by 2025 (3) .
By way of life we mean all aspects of the environment in which the child evolves. It starts already before birth , if the mother is diabetic or overweight, there is a good chance that her child will be too.
Unsurprisingly,
diet is also a deciding factor . Foods that are too high in fat,
sugar or
salt can be very harmful; also, snacking, fast foods and anarchic intake of sweets aggravate the problem. It is important to respect the modalities of
a healthy diet in children .Finally, the lack of information is undoubtedly one of the most important factors. Indeed, few parents know how to take care of their children; worse still, the endless stream of advertisements praising the food industry and fast and easy food completely blurs the benchmarks (4) .
The consequences of childhood obesity
Unfortunately, the consequences of childhood obesity are both immediate and chronic . The child may immediately suffer from growth retardation and respiratory and cardiovascular difficulties . Worse still, his chances of developing a disease in adulthood are increased tenfold, this includes cardiovascular disease, diabetes and hypertension but also musculoskeletal disorders and even certain cancers! As you will have understood, childhood obesity is anything but to be taken lightly.
Stephen Paul is the lead author and founder of My Health Sponsor. Holder of a diploma in health and well-being coaching with more than 200 articles in the field of health, he makes it a point of honor to offer advice based on reliable information, based on scientific research, and verified by health professionals.
