Obesity on the rise among infants and toddlers By Suzanne Rostler

NEW YORK, Feb 09 (Reuters Health) - Children younger than 4 years of age are not immune to the epidemic of obesity that has swept the modern world, researchers report.

A new study chronicles a sharp rise in the number of infants and toddlers who were classified as obese between 1989 and 1998. The results, published in the February 10th issue of the British Medical Journal, underscore the need to encourage even very young children to be physically active and follow a healthy diet, according to Dr. Peter Bundred, from the University of Liverpool in the UK, and colleagues.

Overweight children are more likely than their leaner peers to grow into obese adults, and excess weight is a major risk factor for heart disease, type 2 diabetes and death, the authors note.

"Our concerns are therefore that we will see significant increases in the numbers of these cases in the future if our children continue to gain weight at this alarming rate," Bundred told Reuters Health.

The researchers compared the heights and weights of more than 35,500 infants aged 1 to 3 months and nearly 29,000 toddlers from just under 3 years old to 4 years old living in England. During the study period, the rate of obesity among all children rose to 9% from 5% and the rate of overweight rose to 24% from 15%.

Bundred said that low levels of long-term breastfeeding and the hectic pace of modern life are to blame.

"The majority of families (in the UK) have both parents working and it is easier to entertain the toddler with a sweet drink in front of the TV than to play with them in the evening. In fact, children are losing the skills to play," he said.

Interventions that encourage physical activity and weight loss should be targeted to children younger than 4 years, the authors suggest. The study findings could be used to develop national programs to prevent and treat obesity in children, the report indicates.

The investigators classified children who fell above the 85th percentile for weight on standardized growth charts as overweight. Children who fell above the 95th percentile were considered obese.

Body mass index (BMI), a measure of weight in relation to height, is used to assess obesity in adults but can be misleading when applied to children since it does not take into account differences in the timing of growth spurts, the authors point out.

SOURCE: British Medical Journal 2001;322:326-328.

It's interesting to note that the suspected culprits are lack of activity and sugar/sweets. The media and public health officials have only themselves to blame, in my opinion.

The timing of this study, 1989 to 98, coincides with the anti- dietary FAT campaign. Parents were led to believe that high-fat foods such as whole milk, cheeses and peanut butter were somehow harmful to themselves and their children, so of course they tried to choose lower fat and fat-reduced foods to substitute. Enter the booming fruit "drink" industry, with high-fructose corn syrup being the main ingredient.

Of course, the studies always seem to somehow lay the blame on parents.

Doreen