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Facts about Childhood Obesity |
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Over the last 20 years, rates of obesity in
children have risen greatly in many countries around the world, leading some
researchers to speak of an 'international epidemic of childhood obesity'.
In the ten-year period from 1985 to 1995 the
level of combined overweight/obesity in Australian children more than doubled,
whilst the level of obesity tripled in all age groups and for both sexes. |
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In 1995, the
proportion of overweight or obese children and adolescents aged 2-17 years was
21% for boys and 23% for girls. The proportion of obese girls aged 7-15 years
increased dramatically from 1.2% in 1985 to 5.5% in 1995, and the proportion of
obese boys increased from 1.4% to 4.7%. The rate of increase in Australia
appears to be accelerating sharply when viewed in a historical perspective.
Obese children have a 25-50% chance of progression to adult obesity and it may
be as high as 78% in older obese adolescents. Obese adults who were overweight
as adolescents also have higher levels of weight-related ill health and a higher
risk of early death than those obese adults who only became obese in adulthood.
The prevention and management of obesity in children is a priority as there is a
high risk of persistence into adulthood.
Weight gain and obesity develops when the energy intake from food and drink
exceeds energy expenditure from physical activity and other metabolic processes.
The trends in these behaviors are not encouraging. For example, mean intake of
energy increased by over 10% among Australian children aged 10-15 years between
1985 and 1995. Physical activity levels in Australian adults have declined in
the last decade, as in most other countries. There is a lack of survey trend
data for children, however, a 1997 survey of NSW Year 8 and 10 students showed
that girls were involved in lower levels of vigorous activity than boys and less
than 70% of girls remained adequately active over winter. Particularly low rates
of adequate activity were seen in girls from Middle Eastern and Asian cultural
backgrounds, with further significant declines between Years 8 and 10.
Data from the NSW Child Health Survey 2001 found 40% of children, aged 5-12
years, reportedly watch two hours or more of television or videos a day on
average and 15% are reported to play computer games for an hour or more a day on
average. Such sedentary leisure time pursuits are now widely available to
children and are replacing more traditional active pastimes. |
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