Leatherhead Matters

The scale of the child obesity epidemic was revealed in yesterday’s latest results from the Government’s National Child Measurement Programme. The programme was launched in 2005, with the aim of weighing and measuring every child on arrival in the first (reception) year of Primary School and repeated in the last year of primary school. Up to now, 80% of children have been weighed and measured. From the statistics, their body mass index can be calculated and compared with the ideal for their age and gender.The results are startling!

When children first start school, 22.9% of four and five-year-olds are either overweight or obese, indicating that the problem starts at home. By the time children leave Primary School in  year 6, it has got worse, with 31.6% of children overweight or obese. In both age groups, boys are more likely than girls to be overweight.Childhood obesity is more prevalent in London than anywhere else in England and Wales, with 11.3% of four- and five-year-olds and a huge 20.8% of 10- and 11-year-olds having a severe weight problem. The south-east coast has the fewest overweight pupils - 14.9% in the reception class. The south-west has the fewest overweight children in year 6, at 14.9%.

So the Government’s strategy of giving feedback to parents isn’t working since, the data suggests the obesity problem gets worse from the time children are first measured in their school reception year. Dawn Primarola the Minister said “We’re not going to stem the tide overnight but through measures such as providing the right information and support to parents to ensure a healthy diet and regular exercise for children, and increasing participation in sport and healthy eating, we hope to support families to lead healthier lives.”

There’s lots of evidence from the USA that information alone just doesn’t work. This is a war! Food producers & supermarkets are savvy. They are targeting households with tight budgets and little time for preparation of meals. Cheap manufactured food tends to be high in fat,sugar & starch. Physical exercise amongst kids is a record low levels. Physical activity now competes with Telly, computer games and the Internet for children’s spare time.

What’s the solution? There are no easy ones. I suspect a combination of regulation to remove some unhealthy products from shelves and the tax system to make junk food more expensive relative to “healthy” food will be required. However, I don’t think any of the political parties are ready for this until the situation reaches crisis proportions and the NHS bills for our unhealthy lifestyles become near unaffordable for taxpayers.