Are we becoming a nation of young
fatties?

By Dr Tony Okely - Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Education

The evidence seems to suggest we are with around 25 per cent of children and adolescents overweight or obese.

The causes are many and varied from a decline in breastfeeding to child safety issues that mean children are actively discouraged from roaming free across their neighbourhood hood after school as children of previous generations did.

Of course the major reason is children simply consume more and do less. They eat more food -- not only bigger portions but more fast food and takeaways and more high-glycaemic foods like cereals cakes muffins and sweets. And they drink more soft drinks. And a lot of young people do much less physical activity than previous generations so they are not expending energy.

In the past children who stayed indoors had little to do so there was a disincentive, but that has changed with the advent of first television and then video games, computers, the internet and so on. Many children also are spending a lot of time in after-school lessons and coaching as pressure increases on teenagers to perform academically.

And the living conditions for many Australian children have changed. More now live in apartments and high-density residential areas and new homes have a bigger footprint on their blocks leaving little room for backyard cricket and footy games. More families have multiple cars and children simply walk less.

Not surprisingly childhood obesity often leads to adult obesity. But the scary thing is that even adults who have lost the excess weight they carried in childhood still have a higher incidence of health problems. The damage has been done. What can
be done to alleviate the problem and reverse the trend?

In September the NSW Department of Health hosted the NSW Childhood Obesity Summit to address the issues. There were 140
recommendations which does indicate the complexity of the problem and the need for a co-ordinated response. The strategies included removing high-fat high-sugar foods from school canteens, reviewing advertising codes and regulations that
govern advertising to children developing healthy food policies for
sporting events and making nutrition labelling mandatory on fast foods.

Interestingly there was also a push to build the promotion of physical activities walking and cycling to and from school. But many of these strategies will be years in the implementation. On a practical level what can parents do right now to help their children avoid obesity and excessive weight problems?

For a start be a food role model. Demonstrate that you value physical activity and healthy living. If practical, walk to the shops and encourage your children to walk to school or the bus-stop rather than driving them. Be a family that gets out and does things whether it be games in the back yard or park or other physical activities like sports or cycling.

Limit your children’s television viewing to an hour a day and consider making one day a week "technology-free" with no TV video or computer games. And as parents provide most of their children’s food you can generally help control the intake. Increase the amount of healthy food like fruit and vegetables and replace soft drinks with water and eat less takeaway and restaurant food. It is easier to choose an unhealthy diet and sedentary lifestyle but for your children’s health don’t take the easy option.