Child obesity levelling off

Forecasts of a huge rise in obesity among children in England have been discredited following the release of new data that shows the trend is levelling off.

Experts looked at children’s levels of being overweight or obese that have been forecast to 2020.

Figures suggest that by 2020 the proportion of boys aged 2-11 who will be overweight or obese will be 30 per cent - not 42 per cent as previously predicted.

For girls of the same age the revised prediction is now 27 per cent - down from 48 per cent.

The revised predictions also indicate a big drop in the number of overweight and obese young people aged 12-19.

They represent the first sign of encouraging news for decades, as obesity rates have been rising in England - as in most developed nations - since the 1970s.

There are currently 1.5 million children in England who are overweight or obese - leaving them at increased risk of health problems such as type 2 diabetes, cancer and heart disease.

The Department of Health has set a target of reducing the number of overweight and obese children to 2000 levels by 2020.

The National Heart Forum based its latest predictions on data collected for the Health Survey for England between 2000 and 2007.

Previous estimates were based on data collected for the same survey between 1993 and 2004.

The researchers said it was not clear why obesity levels might have levelled off, but said government interventions and media coverage may have played a role.

Public Health Minister Gillian Merron said: ”Obesity is one of the biggest health challenges we face. There are currently 1.5 million children and 25 million adults that are overweight or obese, leaving them at increased risk of type 2 diabetes, cancer, heart and liver disease.

”The encouraging news that child obesity may be levelling off is thanks to the hard work of families, schools and the NHS across England, supported by Government initiatives such as 5 A Day and Healthy Schools, which have overseen improvements to school food and school sport.

”But obesity levels are still too high and we need to keep the momentum going - that’s why I’m delighted to see our campaigns such as the Change4Life Healthy Towns being so successful.

”We’ll only turn the tide on obesity for good if everyone - Government, families and industry - play their part.”