Children Obesity Rockets Since “˜70s
A new study shows that the rate of severe obesity in U.S. children and teenagers has tripled over the past three decades.
Data reviewed from a long-running government health survey showed that as of 2004, nearly 4 percent of 2- to 19-year-olds in the U.S. were severely obese.
The researchers reported in the journal Academic Pediatrics that the number was three times what it was in 1976, and over 70 percent from 1994.
"Children are not only becoming obese, but becoming severely obese, which impacts their overall health," lead researcher Dr. Joseph A. Skelton, of Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, said in a news release from the university.
"These findings," he added, "reinforce the fact that medically-based programs to treat obesity are needed throughout the United States and insurance companies should be encouraged to cover this care."
The study also discovered that the minority and lower-income children are at a bigger risk of severe obesity, in which children are defined as having a body mass index (BMI) in the 99th percentile for one’s age and gender.
The most recent survey included 12,000 2- to 19-year-olds from across the U.S. and nearly 6 percent of African-American children and teens were severely obese, as well as roughly 5 percent of Mexican-Americans. That number compares to 3 percent of white Americans.
Less than 1 percent of Mexican-American children and less than 2 percent of black children were severely obese in the 1970s survey.
The latest survey data shows that over 4 percent of relatively lower-income children were severely obese, versus 2.5 percent of those from higher-income families.
The findings uncover a central obstacle in overcoming childhood obesity.
The team noted that the children who suffer most also generally have the greatest difficulty getting good healthcare.
"No simple answers exist," the researchers write, pointing out that along with better access to healthcare, there also need to be broader efforts to improve the diets and lifestyle habits of U.S. children.
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