Recently an article has been published in The New England Journal of Medicine (a prestigious scientific journal) warning of the proliferation of obesity in American children who attend so-called kindergartens (nursery schools or nurseries).
Although today information on overweight or obesity in children is the order of the day, it is necessary that we have more data about the incidence before adolescence, to understand what are the factors that cause their appearance in the first years of life of children. The publication has echoed a study conducted by Emory University (Atlanta), which was attended by 7738 children between five and six years old who went to kindergartens in the United States between 1998 and 1999. This study revealed that about 32 percent of children who were overweight when they entered these schools had become obese at age 14, compared to 8 percent among those who started with normal weight.
The children who participated in the research were of growing age in the 90s and 2000s when obesity became a major health problem. Their weight and height were measured up to seven times from 1998 to 2007, discovering that the obesity rate increased more rapidly in the first two courses, from 13 to almost 19%, than between fifth and eighth grade where the increase was not significant.
We have learned about this research thanks to the CIBERobn Research Center, and according to the conclusions, Dr. Casanueva (belonging to the center) states that it is not possible to start tackling the problem of obesity in adolescence, but that it will begin in preschool years so that the impact is greater
Childhood obesity: the problem is no longer alone in the United States
In our country, overweight rates are around 20% (and that there is a clear adherence to the Mediterranean diet); and the percentage of obese Spanish children (in addition to being three points higher than the United States) triples the one we had 30 years ago.
AdvertisingAlso with respect to European figures, in Spain we have the dubious honor of having one of the highest, so that we are following the trend of countries with historical problems of obesity and overweight (for example United Kingdom). A FAROS report from some time ago, estimated at 15 million children, the number of European children with obesity, and the numbers are still growing.
Obesity should be prevented since they are babies
Dr. Casanueva reminds us that it is in the first three years of life when a child's eating behavior is outlined, that is when an appropriate emotional environment can allow channel the baby's relationship with food, avoiding any possible overweight problem. Let's not forget that here too, as in the United States, we have data that alarm us about the appearance of this disease in very young children (from three to five years old).
To get a baby to reach five years of age with a normal weight, it is necessary to model their eating behavior when they develop their preference for flavors, when they self-regulate food intake and when they receive guidelines on feeding and physical activity of their family and environment
