Obese children at Huntingdonshire Elementary School | News from Huntingdon and St Neots – The Hunts Post



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Public health groups have urged the government to take further action to prevent young people from consuming junk food and sugary drinks, with the severe obesity rate hitting a record high in England.

NHS Digital figures show that 15% of Grade 6 students in Huntingdonshire in 2017-18 were obese, 2.6% of whom were severely obese.

In addition, 15% of children in Grade 6 were overweight.

This means that 30% of Huntingdonshire's youth are unhealthy overweight at the end of elementary school.

In England, 4.2% of children aged 10 and 11 are seriously obese, a record.

Caroline Cerny, of Obesity Health Alliance, a coalition of health charities, Royal Colleges of the Medical Corps and campaign groups, said, "We can do something about this."

She said, "The ever-increasing number of children suffering from obesity clearly reflects the unhealthy environment in which we live and that drives us towards sugary and fatty foods and foods.

"We need to start by reducing the number of junk food ads that kids see before 9 pm, the restrictions on promoting junk food in supermarkets, and the food industry redoubling its efforts to reduce sugar and fat in the supermarket. basic foods.

Although school meals are becoming healthier, the proportion of obese 10- and 11-year-olds who are obese in the sixth year is the same as five years ago.

Figures come from the National Child Measurement Program.

Each year, managers measure the size and weight of over a million children, at home and in grade six, to assess obesity among children. children.

The government is developing obesity using the 1990 British Growth Reference Chart, an extensive collection of statistics used to determine a child's body mass index (BMI). It defines a child as obese if his BMI is in the top 5% of the graph and overweight if he is in the top 15%.

Children's BMI is measured differently than adults and is based on age and sex, as well as height and weight.

Obesity can lead to heart problems and type 2 diabetes later in life, as well as psychological problems such as low self-esteem and depression.

The data shows that children often develop weight problems in primary school.

In 2017-18, just six percent of Huntingdonshire's children were obese at the reception.

In England, one in five students in Grade 6 was obese. Children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds were twice as likely to be obese as those from the more affluent areas.

Dr. Max Davie of the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health said the numbers were "totally unacceptable".

However, he said that the government "has already shown that he is serious in the fight against obesity in children … And I am reassured that these statistics will begin to move in the right direction" .

Public Health Minister Steve Brine said, "Obesity has been a problem for decades – a problem that will require considerable effort by government, schools, families, and society. in general.

"We can not expect to see a reversal of trends overnight – but we have made it clear that we are willing to do all that is necessary to keep children healthy and healthy in this country.

"We have already eliminated tons of sugar from the children's diet through the sugar tax, which has funded essential sports and lunch programs in schools. This summer, we announced the second chapter of our strategy on childhood obesity. 2030. "

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