Study shows Poorer kids at greater obesity risk

Chennai

Poorer children are at higher risk of obesity compared totheir better-off peers, a new study has found.

The researchers examined many aspects of a child's environment and healthbehaviour.

"Intervening in the early years when the family environment has moreprofound influences on children's healthy development has the potential to beparticularly effective," said senior author Yvonne Kelly from UniversityCollege London.

Researchers tracked nearly 20,000 families from across the UK and the studyused measurements made when the children were aged 5 and again at age 11.

At age 5, poor children were almost twice as likely to be obese compared withtheir better off peers.

By the age of 11 the gap has widened, nearly tripling to 7.9 percent of thepoorest fifth are obese; for the best-off, the figure is 2.9 percent.

The study found that doing sport more than three times a week played animportant role, as did an earlier bedtime and regular fruit consumption whichwere both positively associated with downward movement in weight categories.

However, maternal smoking during pregnancy and a mother's BMI were negativelyassociated with downward movement across weight categories.

The findings are published in The European Journal of Public Health.