Study: Child Obesity Rate Triples in England

[merwin]

Child Obesity Rate Triples in England

LONDON (Reuters) - Obesity in children tripled between 1990 and 2002 in England, according to a government study Friday.

Junk food, low exercise levels and the popularity of computer games and television have raised obesity rates in developed countries to endemic proportions, experts say.

By 2002, 15.5 percent of 2 to 11-years-olds in England were considered obese, up from 5 percent in 1990, the Department of Health said.

Heather Wardle, a researcher at the National Center for Social Research, who headed the project, said the report highlighted the problem in England.

"It has become a serious public health concern," she said.

...

[sam sarrha]

1. some is proven to be caused by a contagious virus.. poverty also.

[SoCalDem]

2. When fast food replaces "Mom's cooking", obesity is likely

Empty calories and starchy/sugary foods are the norm these days..

There was a time, when meals were thought out and balanced...but they were shopped for, and prepared by Moms who had the TIME to do it..

Economic pressures, and family-breakdowns have pushed Moms into offices, factories, and shops (as employees), so is it any wonder that the next generation has to "forage" on its own??

[Sandpiper]

3. I'm guessing off-hand that this period also saw a rise in

Consumption of food like McDonalds and Krispy Kreme.

[AP]

4. The number of TV channels over that period jumped from 3 to 300.

No?

[slackmaster]

5. I blame the Teletubbies

[AndyTiedye]

6. In 1990 Britain Had a Burgeoning Rave Scene

Dancing is VERY good exercise.

They passed the "Criminal Justice Act" in 1994, and have been
suppressing the rave scene in the UK ever since.

Dancers got pushed into the clubs, where dancing takes a back seat
to drinking.

The same thing has happened in most of the USA, with the same results.

Every parent seems to want their kids to be good at sports, and that
is what kids are always being pushed to do for exercise. Kids who
do not do well at sports are likely to become sedentary, if sports
are all there is on the exercise menu.

Dancing is different. It is not competitive. It is much more free-form.
It does not have minimum proficiency requirements. There is no
team.
There is no "right way" or "wrong way" to do it.
Just ride the music.


LET THE KIDS DANCE!