Healthy Kids
: Slight Decline in Obesity Among Children
By Sabrina Tavernise
The New York Times
A new national study has found modest declines in obesity among 2-
to 4-year-olds from poor families, a dip that researchers say may
indicate that the obesity epidemic has passed its peak among this
group.
The study, by researchers from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, drew on the height and weight measurements of 27
million children who were part of the federal Women, Infants and
Children program, which provides food subsidies to low-income
mothers and their children up to age 5.
The study was based on data from 30 states and the District of
Columbia and covered the years from 1998 to 2010. The share of
children who were obese declined to 14.9 percent in 2010, down from
15.2 percent in 2003, after rising between 1998 and 2003. Extreme
obesity also declined, dropping to 2.07 percent in 2010 from 2.22
percent in 2003. The study was published Tuesday in The Journal of
the American Medical Association.
"The declines we're presenting here are pretty modest, but it is
a change in direction," said Heidi M. Blanck, one of the study's
authors and the acting director of the Division of Nutrition,
Physical Activity and Obesity at the disease centers.
It is unclear what drove the decline, but Blanck offered
hypotheses. Breast-feeding, which often leads to healthier weight
gain for young children, has increased since 2000. The percentage of
6-month-olds still being breast-fed increased to 47.7 percent among
children born in 2009, up from 34.2 percent among children born in
2000.
By Sabrina Tavernise
The New York Times
A new national study has found modest declines in obesity among 2-
to 4-year-olds from poor families, a dip that researchers say may
indicate that the obesity epidemic has passed its peak among this
group.
The study, by researchers from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, drew on the height and weight measurements of 27
million children who were part of the federal Women, Infants and
Children program, which provides food subsidies to low-income
mothers and their children up to age 5.
The study was based on data from 30 states and the District of
Columbia and covered the years from 1998 to 2010. The share of
children who were obese declined to 14.9 percent in 2010, down from
15.2 percent in 2003, after rising between 1998 and 2003. Extreme
obesity also declined, dropping to 2.07 percent in 2010 from 2.22
percent in 2003. The study was published Tuesday in The Journal of
the American Medical Association.
"The declines we're presenting here are pretty modest, but it is
a change in direction," said Heidi M. Blanck, one of the study's
authors and the acting director of the Division of Nutrition,
Physical Activity and Obesity at the disease centers.
It is unclear what drove the decline, but Blanck offered
hypotheses. Breast-feeding, which often leads to healthier weight
gain for young children, has increased since 2000. The percentage of
6-month-olds still being breast-fed increased to 47.7 percent among
children born in 2009, up from 34.2 percent among children born in
2000.
(C) 2012 The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star, Norfolk, VA. via ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved
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