Coalition for Active Children

Childhood Obesity Trends in the U.S.

Reports

Complications of Childhood Obesity
The New England Journal of Medicine
Last week, I met with the G. family in the Optimal Weight for Life (OWL) clinic at my hospital. One of the parents was overweight, and the other was obese. The five children were more severely obese and had numerous weight-related complications — one had evidence of fatty liver, one had high blood pressure, two had gastroesophageal reflux, two had orthopedic problems, three had marked insulin resistance, four had dyslipidemia, and all had emotional problems related to their weight.
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Childhood Body-Mass Index and the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Adulthood
The New England Journal of Medicine
The study is a longitudinal study conducted in Denmark aimed at exploring the association between body mass index (BMI) in childhood with coronary heart disease (CHD) in adulthood. The results indicate that higher BMIs are associated with higher risks of CHD in adulthood, particularly among boys. For 13-year old boys with a high BMI, it was estimated that 15.5% would have a CHD event by the time they were 60.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC
The percentage of young people who are overweight has more than tripled since 1980. Among children and teens aged 6–19 years, 16 percent (over 9 million young people) are considered overweight.
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