Nursery World - Child obesity 'could be levelling off'

More than one in five children starting school are obese or overweight, according to the latest statistics from the Government's National Child Measurement Programme in schools.

By Year 6 this nearly doubles, with one in three children being classified as obese.

The programme's 2008/09 report also found that the prevalence of obesity is significantly higher in boys than in girls in both age groups.

It found higher than national averages for obesity in children living in London, the north-east and the West Midlands.

However, the report claims that the rise in child obesity has levelled off, with the number of reception-age children who are obese remaining the same in 2008/09 as in 2007/08.

This echoes data from the National Heart Forum last month which suggested that obesity in children may be levelling off rather than increasing (News, 12 November).

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