Researchers have warned that class is going to play an increasing role in determining which children become obese over the next five years, causing certain societal groups to be far worse hit by the problem..
The team from University College Hospital found that while childhood obesity rates are levelling off, this was mostly amongst children from wealthier backgrounds. Children from lower classes were significantly more likely to be overweight by 2015, with girls at especial risk.
The researchers used historical trends to predict that though currently 6.9% of boys and 7.4% of girls are obese, in five years this is likely to have risen to above 10% of boys and 8.9% of girls. However this is the average for the entire British population aged between 2 to 10 – in actually, there is likely to be a large diversion between obesity rates for different classes, with children from professional families seeing obesity in their children drop to 5.4%, while those from lower classes will see it rise to 11.4%.
The team said that these rates were likely to continue as the boys entered adolescence, though it became less pronounced among teenage girls.
They suggested that those from lower socio-economic groups were less likely to listen to governmental messages about healthy living, such as the Change4Life program, seeing them as a symptom of the nanny state. The researchers also called for public health action to ‘narrow social inequalities in health’.
A spokeperson from the Department of Health said that the evidence showing childhood obesity was levelling off was down to the hard work of families, schools and the NHS but admitted that obesity levels were too high and momentum was needed to turn the tide.