Fat children often suffer from metabolic disorders

Study: Thick children often suffer from metabolic disorders

02/12/2014

According to one study, fat children often suffer from metabolic disorders even at primary school age. These often remained undiscovered and therefore would not be treated. Especially girls are at risk.

Especially girls affected
Already during their primary school many fat children suffer according to a new study according to metabolic disorders. Despite preventive medical examinations, these usually remained undetected and would therefore not be treated, said nutritionist Prof. Dr. med. Ina Bergheim from the Friedrich Schiller University Jena. Especially young girls are affected because they have problems in their metabolism already on the border between normal and overweight. In boys, this is often the case with severe obesity, the so-called obesity. This is not a normal overweight but a health disorder that can cause a variety of conditions, such as high blood pressure or diabetes. According to the definition of the World Health Organization (WHO), obesity is from a body mass index (BMI) of 30 kg / m2; in front.

Three quarters of children with metabolic disorders
Nutritionists at the Friedrich Schiller University of Jena and the University of Hohenheim have now shown in a recent study that as many as three-quarters of overweight children between the ages of five and eight have symptoms of weight-related metabolic disorders. The researchers had examined a total of 100 overweight and 51 normal-weight children, in each of which no previous illnesses were known. In 16 percent of normal-weight girls and boys was at least one noticeable value such as blood sugar, blood lipid or cholesterol been found in the overweight even 73 percent. Some children also had questionable values ​​for up to five factors. The results of their work, the scientists recently in the journal „Acta Paediatrica“ released.

The fat, healthy child is practically non-existent
Study Director Bergheim commented on the results: „ These are alarming values.“ Especially when you consider that the children, apart from their heavy weight, are considered healthy. „This means that these hidden disturbances are not treated.“ As the scientist further said, her study showed that it was the „healthy fat kid“ practically do not exist. It is surprising in general that the consequences of being overweight already occur in children and not in adulthood. Some of the children have already had clear signs of diabetes. „It has been shown that many of these children are not just a bit quirky, but downright sick.“ The nutritionist pleaded for the future in the regular screening of children more likely to take into account possible metabolic disorders, because so far it goes there „mainly about the physical and mental development of children.“

More exercise would help
For the children studied, the cause of the overweight was less excessive or unhealthy eating. „With a little more exercise a lot would have been done“, said the nutritionist. A large proportion of the children would have consumed only about 150 to 200 kilocalories too much compared to their physical activity. „That's just half a chocolate bar. But over time, so overweight builds up.“ According to the Federal Center for Health Education, 15 percent of all children and adolescents aged 3 to 17 years are overweight in Germany. (Sb)