New figures released this week show that one fifth of children in England are either obese or overweight when they start school at age four or five, and for those in Year 6, the final year of primary school, the picture is even bleaker, and shows nearly one in three children are overweight or obese in the lead up to secondary school at age ten or eleven.

The figures are part of a new report released by the The NHS Information Centre on Thursday, which shows the results of the government’s National Child Measurement Programme 2008/09 that requires reception year children (age four or five) and Year 6 children (age ten and eleven) to be measured and thus establish a national picture of what proportion of pupils are ‘underweight’, ‘healthy weight’, ‘overweight’ and ‘obese’.

The figures only reflect children in state schools in England in the school year 2008/09. According to the Independent Schools Council, around 7.2 per cent of children in the UK do not attend state schools: they are educated in the private system.

The key findings of the new report show that:

  • Between 2007/08 and 2008/09 there were no significant changes in the prevalence rates for underweight, overweight, or obese children for both reception and Year 6 children.
  • In 2008/09 more boys than girls were overweight and obese in both Reception and Year 6.
  • For reception age children (age four and five), 22.8 per cent were overweight or obese, of which 9.6 per cent were obese.
  • For this age group, 24 per cent of boys and 21.5 per cent of girls were overweight or obese.
  • For Year 6 age children (age ten and eleven), 32.6 per cent were overweight or obese, of which 18.3 per cent were obese.
  • For this age group, 34.5 per cent of boys and 30.7 per cent of girls were overweight or obese.
  • The proportion of obese children in both age groups is higher in the London, North East and West Midlands strategic health authority areas than the national average.

In the end notes to the report, the authors highlight that an analysis based on the 2007/08 participation rates suggest that the prevalence figures for obesity among Year 6 children could be an under-estimate, but were unlikely to affect the figures for reception year children.

Tim Straughan, the chief executive of The NHS Information Centre told the media that this was the fourth year of the study, and more than a million children now take part in it.

He said this year’s figures reflect much the same picture as last year’s.

“They highlight the scale of obesity among some of our young children – something which may affect their future health,” he added.

Minister of State for Public Health, Gillian Merron, said that there was increasing evidence to suggest that childhood obesity was “levelling off”.

She said she was glad there was now a 90 per cent take up rate in the government scheme to monitor children’s weight and wellbeing, but “we need to keep the momentum going”, and everyone needs to play their part, she told BBC News.

— National Child Measurement Programme

Source: The NHS Information Centre, BBC News.

Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD