Toddlers who are overweight or obese are much more likely to become overweight/obese 12-year-olds when compared to toddlers of normal weight, say American researchers who monitored children from 2 to 12 years of age.

You can read about this study in the journal Pediatrics September 2006 issue.

Duane Alexander, M.D., Director of NIH’s National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, said “These findings underscore the need to maintain a healthy weight beginning in early childhood. Contrary to popular belief, young children who are overweight or obese typically won’t lose the extra weight simply as a result of getting older.” The NIH funded the study.

Previous studies have indicated that early teenagers who are overweight/obese are much more likely to become overweight/obese adults than early teenagers of normal weight. One could extrapolate from this study that an overweight/obese toddler is much more likely to become an overweight/obese adult, compared to a toddler of normal weight.

In this study, the researchers wanted to assist clinicians by estimating a toddler’s risk of overweight and obesity during middle childhood and early adolescent years by monitoring his/her BMI status. They monitored the development of 1,042 children from ten locations in the USA – they were all enrolled in the study at birth, in 1991. They used data collected as part of the NICHD Study of Eatly Child Care and Youth Development. The children came from a wide range of socioeconomic levels. 80% of them were brought up in households where two parents were present.

The researchers collected data on the childrens’ height and weight when they were 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 11 and 12 years old. Children were classed as overweight if their BMI (Body Mass Index) was above the 85th percentile (compared to national statistics for kids of their age).

They found that:

— If a child was overweight at least once, aged 2-4, he/she was 5 times more likely to be overweight at 12, compared to a child who was never overweight aged 2-4.

— A child who was overweight once while at elementary school was 25 times more likely to be overweight at 12, compared to a child who was never overweight while at elementary school.

— A child who was overweight twice while at elementary school was 159 times more likely to be overweight at 12, compared to a child who was never overweight while at elementary school.

— A child who was overweight three times while at elementary school was 374 times more likely to be overweight at 12, compared to a child who was never overweight while at elementary school.

?Identifying Risk for Obesity in Early Childhood?
Philip R. Nader, M, Marion O’Brien, PhD, Renate Houts, PhD, Robert Bradley, PhD, Jay Belsky, PhD, Robert Crosnoe, PhD, Sarah Friedman, PhD, Zuguo Mei, MD, Elizabeth J. Susman, PhD for the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Early Child Care Research Network
PEDIATRICS Vol. 118 No. 3 September 2006, pp. e594-e601
(doi:10.1542/peds.2005-2801)
Click Here To View Abstract

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today