BBC News School Report @ LCS

Across the globe, 124 million children are classed as being ‘too fat’. In the UK, 1 out of every 10 children is obese (aged 5-11). The government’s original plans to help with this matter have seemed to have gone down the drain.

19.8% of 10-11 year olds are obese and 9.3% of 4-5 year olds are obese but how do we decide whether children are obese or not?

If your child is classed as overweight, what should you do? In the occasion that your child is obese, there are many effective ways to help them with their bodies:

- Limit their sugar intake

- Eat healthily at home on a regular basis

- Encourage them to do exercise

- Lead by example by not always going for the unhealthy route with things

- Avoid using adult-sized plates (300mm in size)

- Allow them to sleep for longer

- Make sure they use less technology

If your child stays overweight for the rest of their lives, what could happen? Remaining obese can have some serious effects on a child’s health, especially if they stay the same going forward into adulthood. For example, you could develop:

- Type 2 Diabetes

- Heart Disease

- Stroke

- Certain types of Cancer

What’s the government doing to prevent these from happening? More than 600 children school pupils in the West Midlands took part in a 12 month anti-obesity programme organised by the government but the study found no improvements in the children’s diet or activity levels. The programme included an extra 30minuted of exercise a day, a six week healthy eating and exercise programme and healthy cooking workshops once a term with families.

The government are also asking the food and drink industry to cut 5% of the sugars in popular products over the next year but their ultimate target is to cut 20% of sugar from popular snacks. In drinks, it’s been asked that they could be watered down.

The public and the government are finally taking a step in the right direction, if this plan doesn’t follow through then the nation’s waistline will just continue expanding.