Obesity crisis in P1

Shocking stats reveal extent of health problems among young

healthy lifestyle groups for children that involve families.

“We would encourage parents to take advantage of these programmes.

“The Lanarkshire healthy weight strategy has also recently been launched which is a multi-agency approach to tackle the significant influences on weight within our communities.

“Among its many actions is a commitment by all the partners to implement active play and promote healthy eating and working.”

The latest figures for 2016/17 were released by Information Services Division Scotland, a part of NHS Scotland which provides health service data used in planning.

And the Body Mass Index (BMI) of 6954 children of primary one age was looked at across the NHS Lanarkshire area, compared to 6910 the previous year.

The survey shows 0.4 per cent (down from 0.6 per cent) were underweight; 84.7 per cent per cent were at a healthy weight (down from 85.1 per cent); 8.5 per cent were overweight (up from 8.1 per cent); 4.0 per cent were obese (up from 3.7 per cent); and 2.4 per cent were severely obese (down from 2.5 per cent).

The statistics are derived from height and weight measurements recorded at the primary one health review.

BMI assesses body composition in children aged two or older and adults. It is calculated by dividing an individual’s weight (in kilogrammes) by their height squared (in square metres) and gives an indication of whether weight is in proportion to height. Generally, it gives a good indication of body composition, but can occasionally misclassify those with heavy musculature as being overweight or obese.