LET’S BE HONEST ABOUT WHY KIDS ARE ACTUALLY OBESE

We need to talk about fat kids. They are, in England fatter than ever according to oficial data released today.

My neighbouring London borough of Brent has, according to these igures, the highest number of severely obese children — 7.8 per cent — while over the bridge in fancy-pants Richmond, they have the lowest percentage of too-chubby cheeks at just 1.5 per cent.

You don’t have to be a statistics genius to know why there is such disparity between these two boroughs. More people on benefits, and those who struggle to make the rent, live in Brent and more people with labradoodles, Hunter wellies and annual passes to Kew Gardens live in Richmond.

I myself was thinner when I lived in Richmond. Its glorious park was a playground to my son and I. Come rain or shine we’d run around every single day, having adventures and trying not to get run over by grumpy cyclists on their razor-blade wheels.

Affluence wafts around Richmond like overpriced coffee in Shoreditch. The children are rosy-cheeked, chock-full of vitamins and good vocabulary, and if you wander over to Barnes Pond, you’ll be slap-bang in the middle of a Richard Curtis ilm, produced by Enid Blyton.

Of course the children are healthier over there. Their bikes are permanently in the front garden so they can go for a family cycle at the drop of a Barbour jacket. The kitchen cupboards are full of lovely things bought from the farmers’ market, and a “special treat” is a trip to the new sushi place which does “ah-mazing” juices to boot (rather than a Mcflurry with a gloomy-looking cheeseburger).

We can screech “THE KIDS ARE GETTING FATTER!” all we like but without looking at the social reasons why, it will continue. No one is under any illusions about the nutritional value of chips. But crushed under inancial strain? Hopelessness? Depression? And the kids need feeding? Well, a plate of chips is fast, cheap and easy.

You can huff and puff all you like around a park but weight doesn’t really come off until your food is sorted out. It takes organisation, time, effort and mental positivity to pull yourself from the sludge of high-fat, high-calorie food. A pattern of overeating is frequently linked with depression and hopelessness. Then there is not having the means, the time or experience to do things that might be a better way to spend your time than eating.

What exercise does that’s crucial is that it connects your mind to your body. Getting the old endorphins going is a mighty tool to help make food choices that nourish, rather than numb.

Sugar is addictive, comfort-eating is addictive and if you’re in a cycle where you are struggling to keep your head above water, you’re as likely to turn to those things as others are to booze and fags. This needs to be acknowledged before you can take a step closer to crispy kale salad and a family park run.

The data about the increase in obesity don’t “suggest” but actually spell out the direct correlation between poverty and obesity.