Obese SA children face hard future in climate change era
● From greasy fast food and sugary drinks to spaza shop snacks and suburban mall doughnuts, many South African children are on a one-way ticket to misery as temperatures rise, physical activity drops and obesity sets in.
Obese children, according to a new study, will be unable to tolerate the heat of the climate crisis, meaning countries such as SA, where temperatures and childhood obesity are on the rise, are in for trouble.
“As the Earth’s warming continues to accelerate, children are set to bear the health risk of rising global temperatures. Physical fitness has a direct impact on heat tolerance, yet children are less fit and more obese than ever before.”
That’s the stark warning from Shawnda Morrison, an international researcher whose paper, published in Temperature, says children’s aerobic fitness is 30% lower than that of their parents at the same age.
Most children do not meet World Health Organisation guidelines of performing an average of at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day, and “physical inactivity was accelerated, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, when schools and other societal infrastructures were closed”.
Mean annual temperatures have increased in SA by at least 1.5 times the observed global average increase of 0.65°C during the past 50 years, according to Climate Links.
Matthew Chersich, a researcher at Wits University, said climate change in SA should be reframed “predominantly as a health issue”.
“Climate change heightens the pre-existing vulnerabilities of women, fishing communities, rural subsistence farmers and those living in informal settlements.
“Further, gender disparities, eco-migration and social disruptions may undermine the prevention — but also treatment — of HIV,” he said, adding that an urgent health sector response is necessary.
“The health sector, hitherto a fringe player, should assume a greater leadership role in promoting policies that protect the public’s health, address inequities and advance the country’s commitments to climate change accords.”
According to the South African Medical Research Council, one in four South African girls aged two to 14 and one in six boys in the same age group are overweight or obese.
“South Africa is undergoing a nutrition transition, and overweight and obesity are on the increase in South African children,” said Natisha Dukhi of the Human Sciences Research Council.
“Urbanisation and other health determinants have led to reduced physical activity
and unhealthy eating that have increased the risk of adverse chronic health conditions.”
Even without the climate crisis in the mix, these are worrying statistics, but Morrison said obese children would be at much higher risk of heat-related health problems such as dehydration, heat cramps, heat exhaustion or heat stroke as temperatures rise.
Existing climate change policies fail to adequately address child health needs, and encouraging children to make exercise part of their everyday lives must be prioritised if
they are to cope with living in a hotter world.
Unfortunately in SA, childhood obesity is not simply a case of parents making bad food choices.
Lori Lake, a child health advocate at the Children’s Institute at the University of Cape Town (UCT), said perceptions must shift from saying: “If only people ate the right things and got enough exercise”, to seeing the broader context of food systems and living conditions.
Tracey Naledi, deputy dean of health sciences at UCT, said even among children under the age of two, one in four consume “unhealthy sugary food”— processed breakfast cereals, snack bars, processed meats, biscuits, crisps, fast food and similar products.
“This sets dietary habits and preferences which are difficult to change later,” she said, adding that marketing plays a big role.
“Billboards advertising these products are deliberately close to schools, and nearby vendors are conveniently placed to provide unhealthy snacks.
“This mega food production system has brought in bad food in general and destroyed local, vibrant markets and access to fresh food,” she said.
Also, core tenants in malls and those being built in townships are fast-food franchises.
According to Child Gauge 2020, which focuses on food and nutrition security, a healthy diet should include a diverse mix from different food groups daily, including breast milk; grains, roots and tubers; legumes, nuts and seeds; dairy (milk, yoghurt, cheese); modest amounts of flesh foods (meats, fish, poultry and liver or organ meats); eggs; Vitamin A-rich fruits and vegetables (carrots, mangoes, dark green leafy vegetables, pumpkins, orange sweet potato); and other types of fruits and vegetables.