- Public health: Childhood obesity has multiplied by 10 in the last 40 years
Childhood obesity is stabilizing in Spain. This conclusion, hopeful, is produced by a study just published by researchers in our country in the journal JAMA Pediatrics . However, the figures do not give rise to enthusiasm. One in three Spanish children is overweight, which puts their health at risk.
This trend towards stabilization in childhood obesity after years of growth is appreciable in many European countries, says Miriam Garrido, a researcher at the Center for Social and Health Studies at the University of Castilla La Mancha and the main signatory of the work. But, within the continent, there are still great disparities in the prevalence of the problem.
While in Greece or Italy, the percentage of children in this situation exceeds 35% (36.8% and 35.2%) respectively, in other countries, such as Poland or Switzerland the figures speak of 12.5% and a 14.4% of cases.
"In general, the existence of a north-south gradient is confirmed, and the most worrying figures are presented by the Mediterranean countries," says Garrido.
"In addition to the genetic causes, there are numerous economic and lifestyle factors that shape an obesogenic environment, and that could be behind these differences," he continues. For example, a lower level of physical activity is palpable among children in southern Europe, who are also progressively abandoning the Mediterranean diet.
To carry out the research, the team has analyzed data from 103 previous studies. In total, information on 477,620 children aged between 2 and 13 years from 28 European countries has been handled and the evolution of the problem has been studied between 1999 and 2016.
Although its figures remain worrying, in recent years, both in Spain and Portugal there has been a slight decrease in the frequency of child overweight (in Spain the figures went from 33.9% in the period 2007-2010 to 32.1% between 2011 and 2016). "These are very high figures, but it seems that the incidence of the problem could have reached a ceiling," adds the researcher.
Effects of the crisis
One of the aspects that Garrido's work has brought to light is the impact of the economic crisis it has had on obesity figures. During the period from 2007 to 2010, the prevalence rates of overweight and obesity grew especially in some countries in southern Europe, such as Greece , Spain , Malta , Italy or Portugal , which most experienced the effects of the crisis .
However, after the worst years of the recession, the figures showed a tendency towards stabilization and even experienced a regression in some countries. "In most European countries including Spain the figures are stabilizing. However, in many countries in the Mediterranean area such as Italy, Greece or Malta the numbers are still increasing, although they are already very high, " says Garrido.
"The socio-economic factor is key in the risk of overweight and obesity," says the researcher, who emphasizes that, to combat this problem, measures must be put in place to prevent it being easier and cheaper to eat poorly than to eat well . Among others, it proposes to strengthen awareness campaigns to promote healthy eating and exercise, increase taxes on processed foods or restrict advertising for foods whose nutritional profile is poor.
"Children who are overweight or obese have an increased risk of obesity in adulthood, with the consequent burden of chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, psychological disorders, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, among many others," said researchers. "The measures to promote physical activity and adherence to the Mediterranean diet that most governments have in place cannot relax, and interventions in the Mediterranean countries must urgently implement interventions to control this serious public health problem that threatens the well-being of the next generations of adults and the elderly, "they conclude.
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