Experts interpret the new version of childhood obesity prevention and control guidelines


　　World Obesity Day: The focus of children's obesity is to change lifestyles

　　March 4th is World Obesity Day, and this year's propaganda theme is "Obesity Prevention and Control, You and I Act Together".

In the minds of elders, there is always a concept that "it's better for children to be fat when they are young", but this is not the case.

Under the guidance of the National Health Commission, the "Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Childhood Obesity (2021)" led by the School of Public Health of Peking University will be published in 2021.

According to the "Report on Nutrition and Chronic Diseases of Chinese Residents (2020)", the editor-in-chief of the "Guide", Professor Ma Guansheng from the School of Public Health of Peking University introduced that the current overweight and obesity rates of children aged 6-17 in my country are 11.1% and 7.9%, respectively. The prevalence of overweight and obesity in children under 6 is 6.8% and 3.6%, respectively.

　　Recently, the research was organized by School of Public Health of Peking University, "China School Hygiene", "China Maternal and Child Health Research", "China Food and Nutrition", Women and Children Obesity Control Committee of Maternal and Child Health Research Association and China Student Nutrition and Health Promotion Association for obesity prevention. The online seminar on "Childhood Obesity Prevention and Control" co-hosted by the China National Health Commission and others was successfully held.

At the meeting, many well-known domestic experts in the field of childhood obesity prevention and control gave speeches, discussed the prevention and control of childhood obesity in my country, and shared the latest research progress.

　　No need for too many restrictions

　　child's energy intake

　　At the seminar, Professor Ma Guansheng made some summary suggestions on the prevention of childhood obesity, focusing on three aspects.

The first is dietary intervention, and it is crucial to control eating; the second is exercise intervention to ensure sufficient physical activity to increase energy consumption; the third is behavioral intervention.

"Whether it is eating or moving, it involves the development and formation of healthy behaviors and lifestyles." Ma Guansheng said, such as long-term intake of high-fat, high-energy foods, skipping breakfast, eating fast food, drinking sugary drinks, Eating out frequently is a typical unhealthy lifestyle.

　　Professor Gao Shan from the Maternal and Child Health Research Association mentioned childhood diabetes, which is closely related to obesity.

"Don't think that it is only very fat children. Many children who are just overweight also have diabetes problems." She mentioned that in addition to children's family history of diabetes, some unhealthy lifestyle factors are also important reasons.

Children 9-10 years old or a little later can develop elevated blood sugar due to sugary beverages and high-fat diets and unhealthy eating behaviors.

　　"The treatment of obesity in children and adolescents mainly depends on the enhancement of physical activity and the change of lifestyle and behavior, and the effect will be seen soon." Gao Shan mentioned that the treatment of childhood obesity does not limit energy intake too much, It is necessary to moderately limit the intake of energy on the premise of ensuring the normal growth and development of children; at the same time, we do not want overweight children to blindly use drugs, and it is important to change their lifestyles.

　　food choices for children

　　Follow the principle of small quantity and multi-variety

　　Experts at the meeting reached a consensus on the issue of healthy eating behavior.

There are several main recommendations: First, eat less fried foods and limit sugar intake.

　　Second, drink less or no sugar-sweetened beverages, and pay attention to drinking enough water. Compared with sugar-sweetened beverages, children are encouraged to consume 300 ml or more of milk and dairy products per day.

　　Third, three meals should be regular, regular and quantitative, try to eat at home or at school, and eat less outside.

　　Fourth, control the amount of food you eat, don't eat a full meal, and don't overeat.

　　Fifth, eat snacks reasonably, preferably not more than 10% of the total energy throughout the day, preferably between meals, not close to the main meal, and choose dairy products, fruits, nuts, etc. as snacks.

　　Sixth, make sure to eat a good breakfast, and ensure that the food is rich in variety, including grains and potatoes, as well as fish, poultry, eggs, milk, fresh fruits and beans, and not too full for dinner.

　　In addition, Zhang Qian, a researcher at the Institute of Nutrition and Health of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said in her speech that there is a lot of scientific evidence that the amount of food is closely related to the prevention of overweight and obesity in children. To ensure a variety of food, it is best to consume more than 12 kinds of food every day, give children less food with high energy density, eat more vegetables and fruits, and eat whole grains, fish, eggs, lean meat and milk in moderation product.

　　Introduce complementary foods earlier than 4 months

　　increased risk of obesity in infants

　　Experts also discussed the relationship between childhood obesity and mothers, emphasizing that prevention should start early in life.

The first 1,000 days of life refer to the period from a woman's conception to around 2 years of age, when breastfeeding and complementary feeding methods can have some crucial long-term effects on a baby's near- and long-term health.

Professor Wang Haijun from the School of Public Health of Peking University mentioned that adding complementary food earlier than 4 months will increase the risk of childhood obesity, and it is recommended to add complementary food when the baby is 6 months old.

"If the complementary food intake in infancy is relatively high in energy, especially if the intake of protein from meat or fish is very high, it will significantly increase the BMI value of children, and the impact on childhood obesity will continue to school age."

　　Wang Haijun provided several suggestions for pregnant mothers. First, they should regularly monitor the weight changes during pregnancy and maintain an appropriate weight gain during pregnancy according to their pre-pregnancy BMI. Second, they should have a balanced diet during pregnancy, with a variety of foods, not overeating, and controlling total energy intake; The third is suitable physical activity during pregnancy. For healthy pregnant women, there should be no less than 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity every day.

　　In addition, Ma Guansheng also introduced that compared with the "Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Overweight and Obesity in Chinese School-aged Children and Adolescents" released in 2008, the new guideline released this time has six changes:

　　1. The revised committee covers experts in disease control, clinical and other fields; 2. The revision process is more scientific and standardized; 3. The population covered is more comprehensive; 4. The content of the supportive environment has been added; 5. The structure of the entire text The layout has been adjusted; 6. Organizing the publication of review papers.

　　For example, the management object of the old version of the "Guide" is limited to school-aged children, while the management object of the 2021 version of the "Guide" covers children of all ages under the age of 18, as well as normal-weight children and overweight and obese children.

In addition, the new version of the "Guide" also adds the content of supportive environment, with special emphasis on prevention and control from the four aspects of family environment, school environment, community environment and social environment.

　　Text/Reporter Lei Ruotong